I find myself always encouraging people to 'invite someone to church' with them. It's struck me quite a bit that we 'mainline' Christians tend to be far more hesitant about talking up our faith or what we believe than those who are quite active in more 'evangelical' churches, including the megachurches that have sprung up all over the place. I suppose there are a lot of reasons for this ranging from the fact that for many, religious choice is seen as a 'private' thing to a concern that in speaking about one's religion too fervently, one can come across as intolerant of those whose beliefs are different...
So, even as I encourage people to 'invite' others, I find myself wondering how comfortable they REALLY FEEL in doing so.
What's all of this getting at?
Well, if you have found life and hope and vitality in your religious faith, it seems to me that would be a good thing to pass along to people whom you love. If you like your church, it would be good to invite people to that community where you have found something meaningful.
I honestly believe that 'mainline' American Protestants and Catholics and Orthodox Christians as well, members of churches that are deeply historical and connected with Christian origins and open to understandings that come from good biblical and scientific research , really need to start getting more comfortable in talking about their faith lest this evangelical ground is yielded to churches in which the continuity of Christianity is downplayed and which, all too often, pit faith unnecessarily against reason, a faculty which we humans have received through the grace of a loving God.
I'm going to try to explore all of this in practical terms in my sermon this week, which i've dubbed ' The E WORD'
PB
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