Charismissional Addition
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On the same note, I was recently honoured to be the Guest Editor on the October issue of the Porpoise Diving Life, and Emerging Grace and Brother Maynard accepted my invitation to put together an issue on the topic of "Charis-Missional". We three scribes agreed to also publish the articles on our respective blogs, so I've included a new icon in my sidebar to link permanently into a Charis-Missional subsection of this blog.
Any comments on the Charis-Missional articles can be left on this post, or you could email any of us directly -- although it's usually more fun to discuss things en masse on one of our blogs!
posted by Robbymac at
9:36 PM
7 Comments:
WOW...great topic & conversations...
I eased on over to Emerging Grace's site. Had scanned it once before, but then only because I was trying to find a site that related to my own church abuse story.
I am reminded of a family we knew that attended a Vineyard church we were also part of during our college days. They stayed & were very active in the life of that fellowship. But when the 'spooky-spiritual' proph-rhetoric crap infiltrated into their teaching+practice, paranoia & suspicion & accusation became de-rigueur. And why not? Obviously God was giving somebody 'words' or spiritual insight into the dirty laundry of each member of the leadership team...
[sigh]
And the pastor did not handle all the craziness well. Same story, different situation...
They ended up in a non-charismatic Reformed church that oddly was founded by a former charismatic turned Macarthurian cessesationist that provided them with a sense of sanity & stability.
Robby: When is your book due out?
And to all 3 of you: is there still horror stories of such abuses still happening right now in spite of the greater openness with the internet? And should we get to a place where names are named & specific churches identified?
Holy blue smoke Charisman, that's either the best bonfire that's ever been lit under our missional ass or the mother of all manifestations, gold teeth got nothing on that...
Great edition Robbie and cracking contributions from the holy smokes!
great stuff rob! I took the liberty of throwing it into the Dutch conversation.
Nico-Dirk
Joseph,
I have tried to avoid "naming names" because people change and not ever situation can be easily summed up by lumping people into camps of "us" and "them" (not suggesting that you're doing this, btw!).
I've tried to keep it focused on specific teachings and practices that play fast and loose with Scripture and get used as manipulative weapons on the Body of Christ. So, hopefully, it's less about "who" and more about "what" -- and if the "who" fits, then we shoot it (in sincere Christian love, of course!)...
Sadly, horror stories continue to abound -- I just received a few emails this week from people I've never met with some sad tales to tell.
The book is apparently "almost ready for typesetter", according to the senior editor at Kingsway. Not entirely sure how that translates, but I'm guessing the book will be out within the next few months.
Paul,
Thanks, I think... It's all about "conversation", eh? The three of us are hoping to at least get the ball rolling on this one. Lots to be thought through!
Nico-Dirk,
Great to hear from you, my fine Netherlandian brother! I hope the Dutch can help us sort things out! Let me know what you and your cohorts come up with.
Robby:
The scriptural qualifier is pretty simple: Do not receive an accusation against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses. 1 Timothy 5:19
It seems that this least common denominator qualifier was mentioned simply because accusations must have been dealt with frequently & openly when Paul penned it. What has happened now is similar issues are generalized & the people involved remain anonymous. It makes for a conspiracy of silence not unlike the sex abuse scandal rocking the Catholic church or the teacher sex abuse issues now becoming more prevalent in the news. Victims are not handled with concern but suspicion. Their motives are questioned. Their accusations minimized or deflected. And it is harder to deal with if the abuse is not criminal in nature. Serious character assassinations leave deep scars or cause undo hardships financially when ministry positions are ended & reputations impacted. How does one make their appeal to 'the church' when such wrongs are committed?
I will agree there are varying degrees of church abuse which may or may not disqualify a person from ministry, but the scrutiny should be there to help the helpless...
It is not only ministry peers or staff that are treated maliciously; sheep also get abused & where can they go for help? Protestant evangelical or charismatic churches are autonomous & self policing for the most part. No real oversight of senior pastors that operate as their own authority over their little kingdom. And the abuses seem to be more common among the charismatic/Pentecostal/prophetic expressions. If there is going to be a return to genuine Spirit inspired, godly, edifying worship expressions then greater scrutiny should be expected. People should be more cautious when dealing with the power & authority of God claimed by those that wield it. But the church denomination or expression that supports & teaches valid giftings of the Spirit needs to bear the greater responsibility & associated accountability.
I think it was Emerging Grace that brought up the sensitive issue about speaking up & dealing with the abuse issues openly. Are we being complicit by keeping it anonymous or private? I don't know how an oversight 'committee' would look, especially an independent blog or web based one. I cannot offer any realistic model or point to any successful group providing such oversight. But a quick internet search of sites that are "Ex-this" or "Survivors-of-that" make me wonder why there isn't greater attention being given to the problem of church abuse today...
Joseph, you've raised some good concerns and questions, and I'm afraid that any and all answers will be thorny at best.
I've been on the receiving end of some pretty creative spiritual abuse and slander, and so I understand your concern about aiding and abetting by our silence.
At the same time, I'm not at all comfortable with having a "ministry" of naming names. Greater scrutiny, as you say, should be the norm, but I'd be afraid of becoming another one of those self-appointed watchblogs that are just a negative cesspool of suspicion and innuendo. I know that's not what you're suggesting, but that's my fear, speaking on a personal level.
I'm trying to live by the Sermon on the Mount on this one: "But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:44-45)
I feel it's not inconsistent with this Scripture passage to publicly expose abusive teachings, and that's why I choose to focus on the teachings/practices behind the abuse, instead of naming people (who may yet repent).
"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector." Matt 18:15-17
I do not wish to sanction another web based inquisition that only succeeds in retaliatory abuse of another stripe. But the precedent has been set by Jesus to make it known to the 'church'. Most of those outside of church life clueless as to the seriousness of certain abuse charges, but those same charges would have definite significance to those within the church.
I suppose if Jesus provided such a general outline He must have thought it doable. And if we simply avoid the direction provided are we being negligent?
There are serious problems that you admit are still happening today. And it would seem that the one-on-one meeting between two brethren done in secret not the most expedient when certain church abuse issues are being addressed. Seems the "bring-a-mediator" next step more plausible. And if that doesn't work then, well, the church needs to know about it...
Tell it to the church. Seems straightforward. No need to embellish or put a spin on the particulars. Just let the church know. Certainly repentance & restoration is always possible & eagerly encouraged. But as with any truly dysfunctional relationship, denial or minimizing injury & not taking responsibility is a major impediment to real healing both for the abuser & victim. Maybe relationship is not restored, but the issue has been dealt with in a healthy matter & both parties set free to remain in fellowship with others. And the openness provides an element of trust for those that are the weaker saints. If abuse issues are handled in this manner others will feel less threatened when they are uncomfortable about something. Silence & secrecy a big component of abusive situations.
I am just bringing up ideas here as a catalyst to elicit other responses. Like I said earlier, I have no workable models in mind. I am just wondering if there could be a better way of dealing with church abuse issues. Has anyone out there a success story? Maybe that is what we need, a happy or at least happier ending story of how it was dealt with effectively...
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