Escape from fundamentalism...

Don Miller, in his book Blue Like Jazz, wrote "I was a fundamentalist once. It lasted a summer." I really like what I have read of Donald Miller's writings, because he writes in a way that seems so approachable and real. A lot of Christians I have talked to either seem to absolutely love him, or they seem somewhat wary of his approach to spiritual issues. I personally think that the way he paints the Christian faith is very refreshing, and can relate in a very personal way to this quote.

I too, was a fundamentalist at one point. I became a Christian around August 2002, a date which is pretty memorable to me because it represented such a radical change in my life at the time. After this change occurred, I started attending a Southern Baptist church, one which at the very least had borderline fundamentalist tendencies. One time a large group from my church lined Savannah's main highway with signs protesting abortion...an event which I am ashamed to say, I participated in at the time. After all, it seemed to me to be the thing that "the faithful" were supposed to do, and I certainly wanted to be counted among that number. I realize now, however, that this is more than likely not an approach that Jesus would have taken. And he certainly wouldn't have been a fan of shooting abortion doctors or bombing clinics. But I digress...

The point is, my ideas of what it means to be a "good Christian" are not the same anymore, at least not entirely. For example, I enjoy beer, and the church I attended at this time had it clearly spelled out in their membership covenant that you were not to drink alcohol if you were a member of that church. Never mind the fact that Jesus drank wine, and that his first miracle involved turning water into wine at a wedding where a lot of the people were already tipsy! He was even accused of being a drunkard because he did partake (contrast this with John the Baptist, who was accused of being crazy because he didn't drink). You can't win for losing. I might add at this point, that even though Jesus drank wine, he was not a drunkard--a lifestyle which the Bible speaks against.

As for my transition from fundamentalism, I started to change my thinking a bit while I was studying at a Southern Baptist college in Florida, which was actually a pretty conservative school. Upon enrolling in this school, I interpreted the Bible very literally, and "knew" that I was correct for doing so. My world was rocked, however, when I learned that you could actually take the Bible very seriously without taking every bit of it literally, and it was upon this realization that I began to really examine many of my beliefs (more on this later).

For a while, I had actually tried to give up listening to "secular" music. I got rid of most of my CDs, keeping the Christian ones in some sort of effort to keep my mind "holy." It wasn't too long after this that I realized that most Christian music sucks. I eventually learned that you don't have to give up listening to good music to be a Christian...if you have a brain, you should be able to think critically enough to not let music, movies, books, video games, ________,(fill in the blank) influence you in a way that is somehow detrimental to your well being.

I must have watched one too many rated R movies, or listened to one too many secular songs, however, because in November 2008, I committed the unpardonable sin for Christians living in the Bible Belt: I voted Democrat. Here in the Bible Belt, if you vote for a Democrat, you probably aren't a believer. Sunday mornings in the Southeast U.S. around election day are essentially political rallies for the Republican party, at least in the "white churches" anyway (yes, we are still segregated down here). Now, I am not sure which candidate Jesus would have voted for, if he would have voted at all, but I am pretty sure that neither party lines up with God's way of doing things. Both parties have their merits, and both have their downfalls. But one thing I don't like is when churches and pastors tell you who to vote for and then try to paint you as a second-class Christian if you choose to vote for the other guy. So yea, I voted for the Democrat. Was I right in doing so? Who knows...not everyone has that direct line to God like Pat Robertson does (God told him that Bush was gonna win last time).

I've noticed that God seems to tell people all sorts of funny things--conveniently in the form of their own egos, however. And apparently with some Christians, the devil seems to hold conversation with them as well. Someone I know shared something the other day that "satan" seemed to be "telling" him. If you talk to a lot of Christians, it seems like he is always running around doing stuff like that. I would be very worried, however, if the devil was whispering in my ear. I might go see a doctor in fact...

Despite my sarcasm, I do believe it is possible to discern the voice of God. I would recommend that if you want to do this, try reading through the New Testament as a guide--especially the first four books. Perhaps you will be able to get a glimpse into the heart of Jesus, and he may surprise you. You will definitely find that he's nothing like the guy out there yelling at people on your school campus about their sins, or the people out there picketing abortion clinics, or the Christians treating you like you are less than human simply because you do not share their beliefs.