Rev. Joan Pell Byron United Methodist Church Sermon: 01/11/15 Series: When Christians Get It Wrong Scripture: Genesis 1:1-8, Matthew 22:16-21 Christianity, Science & Politics NOTE: This sermon is mainly a summary of the ideas in the book by Adam Hamilton called When Christians get it Wrong Series about When Christians Get it Wrong, and in particular about what young adults think about Christianity. It is not necessary all of us who do these things, but the perceptions that young adults have turn them away from Christianity. So let s learn what we don t want to do when we have these types of conversations Based on book by United Methodist pastor Rev. Adam Hamilton. Last week we talked about when Christians behave in ways that are hypocritical or judgmental, as we do one thing and say something else. Did you take the opportunity this week to speak to a young adult (not one who is in church) and ask them why they rejected Christianity and what do they think Jesus stood for? This week is primarily about science, a little bit about politics Let s start with science listen to this week s scripture reading. <Genesis 1:1-8> In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, Let there be light ; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. 6 And God said, Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters. 7 So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. 1
Young adults are turned off by way too many Christians approach modern science. We have a good education system in the USA; the minimum allowed drop out age in CA is 18 years old and High Schools require a couple of years of science to get a High School Diploma. Our children are well educated and knowledgeable. Yet one of the portrayals of Christianity that it is perpetuated by the media is that the Bible has to be taken literally so that you can t believe in new scientific discoveries and still believe in God. The theory of evolution, first formulated by Charles Darwin in 1859 and the Big Bang theory first suggested in 1927, are well accepted in the scientific community and by most young people. Creationism is the idea that God created the world in 6 days and that the universe is less than 6,000 years old and that each species was created separately. It comes from reading the Bible literally. It is a topic that comes up in the media frequently, since some Christians believe that Creationism should be taught in schools. So young people make statements like When people say Creationism is in the Bible it is just a statement to me of how exceedingly ignorant someone is. 1 And so the perception that young folk have is that Christians are less intellectually active. NEWSWEEK magazine just a week ago was talking about this whole issue. As they pointed out, Climate change is said to be impossible because of promises God made to Noah; Mosaic law from the Old Testament directs American government; creationism should be taught in schools; helping Syrians resist chemical weapons attacks is a sign of the end times. All of these arguments have been advanced by today s politicians. 2 This debate about scientific discoveries it is not a new problem. 1663 Galileo declared heretic by church tribunal for saying earth moves round sun today common & accepted knowledge most people including Christians take for granted. And so our young adults today feel increasingly alienated by some Christians saying that much of what we know from modern science is incompatible with Christian teaching. If we want to reach the younger generation, then we have to be able to have an intelligent conversation about the place of science and the Bible. 1 Adam Hamilton, When Christians Get It Wrong, Updated & Revised (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2010 & 2013), 22. 2 The Bible: So Misunderstood it s a Sin in Newsweek, Jan 2, 2015. http://www.newsweek.com/2015/01/02/thats-not-what-bible-says-294018.html 2
I want to ask two questions. ONE = Why have Christians been pushing back at advances in science for Centuries? Rev. Hamilton in his book wonders about the place that FEAR plays. Is there a fear that science will disprove or debunk what we believe? Is there a fear that the next scientific discovery will show God does not exist or gospel is a fraud? Is there a fear that the more people know about science, the less they will believe in God? Is there a fear that science competes with faith, actively destroys faith, and leaves no room for God? God not threatened by science. Science helps us see the marvelous workings of creation and so magnifies God. For example, Rev Hamilton recalls going to visit Michelangelo s fresco at the Sistine Chapel. Learning from the docent things like it took 4 years to paint, and that Michelangelo was standing with his head cocked back, not lying down led Rev Hamilton to a greater appreciation not less. Scientists are God s docents (whether they believe in God or not). More knowledge adds to the majesty and glory of creation, and leaves us with a greater sense of awe. Moses lived around 1400 years before Christ at the end of late Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age. Some say Moses wrote Genesis; more modern scholarship suggests that Genesis was put into writing and edited into the form that we have it in the late Iron Age, about 5 to 6 centuries before the birth of Jesus. Those first few chapters are a window into early thoughts, but they are not a scientific theory in the way that we do science now. Yet how incredible it is that we have the gift of those early writings still intact today. When I look up at the stars it leads me to feel small and say that the heavens tell of the glory of God. When I climb a mountain and look at the view I am stunned by the beauty of the world. Biblical stories of creation were written as Hebrew poetry, not a lesson in cosmology or biology or physics, but to say that behind beauty of creation is the one who created and established the laws and patterns that govern it. Henry Ford designed automobile assembly line. Approved design of cars. Name appears on cars. Yet did not personally build each car. His fingerprints are all over the process. Without Henry Ford, no Ford Automobile Company. Creation is similar. God created processes and plans for progression of life. Whether each species individually crafted by God or the result of a process designed by God does not matter to me. God remains the creator either way. TWO = What questions do science and theology answer? Science and faith are two different ways of understanding. Science is about the physical process how universe works. Science asks what and how. Theology is about what existence 3
means, and asks the questions why and what purpose. Both sets of questions are important. We need the right tool for the right job. You don t use a screwdriver to paint a wall, and a paintbrush won t undo a screw. Christians get it wrong when they treat Genesis as a scientific text book. You won t find scientific origins of universe in a poetic narrative about God the Creator. Scripture is not meant to teach HOW God created, but THAT God created. It stirs the soul, and teaches THAT there is a God, THAT God is good, THAT creation is a good gift, THAT humans are created in God s image not God s physical image but with capacity to love, think, reason, make moral decisions, and be co-creators. In the UMC, our Wesleyan heritage brings us a way of interpreting the Bible. We don t check our brains at the door. We use our intelligence, our reason, AND experience, AND what tradition has said through the years, AND scripture. We don t get to tell each other in minute detail what to believe. We might not all agree on every point. Each of us gets to do our own wrestling on our faith journeys. And that s what we should be welcoming and encouraging young adults to do. We should tell them that Christians get it wrong when they treat science as a threat to faith or try to take the Bible 100% literally and make it a scientific textbook. And that Christians get it right when they see science as an important companion in quest for knowledge and truth Now we come briefly to thinking about politics. Listen to what Matthew tells us. <Matthew 22:16-21> 16 So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not? 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin used for the tax. And they brought him a denarius. 20 Then he said to them, Whose head is this, and whose title? 21 They answered, The emperor s. Then he said to them, Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor s, and to God the things that are God s. Young people s political views vary. And yet many Christians are very vociferous about their political views. Wikipedia says: The Christian Left is a spectrum of left-wing Christian political and social movements that largely embrace viewpoints described as social justice that uphold a social gospel. 4
Supporters of this might encourage universal health care, welfare provision, subsidized education, foreign aid, and Affirmative Action for improving the conditions of the disadvantaged. 3 It also says, Christian right or religious right is a term used in the United States to describe those characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies. In the U.S., the Christian Right movement has its roots in American politics going back as far the 1940s and has been especially influential since the 1970s. The Christian right is notable today for advancing socially conservative positions on issues including school prayer, stem cell research, homosexuality, contraception, abortion, and pornography. 4 Jesus fits neatly in neither! I see good on both sides of the spectrum. And I know good Christians who are democrat and who are republican. We have both in this church and hold them in tension. Now I don t know if you agree with this, but Wikipedia also says: The Christian Left does not seem to be so well-organized or publicized as its right-wing counterparts. Opponents state that this is because it is less numerous. Supporters contend that it is actually more numerous but composed predominantly of persons less willing to voice political views in as forceful a manner as the Christian Right. 5 Some young adults who are Democrats hear the Christian Right position so much in the media, that they come to the conclusion that they can t be a Christian and be a Democrat. On the other hand young adults who are Republicans hear the Christian Left vilifying the Christian Right and pouring scorn on their views. All of which brings us back to where we were last week. The way Christians engage in politics is damaging for many young adults. They have trouble sensing love or tolerance of any perspective but the speaker s own. Slander, gossip, malicious talk, meanspirited rhetoric, disrespect spreading half-truths using social media, eg: slanderous emails about opposing party / candidates. Social media at the push of a button allows us almost without much thought to forward email, share on facebook, re-tweet, pin, blog etc. We should be speaking words that give grace to all. Yes we should be engaged in the political arena our faith should impact our daily lives. Methodists have a long history of this, holding politicians accountable and calling for change. Christians get it wrong when we are too closely associate faith with one political party or lay aside our ethics and slander others. We get it right when we work for justice marked by grace, truth and love. 3 Christian Left in Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/christian_left (accessed January 10, 2015). 4 Christian Right in Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/christian_right (accessed January 10, 2015). 5 Christian Left in Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/christian_left (accessed January 10, 2015). 5
So let s work at not putting off our young sisters and brothers in Christ. In your conversations with your children and grandchildren ask them what voices they are hearing that are pushing them away from Christianity and then talk about other voices and other ways to be a thoughtful loving Christian. Thanks be to God. AMEN. Let us pray. Lord God, you created us with minds that ask questions, and have the analytical ability to pursue answers. You also gave us the capacity to gaze in wonder at the fall colors, and the spring new growth, to be inwardly stirred by music or painting or dance, and to gasp in awe at the touch of a baby s tiny fingers. Teach us how science and faith can be allies in helping us live our lives effectively for you. And as we hold dearly onto our own political views, help us to listen to others and to be kind and loving to those with whom we disagree. May we be Christians who draw others to you, not push them away. Send us out from here in Jesus name to work for justice in ways that do good and not harm. We want to be Christians who get it right. Amen. Resources Hamilton, Adam. When Christians Get It Wrong. Updated & Revised. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2010 & 2013. 6