The Rising Tide
By Robert R. Meyers
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From this small group, more than fifty subscriptions to the Mission Messenger have come, indicating how strong their interest is in the principles expressed by its editor. Serving as one of their public spokesmen, I have launched similar ideas from pulpit, radio and newspaper. The result has been both depressing and inspiring. Some have thought that we are seeking to destroy the Lord's church because we dared to criticize
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There has been a sense of urgency in many of the comments, a pent-up emotion surprising in its intensity. It is difficult not to believe that thousands within the Restoration movement may be ready for a return to that warm and intelligent compassion which was so gracious a part of its beginnings.
In the belief that readers of this paper may be encouraged and inspired by comments from letters which have come to us, the following excerpts are presented. Names are withheld only because some of the writers do not enjoy immunity from the retaliation of those who view such longings as dangerous heresy.
A woman in Alaska read some of our radio and newspaper sermons, all suffused with the same philosophy as that of the Mission Messenger. Her poignant letter is typical of so many we have received that I record her comments first:
"After reading the sermons you sent to ---------- and ---------, we feel like we have just been let out of jail. We have been so unhappy the last few years with the 'system' and have been groping for a way of liberation....May God bless you in the things you are trying to do. We have long needed someone to make a start." She asked for other material, and included a list of persons to whom she wanted it sent. I urged all of them to subscribe to the Messenger, because I know no better way to encounter the ideas they are hungering for.
An Oklahoma woman, wife of a high-ranking military officer, read some of the radio sermons and liked them. She has also been urged to subscribe to the Messenger, since she is clearly ready for what it has to say. She writes:
"For at least five years, though I have faithfully attended church, studied devotedly, and tried to do what I could in teaching children's classes, I have grown more and more disillusioned....I am at the point right now that I cannot endure another sermon on the so- called 'Plan of Salvation.' Thanks to --------- we are hearing the real word of Truth preached for the first time in this area. Please express my gratitude to your leaders at the Riverside church for their good sense and courage in sponsoring you in this radio program."
Someone sent a Texas church bulletin, approving of words which might well have appeared within the pages of this journal. "We preach Christ....It is awful to be converted to the church. One's conversion and loyalty should be to Christ....The Church is you and others like you. It is not perfect....The church cannot save you. Jesus is your Redeemer. Your friends will be invited to receive the invitation of Christ. They will be converted to Christ, not to the Church of Christ. The Christian's guide of faith and practice is what the Bible teaches, not what the church believes or teaches."
A Maryland minister of the Church of Christ read the article "Shibboleths" in the December 1961 issue of the Messenger. He said: "I like the tone of it! You and I must speak the same language....keep up the good work." Since the article he approved of spoke strongly against party terminology and the party spirit, his praise is one more proof of the widespread revolt against our sectarianism.
A Kansas man, a lifelong member of the Church of Christ, wrote: "It seems to me that there are so many facets of Christianity that we as a group leave untouched that I'm sure we need to reexamine the Scriptures, regardless of traditions, shake ourselves out of our lethargy, and latch on again to the true spirit of Jesus." He is glad to see us "recognize good in others instead of patting each other on the back as to how favored we are by the Lord....We need another Restoration!"
A top administrative official in a Church of Christ college writes: "We are striving to....avoid some of the narrowness which characterizes many in the church today. We believe that a firm commitment to the fundamentals of
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An Arizona minister of a Church of Christ writes: "I read your recent article 'Shibboleths' in the December issue of the Mission Messenger. Your comments were....true and timely. I have preached for 11 years and have spoken out consistently and forcibly against the use of 'party terminology' as standards of identification."
A Kansas woman, approving of what is popularly called in this area "the new approach," writes: "Frankly, for about ten years there have been many, many questions in my mind which would make me very unpopular should I express them publicly. For example, we send ministers to foreign countries to preach the gospel, but when these men return what do they report? Baptisms. What is said about the alleviation of suffering among the poor? What has been done to make the people feel that we are sincerely interested in them and their welfare? Little if anything is mentioned. It is no wonder that some feel our interest is purely imperialistic.
Try to remember that what you are trying to do will take time and you must be patient. I know that you are conscious of the fact that the results of this new concept of Christian living and thinking cannot be judged accurately by visible standards. Even though there are those are eager to learn, it takes time for old hearts to be re-juvenated."
I would add only that the "new concept of Christian living and thinking" not new at all, but two thousand years old. Although it is common to hear of the "new approach" of Ketcherside and others, especially some California churches, the truth is that Romans 14 and other New Testament passages set it out starkly in the beginning. We have been taught exclusivism so long that a truly charitable attitude strikes us as a "new concept" of religion!
A lifelong member of the Church of Christ, graduate of a Church of Christ college and a faculty member at different times of two others, writes this penetrating essay from his new job in a state college in Texas:
"I agree with your statements in the newspaper advertisements. I have been out of harmony with the 'right-wing' preachers in the Church of Christ for so long that I just take the situation as one of those inevitable things and try to live with it. Fortunately, the intelligent element in the Church of Christ, largely lay, has never accepted this "all truth" and "only ones saved" business.
"As a child, I heard my father (and G. C. Brewer, too) say that we had no monopoly on salvation. In --------- we attended Methodist and Presbyterian meetings--we had a running feud with the Baptists--and when we had Sunday afternoon singings, a Presbyterian frequently was called upon to lead. When my father died, singers from several churches in town made up the choir. When one of my uncles (a deacon in the Church of Christ) died, they had his funeral in the Methodist Church. When I was a small child, the Church of Christ occasionally dismissed Sunday night services so that people could attend a Methodist meeting. Also, it was not unusual when a Christian, Methodist, or Presbyterian preacher attended one of our services, for him to be asked to lead in prayer.
"Naturally, there was always some criticism. And things grew worse. It is also true that there was much religious discussion and quarreling. People always said we thought we were the only ones going to heaven. But, there was some communication. We all felt we were part of the human race, part of a community of people.
"I honestly think that the Church of Christ has something to offer. The sad thing is that we have cut ourselves off from the religious community, and eliminated any possibility that we can make that contribution.
"One of the reasons for this is that our
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"I have not heard a sermon on love, peace, joy, faith, hope, mercy, grace, redemption, or Christian ethics in over two years, neither have I heard a learned exposition of some passage of Scripture at the church where I attend."
From Fort Worth, Texas, an articulate and intelligent lady writes about the "thought-control" exercised over churches by the colleges. She and her husband, who was a Church of Christ elder for more than twenty years, sought over the southwest for a congregation where some freedom of thought was possible. But, she says, "we finally became so disheartened (heard for eight consecutive Sundays that everyone who worshipped with an instrument was going to hell) that we visited with the disciples of University Christian Church. Being able to worship in real reverence and awe, and feeling a new and fresh zeal for fellowship, we decided to cast our lot there. I feel sure that we are experiencing the work of the Holy Spirit in our individual lives."
An Oklahoma member of the Church of Christ writes: "Since becoming a member of the Church of Christ ten years ago, I have begun to see many things that are amiss among us. You have emphasized such--the party spirit, bigotry, and self-righteousness, all so prevalent in the church."
A young minister in a large Church of Christ congregation in the Southwest writes, wistfully, of his desire to be free to do what he really believes in. Speaking of a temporary summer vacancy in this congregation, he says:
"I doubt if you'll find any ordinary young couple to preach for you this summer. No one I know would recommend a young preacher to take it, as it would mark him for life. I wish I were in a position to do it, and let the brotherhood be hanged. I think it would really challenge me. I respect you and the Riverside church for doing what you are doing. Your open commitment to an objective study of Scripture without allegiance to party lines is one I admire greatly. That it should mark you as an outcast or liberal, in itself justifies an indictment against the church as biased and sectarian.
"I find that it is now virtually impossible for me to teach Romans, Galatians, and other Scriptures, because I cannot force out of them the traditional teachings and ignore the real heart of their truth. I believe a reading of the New Testament in the New English Bible or Phillips would rid us of many erroneous ideas based on these books.
"This has been a great source of my trouble here. When I expose the fallacious use of some passages and give the logical, obvious meaning, the faith of some is apparently shaken pretty badly. Others laud me for the freshness and new light, but the former ones are more determined to have their own way.
This man is one of the most promising young ministers I have ever met, but he tells me that he cannot continue much longer in the prison cell atmosphere which surrounds him. When he no longer serves in his present capacity, he will write no book entitled "Why I Stopped Being a Church of Christ Minister," but an enormous talent will be lost--and he will simply follow quietly a host of other intelligent young men in the past two decades. We may shrug off such defections by saying, "Well, he never was really converted, anyway," but it might be more profitable to ask, "What is wrong with us, that dedicated and zealous young men with keen minds cannot feel free to give us their insights,"
An Oklahoma woman marks this passage from Fosdick's What Is Vital In Religion:
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"Nothing more challenging confronts us Christians today than the fact that this impression made by Christ of size, of universality of outlook and spirit, is distinctly not the impression made by our sectarian churches. I speak from inside the church, loving it, after a lifetime of ministry believing in it and loyal to it, but I am deeply concerned about its trivialities, its sectarian littleness. To have a Master and Lord who impresses even unbelievers with his universal range and sweep, and then to have churches, supposed to represent him, which impress even believers as much too petty and small-minded to meet the world's need--that is a tragedy."
A friend from Abilene Christian College days writes from a city in the northeast, telling how she turned from the narrow exclusivism of her Texas days and found a new life that is "the most wonderful and exciting thing that has ever happened" to her. Still a loyal member of the Church of Christ, she now cherishes the freedom "to be able to talk about things dear to my heart without weighing words or being afraid." She says, "Nothing in this world is wonderful enough to compare with this precious gift. Certainly not the opinions of men, the approval of my family, or popularity with members of the church."
A Church of Christ minister from Massachusetts writes: "I have just finished reading 'The Poison of Prejudice' from your pen as carried in the Home Journal from the Maude Carpenter Children's Home. I found it most stimulating. It seems to me that Christians need the lesson contained therein. After all, if we are victims of prejudice, we may be the last to be able to recognize it."
A man who served eight years in a Church of Christ college writes from Tennessee: "I had really hoped that out on the fringe (this means Kansas!) you would be enjoying more liberty than we have here at the center and capital of orthodoxy. At least I have been looking to two areas as avenues of overthrow of legalism--the fringe areas in which we can have such publications as Ketcherside's Mission Messenger (if you are not reading this, order a batch!) and Restoration Review, and our young people. I want to save the upper group who are being siphoned off from us in revolt or disgust, and encourage this group to leaven the future church."
This man, a professor in a large state university, helped publish an article on the high proportion of mental illness among members of the Churches of Christ in his county. Psychiatrists, he said, reported a much higher percentage among Church of Christ members than among non-legalistic religions. "We may follow it up," the writer says, "by explaining what legalism and authoritarianism do to the psyche....Naturally, no legalist is going to admit that the church is actually promoting insecurity and mental illness--which in truth it is doing."
As a personal note, I should like to see some figures published about this matter. I have heard from both Texas and Tennessee psychiatrists that legalistic religions are extraordinarily harmful to mental health, and that a service would be done to society if they could be reformed. Perhaps a serious study of this conclusion would be helpful.
A teacher in south Texas writes: "I am an orthodox Christian, not an orthodox Church-of- Christer. I consider myself a conservative Christian. However, I would he called a liberal in the dominant circles of the church. You have to learn a new meaning for many words if you wish to understand Church of Christ preachers. What they mean by liberalism is any tendency toward human decency, any attempt to understand, to exhibit a spirit of graciousness or humility. It is not always so, but I have a feeling that most
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Another teacher, in north Texas, graduate of a Church of Christ college, faculty member in one, and now at a state college, says that "the real problem is not centered in the colleges, but in the general stereotyped, reactionary philosophy that prevails in the church." He says he was "severely censored" for insisting, in a large city congregation, that social discrimination is sinful, that the service could be freshened up by "the integration of the entire service around the Lord's Supper," and for recommending that Bible study is easier for many with modern-speech versions of the Bible. "Perhaps," he concludes, "I am representative of many of the 'angry young men' in the church who have met the same unintellectual spirit."
A Church of Christ teacher in New Mexico writes his appreciation for an article on Christian colleges and says, "The real regret which I have is that these same people control most congregations of the nation with the same type of restrictive religious form. One who would question any of the present practices is removed from teaching classes or any other active participation during church services."
A minister in New Mexico writes: "This note is to share my deepest thanks and appreciation for your recent article in Restoration Review on Christian colleges. I realize that you will receive scathing denunciation for your pointed realities. Please don't become discouraged! It has been my observation during the past few years that an increasing number are aware of our restrictive definition of Christianity. What pleased me most throughout your article was your attitude."
From Pennsylvania, a Church of Christ college graduate and active church worker, writes his thanks for "saying what many of us have wanted to say, but were without the tools to say it--and without the outlet to say it if we bad been able to write it." He took occasion to say that pursuing advanced studies in his field had not only not paid off in skepticism, but "has in reality made me stronger in my beliefs. In fact, for the first time in my life, I feel that I know more definitively what my beliefs are in relation to Jesus, His teachings, and the church."
The weekly flow of such comments across my desk has perhaps excited me to more hopefulness than is warranted. But a certain cautious optimism cannot be suppressed; I believe that a rebirth is about to take place among those who share in the heritage of the Restoration principles. Thinking members of that movement, and especially young teachers in it, would do well to ponder deeply the issues being discussed in Restoration Review and Mission Messenger. Some words of American novelist Thomas Wolfe are appropriate: