What Happened to Christianity?
During a meeting at the university where I worked, we were discussing a problematic student. He was undisciplined, ruled by his emotions, and generally obnoxious. There was a lot of judgment and animosity around the table. The university president listened carefully, then said, "I agree with all of you, but I've been commanded to love him, so I'm going to do what I can to help him."
I was struck by his use of the word "commanded." It implied that he was doing something that part of him probably didn't want to do, but he was acting on an authority higher than himself and his emotions. Who or what was that authority? He was a Christian, but not the overbearing, holier-than-thou type. He was a kind, gentle man who appeared to be happy. It was obvious from his comment that he had committed himself to guiding principles that transcended his fragile ego. He was anchored to something bigger than himself. This was a refreshing moment in a world where so many people are only anchored to their emotions.
Commitment is doing what you said you would do long after the mood has left you. The mood always leaves us. Where do we go when we “don’t feel like it?” Do we make up our own guiding principles and beliefs to fit the moment, or do we turn to a higher power to keep us anchored to something more stable than our own ego?
What is that "higher power"? It's not a pastor, guru, or president. It's an idea that lies at the root of all the world's religions, including Christianity: love your neighbor as yourself. That's the "command" that the university president was obeying.
The word "Namaste," which ends all yoga sessions, literally translates to "the divine within me bows to the same divine within you." This is the essential teaching of Hinduism. How can you argue with that? Yet, many people reject teachings from religions that are not their own.
What happened to Christianity? I'm far from being a Christian scholar, but I know enough about it to recognize that the foundational guiding principles of Christianity are beautiful. If all of us who claim to be Christians actually lived by those guiding principles, the world would be a better place, and we would be happier.
A few years ago, Debbie volunteered to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. She told me that we were going to stand on one of the busiest intersections in San Antonio with buckets to ask for donations. I didn't want to do it. I asked her if I could just give her $100 and stay home. She rejected that idea, so I dutifully donned my orange vest, and we walked to the island in the middle of the intersection where we were met by an intimidating woman selling newspapers to the cars stopped at the light. She had a cigarette hanging out of her mouth, and her skin was like leather aged by too many hours in the sun. When she saw us walking toward her, she got up and said loudly, "You can't work on this corner. This is my corner, and I won't be able to sell papers if you're here." We decided to avoid an escalated confrontation and went to the other side of the intersection. After about 15 minutes, I saw her walking toward us and braced myself for more unpleasantness. She walked up to me and said, "That's not the way God wanted me to handle that. Please come over and share my corner with me."
Here was a woman who had been rejected by most of society and who was anchored to some guiding principles that were greater than her ego or the scorn of her fellow citizens.
It's not the guiding principles of Christianity that are driving people away from the church, it’s the practice . . . or lack of it. With so much beauty in the world, why do so many people choose ugliness? With so much love and forgiveness available to us, why do we choose hatred and retribution?
An 87-year-old woman in my technology class shared her wisdom with us the other day. Octogenarians have a habit of doing that. Someone who’s observed the world for eight decades has earned the right to tell others what they see. She said that policies or presidents won’t save us. Only love will save us, and she didn’t hold out much hope for that happening anytime soon based on the current state of our country.
Love is a singularity. When we have dissected all of the solutions, policies, and debates, demonized our enemies, and listened to all of those who say they can save us, there is only one thing left that cannot be divided any further - love.
Just as a singularity in physics represents an infinitely small and dense point in space-time, love can be seen as a force that transcends political boundaries and unites people in a profound and transformative way. Love has the potential to create a sense of oneness, where individual identities and differences dissolve, and a deep connection is formed.
We’re going to face some difficult choices in the coming months. Let’s choose love over hate and forgiveness over retribution.