The bad news is that the older generations have wrecked the church. The good news is that newer generations are poised to resurrect it — that is, to support Jesus’ resurrection program.
As a captive of and typical perpetrator among my generation, I want to apologize to the world for us. We baby boomers have hurt the church. Oh, we had help. We were following the lead of the builder generation, but we took incompetence and mishandling to a new low.
We didn’t intend it. We were sincere. We tried hard to do the right thing. We tried to faithfully fulfill Christ’s mission to the world.
But the evidence is compelling and the conclusion inescapable. We’ve damaged the church by being ideologically misguided, missionally narrow, relationally hateful and utterly stupid.
We took actions that seemed to be the right thing for the moment but, in the long run, proved destructive.
For one thing we poured ourselves into eradicating injustice in the world in ways that were unjust to the church. That is, time and again, persons of passion manipulated, arm-wrestled and railroaded bare majorities of General Assembly commissioners to approve tactical plans to protect human rights — and then implemented those programs without showing any regard or making any effort to build a consensus toward such efforts.
We also enlisted all available legalistic tools to hammer those testing the edges of orthodoxy and status quo sensibilities, some of whom were later exonerated and even celebrated for their faithfulness.
In other words, we’ve allowed our commitment to ideological purity, theological orthodoxy and/or missional conformity to depose the core message of grace.
What’s more, we’ve been mean. Time and again we’ve labeled one another, caricatured one another, demonized one another. And we’ve published those judgments far and wide — the favorite brands being “homophobic” or “hedonist,” “fundamentalist” or “Unitarian,” “baby killer” or “misogynist,” “Zionist” or “anti-Semitic,” or simply “unchristian.”
The succeeding generations have overheard those 120-decibel broadcasts. They have decided to have nothing to do with them.
Tragically, many have decided to have nothing to do with us or our church. The drop-off in participation among the Gen Xers and Millennials, as reported by countless surveys, stands as proof-positive of the damage we’ve brought upon this part of the body of Christ.
But others among these succeeding generations have decided to reengage, to recommit and to resurrect the church. While being unwilling to abide or rehash their parents’ habit of treating the other with contempt, they still find compelling the Gospel of their Savior. Amid the cacophony they still hear the still, small voice that is Christ’s commission to do mission to the world. They’re not giving up.
To them, this boomer says, “Thanks for hanging in!”
Still, I must wonder out loud, what will the future be like for this church as you emerge into the key positions of leadership and influence? Will you repeat our mistakes? The temptation to misuse power will pursue you as it has us. Will you get so caught up in your own focused passion for one particular slice of the mission service pie that you’ll treat the other slices as unimportant or even a threat to yours? And will you develop the very hubris evident in my confession — the perception that it’s all about you?
The future will be bright only if the two rising generations of persevering believers congeal as a resurrection generation. To be a resurrection generation, one must believe that God will not give up on the needy, the heartbroken, the abandoned, and that God will overwhelm their darkness with the brilliant light of life. To be the resurrection generation, one must look for God through a new lens, see God working in new ways, encounter God in new faces. Most of all, to be a resurrection generation, one must believe in the God who, in Christ Jesus, died for the sins of the world and rose victorious to bestow new life in and for the world.
To the resurrection generation, I appeal, please lead us. Tap your social networking skills to pull us back together. Launch us into partnered mission. Promote justice. Proclaim grace. Believe boldly. Love.
