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title, source, author, published, created, description, tags
| title | source | author | published | created | description | tags | ||
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| Why Church Leaders Are So Worried About Deconstruction | https://medium.com/backyard-theology/why-church-leaders-are-so-worried-about-faith-deconstruction-8f3a61982bb4 |
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2024-08-26 | 2024-10-29 | According to Barna Research, “52% of U.S. adults and teens have experienced religious doubts in the past three years.” This growing trend reflects a broader movement towards faith deconstruction… |
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And Why They Shouldn’t Be
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Image by STEKLO on Shutterstock
Have you ever had doubts about any aspect of the Christian faith?
You’re not alone.
According to Barna Research, “52% of U.S. adults and teens have experienced religious doubts in the past three years.” This growing trend reflects a broader movement towards faith deconstruction, where individuals critically examine and reassess their religious beliefs and practices.
Deconstruction isn’t necessarily about rejecting your faith outright. It’s about engaging deeply with one’s beliefs to determine what holds up under scrutiny. It’s a process that can lead to a more authentic and meaningful understanding of faith and that makes it a good thing!
And yet, faith deconstruction seems to terrify many traditional church leaders. John Cooper, the lead singer of Christian rock band Skillet, shared his views on this topic with his audience at a recent concert.
To put it simply, he’s not a fan.
“It is time that we declare war against this deconstruction Christian movement,” He said during an impassioned sermon in front of his adoring fans. “I don’t even like calling it deconstruction Christian. There is nothing Christian about it. It is a false religion.”
So, I guess people in the throes of faith deconstruction — people like me — need to prepare for a war, whatever that means. There are bits and pieces of Cooper’s rant on various social media platforms. Here is a snippet from YouTube:
Source: YouTube
After declaring war on deconstruction, Cooper questions why a generation that prides itself on being its most “authentic self” is also “the most medicated, anxious, and suicidal in our nation’s history.”
I might have answered, “Religious trauma at the hands of fundamentalist churches and institutions might have something to do with it,” but this was a different crowd — and they cheered their approval.
Cooper went on:
“And for all those formerly Christian people who have tried to tell all these young folks that they think they found a third way, their third way is this: It’s OK if you’re into Jesus, just don’t be into the Bible. I’m here to tell you, young folks, there is no such thing as loving Jesus but not loving his Word.”
Then he seamlessly segued into a promotion of his own book aptly titled, “Awake and Alive to Truth,” which he wrote because a “generation of young people have not been taught the basic principles of the word of God,” and his book provides both the truth and the Biblical principles young people need… apparently.
Cooper’s perspective on faith deconstruction mirrors the views of other Christian leaders, such as renowned evangelical preacher Matt Chandler, who said:
“You and I are in an age where deconstruction and the turning away from and leaving the faith has become some sort of sexy thing to do. I contend that if you ever experience the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ actually, that that’s really impossible to deconstruct from.”
It’s no surprise that conservative Christians are practically quaking in their boots over deconstruction. They’re not quite sure what it is, where it came from, or why it’s happening, but they’re definitely certain it’s a threat to their dwindling empire. They can’t help but see deconstruction as a dastardly plot to undermine their once-ironclad grip on American Christianity. So, they attack it with both barrels.
There are all sorts of problems with Cooper’s rhetoric and Chandler’s false conclusion about faith deconstruction. It shows just how much they don’t get it. Let me explain:
Deconstruction is not deconversion
There’s a fundamental misunderstanding of what “deconstruction” amongst many church leaders. Despite what Cooper and Chandler assert, Deconstruction is not the same as “walking away from the faith.”
In her book Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church, Rachel Held Evans defines faith deconstruction as taking a “massive inventory of your faith, tearing every doctrine from the cupboard and turning each one over in your hand.”
Faith deconstruction involves breaking down every aspect of a religious system — its ideas, practices, beliefs, and traditions — into smaller components and examining each one for its truth and relevance. The aim is to rebuild a more authentic and meaningful understanding, discarding what is peripheral, burdensome, or distorted.
Sure, doing this can result in deconversion for a certain percentage of people. For others, it means their faith remains largely unchanged. And others end up finding a much deeper and more robust understanding of the Christian faith.
It’s just that their new expression of Christian faith may or may not include the institution of the Church.
And that is a problem for pastors.
Deconstruction is not a different religion
Let’s be clear: Deconstruction is not a religion but a critical examination of religion. Neither is deconstruction an alternative belief system to Christianity.
==Deconstruction is not the opposite of faith. But it== ==is== ==the opposite of blind faith.==
The way that Cooper calls deconstruction a false religion — as if it were something entirely different from Christianity — shows that he doesn’t understand this. In fact, Cooper pits Christianity and deconstruction as mortal enemies because that suits his purpose. He wants to make his followers frightened to even go there!
Deconstructists are not the enemies of Christians
Try to appreciate the irony and the hypocrisy of a person who follows Jesus — the Prince of Peace — declaring war against anyone for any reason. It sets off a few alarms bells for me! It’s bad enough to declare war on anyone who believes differently, but to declare war on other Christians, well, that beggars belief.
You have to wonder what Cooper means by “declaring war on the deconstruction movement?” I mean, how do you attack a movement? Do you target ideas or individuals?
Surely not the latter!
But, make no mistake. His statements carry a subtle undertone of violence and are ambiguous enough that some in his audience might interpret them as a justification for aggressive actions against fellow Christians who dare to challenge the established norms of their faith.
After all, people in positions of influence can incite both violence and stupidity, whether they mean to or not. I’m thinking about the words of a certain former US President and the storming of the Capitol and how there may or may not be a causal link between the two. You be the judge.
Image by pathdoc on Shutterstock
Doubters are not welcome at the table
Unfortunately, the Evangelical Christian Church has consistently shown that questioning is not welcome within its framework. You either conform to their version of the truth or face exclusion. Cooper’s statement is another nail in the coffin of genuine dialogue and open inquiry within the church.
Ironically, his harsh and dismissive attitude towards those who question the established norms may actually fuel the Deconstruction movement he fears. If pastors and church leaders took the time to listen to doubters and provided a safe space for exploring their questions, it’s likely that the Deconstruction movement wouldn’t have gained such traction.
Imagine what it would look like if churches allowed individuals the time and space to work through their faith, offered unwavering support and love regardless of doctrinal disagreements, and stood by them as they challenged outdated or confusing answers.
Deconstruction is actually spiritual growth
In 1981, James Fowler, a Professor of Theology and Human Development, published a work called Stages of Faith, where he built on the work of renowned thinkers like Piaget, Erikson, and Kohlberg, to give a framework for understanding how faith, and our own quest for meaning, develop in us over the course of our lifetime.
Fowler asserts that the person experiencing a “faith crisis” may actually be further advanced in their faith development than the person who has never done so. According to Fowler, doubt, disillusionment, and deconstruction are, in fact, a sign of spiritual growth rather than spiritual decline. To me, this makes complete sense. How can faith be proven genuine unless it is genuinely tested?
People who never question their faith, placing their confidence and trust in the individuals or groups that represent their beliefs — pastors, for example — never grow into spiritually mature adults as they are constantly sucking on the teat of their spiritual overseers. Deconstruction forces one to arrive at conclusions for themselves rather than outsourcing their faith to others.
So, why are people like Cooper and Chandler so frightened of people questioning their religion and the religious systems set up to perpetuate it? Shouldn’t they welcome the faith crisis as a necessary step toward spiritual maturity?
Yes, they should.
But they won’t, and there is an excellent reason for it. As American author Upton Sinclair once said, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”
What now?
I’m left wondering what comes next.
With high-profile Evangelicals like Cooper and Chandler openly denouncing those who challenge their version of faith, it feels as though we’re on the brink of a new kind of conflict.
What’s next?
Witch hunts?
Sure, you might think I’m being dramatic, but a declaration of a Holy War is a pretty serious thing.
Of course, there is another way.
Instead of labeling those with questions and doubts as the enemy, instead of demonizing them, divorcing them from the church, declaring war on them, and alienating them further, maybe — just maybe — the church could shut up long enough to sit and listen to us: The doubters; The deconstructors.
Our doubts are not unreasonable.
Our questions are not preposterous.
Our thoughts are not irrational.
And our grievances are not unwarranted.