Community

What bonds Western Christianity together?

Sometimes I like to consider something as though I knew nothing else about it—what would the purest observation of this tell me about it? In this case, what bonds Western Christianity together?

As I understand it, in great measure the bonds of Christianity are rooted in our common weakness, brokenness and inability. This shared experience was central to the early church gatherings—to build each other up. This was where who Jesus is, what he did and his gift of the Holy Spirit shines so brightly.

As Paul the apostle put it, Jesus’ power is perfectly on display in our weakness.

Yet here in the West, our Christian bonds seem to be rooted in the false perceptions of strength and power: charismatic leaders filled with grand vision, gatherings that occur around perfectly-practiced praise and carefully crafted sermons, and a tight-fisted expectation that we-who-do-not-hold-position-or-power support it as our service to God.

It is a space neatly formed and prepared for strong men and strong women with great power and very often, great ambition in the name of God.

Is this what Jesus imagined for his church? A culture and structure so markedly similar to corporations and businesses?

Because as I observe it now, it sure seems that those who should have found freedom from shame in their failures, healing from the trauma of a broken life, and gentle protection from the elders of their community, have simply tucked it all into shadow, gathered the dust of their strength and continued to pretend all is well, that they are somehow strong and powerful.

While secretly shattered and alone.