Fundamentalist detox

I like to think that some of what we have been doing for the past 7 months or so has been a type of detox from fundamentalism. Many of us are used to churches where asking questions is bad, accepting whatever answer your pastor gives is good. I couldn't disagree with church more than I disagree with that.

I think at one point or another that all of us have been shaken by some things we are talking about. That is good. I think one of the most disrespectful things we can do to God is to refuse to think more deeply about him. I think about it kind of like I think about any other relationship. What if after a few years of being married to Robin, I suddenly stopped asking her questions? What if I refused to mention her to anyone else, or to try to understand her more deeply? What if I had a very detailed journal of our previous interaction, and I refused to do anything but read that journal because I thought it helped me to "know" her more?

I think sometimes we run that same danger with God and the scriptures. Obviously the Bible is much better than some detailed journal, it is the written record of God's revelation to people. But it is not to be substituted for an actual relationship. We have, at least in my opinion, an obligation to ask tough questions, to talk to friends about God, to try to know him better than before. Sometimes I will discover something new about Robin, and it is pretty great. Wouldn't it be a catastrophe to be afraid to ask her anything new? That is, to me, the only way we can continue to draw closer.

So, I know this has been a struggle sometimes. When I was a fundamentalist I didn't have this kind of struggle. But I also didn't feel like I was pursuing God as he was pursuing me. It felt like I was simply knowing God as the pastor knew God. To me, that would be like just getting to know Robin by asking her dad a ton of questions. Talk about short changing ourselves!

That is why I think it has been good to "detox" from fundamentalism. Hopefully as we go now, we can enjoy the cosmic dance with God, knowing that he is infinitely creative and capable of making new dance moves, of interacting with us in a personal way, of moving us and making us into the kind of citizens of his kingdom that he desires. My hope is that we will always be a church that embraces the questions of life.