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Is Christianity Becoming to Secularized?
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September 28, 2021
In his book The Strangest Way Bishop Barron talks about the secularization of Christianity. He said in our efforts to not offend individuals and be more welcoming to other faiths, Christianity has become very beige, and our message has been diluted and thus unappealing.
If one were to enter the Middle East during the Muslim holy season, Ramadan, it would be unmistakable that something was afoot. Business practices and personal decisions are largely affected during Ramadan. Conversely a visitor would have no similar indication it was lent during the Christian Easter season. The observation that Barron makes cannot be denied.
Has Christianity become too secularized? Are we too much like our culture? Our modern ethos Barron says is a *secularized Christianity that mirrors our culture to a great degree.
It makes me wonder about how I approach my faith. Am I too secular?
*Secularization: the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institution.
The radical difference between Christianity and other religious ideologies is of course Jesus Christ and the cross, which for us Catholics, also encompasses the Eucharist. But other than that, the focus like other world religions, is often on following a set of principles or moral instructions as an individual pursues God. Because our pursuit is based on following some standard we can get misaligned thinking that it's through heroic moral effort we win favor with God.
That is an erroneous view of Christianity. Let me be clear, however, our faith does require work and effort on our part, but it was never meant to be odious or a way to gain favor with God. When we do that we neglect "Relationship" with our Father. God is not just concerned about us "Doing" but more importantly HOW we do things. Hmm Interesting point to reflect on. In Johns Gospel Jesus told Martha that it was not what she was doing that was an issue, but HOW she was doing it. Martha lost her center while her sister did not.
In Greek Mythology the Greek hero Prometheus ascended Mt Olympus much to the chagrin of the gods and stole fire and gave it to humanity. The gods were angry so they chained up Prometheus and sent an eagle to chew on his liver each day. The Greeks view, and our worlds, is that God is often seen as our rival, and that He has things which he does not want to willingly give us without a fight on our part. Therefore, we must plead and cajole to get Him to respond and its only through some herculean effort on our part that we finally get His attention.
Going back to the beginning, in the Garden of Eden, we can see this false rivalry play out in the way that Adam hides and in the way they are manipulated into believing that the tree offered something that only God had, and indeed God did not want them to have... This is the great poison that our earliest parents gave us. Perhaps the real lesson of the forbidden fruit, that we are called to learn, is some things cannot be seized they must be freely given. Barron often says we cannot grasp but must let go and allow ourselves to be grasped. We as humans need to relearn those lessons and let our Father grasp us.
If you live that endless struggle of trying to find acceptance, and grasping as it were, you are missing the point. Christianity’s message starts with God’s acceptance of us and it is all about His pursuit of us and not the other way around. Everything else in the Christian message is commentary. The heartbeat of Christianity is Gods constant search for us as He seeks ways to build a connection to you and me. We simply respond to His great faithfulness. The pursuit you believe is your own is none other than God who seeks you with reckless abandon. I surmise that if man did not need a savior God would’ve found a way to exemplify his search by still sending his son to die for us. The cross is more than forgiveness it is about God desiring and demonstrating his longing for friendship with you and me. Yes, with you personally. His is a very radical love indeed.
In Johns Gospel Jesus asked a few of John the Baptists disciples what they were looking for? Oddly these men returned the question with a question by asking “Where are you staying?”
In the Greek language stay has a much deeper meaning than, where is your house? Or where are you staying? This sentence could easily have been rendered What gives you life? or What are you like at your core? Where does your life come from?
The disciples were not simply looking for Jesus’s address, they wanted to know what made him tick and in so doing Jesus invited them to stay with himself, to be still, to sit and learn.
We cannot capture the Christian message by loosely associating ourselves with its message we must “move in closely” to begin to be grasped by its richness. We must apprentice in the faith by living and moving in close proximity to Jesus.
I have to admit Bishop Barron raises some very interesting and thought provoking ideas that certainly lend themselves to self-reflection and meditation. I also have to admit that my walk with Jesus can sometimes be very secularized. Often my actions mirror our culture. But Barron’s message also gives me hope that as I reflect on his words I can make some meaningful changes to correct some things.
Do we live life fighting to gain God’s acceptance? Do we feel as though we are not good enough? Do we see God much like a cosmic coach marking down our successes and failures?
If your answer is yes don’t lose hope and accept the fact that God accepts you. Pray daily, maintain your spiritual disciplines, and your Father will do the rest.