Separation - Both Cause and Solution

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 As Jesus pointed out, much of the suffering in the world can be attributed to transfer of wealth and power from the masses to a tiny ruling class. Relationships have become increasingly transactional. Even the marriage relationship, becoming one flesh, has become disposable with fewer than half actually making it. We have become separated from one another. Division and competition among us only serves the rich and powerful. Their messaging machine will try to convince you that the solution is more accumulation of wealth, but it isn't. Wealth and power only makes it worse. No wonder mental health has become the biggest concern among our young people. 

Paradoxically, the solution is also separation. Resistance is futile. It only generates more conflict. "Come out from among them and be separate," says Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:17 quoting Old Testament writers calling for restoring our relationship with God. His values are the opposite of the world's. He loves us and only wants what is best for us. We need to build a new church based on those values. I believe returning to something similar to the early church model with collective stewardship and everything in common is essential for the survival of the planet. A totally moneyless society may not be achievable in the short term, but we can take some steps in that direction today.

In modern terms, the church we need to build is a community or network of communities intentionally gathered based on Jesus' message of surrender and sacrifice where everyone contributes as they are able and receive as they have need. I am convinced that such a society is possible when you approach it with a servant's attitude.  It does not mean a return to primitivism, asceticism or poverty. It will mean abundance for everyone, not just the few, but it won't happen no matter how loudly you proclaim it or pray for it. What you need to do is make it happen. Show them with your example. Start gathering and start building.

Separation - the Root Cause

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At the time of Jesus, the problems front and center were: Roman occupation and political and economic division. Many had an expectation that a savior would come to fix it all like when Moses brought them out of slavery in Egypt.

Today we have some of those same problems except on a much grander scale. We used to be able to only have to deal with the problems in our own little corner of the world. Modern technology has brought the rest of the world right into our living rooms and onto our mobile devices. Today's world is characterized by the economic and cultural domination of a few superpowers led by autocrats. Divisions of all sorts cause death and destruction among us everywhere. Extreme poverty and extreme wealth exist side by side.

Autocracy is not a new phenomenon. We have repeatedly made the same mistake the Jews made when they wanted a king as their savior. 1 Samuel 8:11-17 lists all the nasty consequences of relying on the wrong kind of "savior" who is only concerned with their own position of power. The gospel writers introduce Jesus as the Son of God telling the Jews to return to the rule of God who is love and who only wants what is best for his people, a totally different kind of king. "My kingdom is not of this world," they have him say.

I think it is safe to say that one way or another, there have always been people who would impose their will on others. Their powers have taken many forms over the millennia; economic, political, religious, physical, mental power. Jesus exposed the abuse and mobilized the masses to bring the Kingdom of God to earth by feeding the hungry and healing the sick.

Lately, mental health is often listed at the top of the problems experienced by our youngest generations. There are others, but mental health is the most prominent. For a long time mental health was associated with stigma and taboo. Modern science has vastly expanded our knowledge of the human mind. Today the youngest generations have cut through the stigma and exposed the root causes. A new generation of Jesus followers is poised to build a new church that will be for all the people. 

Ancient Spirituality Made New Again

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 The gospel writers portrayed Jesus as God. Clearly, that has worked very well. Today, nearly a third of the world's population identify as Christians.

In the meantime, science has come a long way; the church not so much. It has been slow to adapt. Lately many, especially young people, have become frustrated with the disconnect. They began to feel like aliens and left the church in droves. They became exiles. Many kept their faith, but kept it private to avoid getting lumped in with the old church that no longer made sense to them. Their worldview that humans are fundamentally good and want the best for everyone left them isolated and alone in a world that values competition and individualism.

Scientists and philosophers now recognize that religion and spirituality is an integrated part of human nature. Every culture in the world has some kind of religious practice. Something deep within us recognizes a common origin that compels us to live connected with each other. 

With this new insight, that the ancient writers were right, but that the church had forgotten, the exiles have quietly begun to craft a new form of spirituality without the labels and practices of their parents. Sometimes you will hear or see young people deny Christianity, but simultaneously act more Christlike than the ones who may think they are Christians but really aren't. The awakening seems to have been mostly internal so far, but as they connect with others like them, they are beginning to become more public. New research shows that the number of young people who say they believe in Jesus is on the rise.

That is good news, but overcoming tension with the old church is going to be a long and hard journey. The task at hand is to build a new church the way Jesus envisioned it. We had better get going. 

The Modern Church

 

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From time to time various critics have warned that the church was on its way down the wrong track. Historically, the church, in its almost universal position of power, has been slow to change, so power shifted from the church to a new ruling class of mostly wealthy old men and lawyers, the state.

While still in power, the church ruled almost every aspect of our lives. Then the state assumed that role. Both have missed their positions of power to create a world that would benefit all the people. Will a new tech-savvy generation have an  answer to rapid and out of control change? Will life in their hands be better or worse? Will they remember the lessons from the past?

Largely in obscurity and on the fringes of the chaos, a movement of innovators has emerged  experimenting with alternatives, some treading lightly, others more radically and revolutionary. A few have survived, but many have failed. 

What they all have in common is faith in the power of community. That is a radical departure from the prevailing worldview based on competition and survival of the fittest. The opposite worldview, that cooperation, not competition, is the fuel that drives the ascent of successful species. Articulation of this view is relatively recent, but I will argue that it has been part of the human story for many, many thousands of years. 

The gospel writers may not have had the vocabulary to describe it, but it is definitely present in everything Jesus taught. Luke describes the early church in the book of Acts. You might argue that it failed. I say that it didn’t. It changed because the people failed to follow the teachings of Jesus. They failed to surrender to the community and to put the interests of others ahead of their own, the two simple commandments Jesus gave us in Matthew 22:37 and 39.

Community has been a hard sell in the halls of power for a while now, but I see hope in the new generation emerging from the sidelines. They may not have the language yet, but they do have the heart for community. They also have a powerful motivator, the sins of the past.