Sad About Haiti? Give to Our MegaChurch
By Valerie Tarico
There is little more sacred to me than compassion – the part of us that feels someone else’s pain as our own and seeks to alleviate it. My deepest spiritual values were violated by what Mars Hill was doing; I would say that the moral heart of humanity was violated.
The solar Bibles project struck a similar note, which is why it occurred to me to see what Mars Hill is up to now. To my dismay, they were once again channeling the compassionate impulse into what is best described as self-promotion : promotion of the church, it’s pastor, Mark Driscoll, and the viral fundamentalist ideology that both serve.
God never meant for Christians to take care of poor, suffering people but rather poor suffering Christian people. The Mars Hill website directs people to one of Driscoll’s side projects – a website (ChurchesHelpingChurches.org) seeking to direct aid money into church reconstruction. By filtering and selecting Bible verses, Driscoll makes the case that God never meant for Christians to take care of poor, suffering people but rather poor suffering Christian people (and potential converts.) “ I challenge all thoughtful, biblically-minded Christians to find a single instance of the New Testament church filling the plates of the ‘general population’ poor.” Cofounder of the site, James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel penned these words: “Children are crouching in shivering fear as people stand stunned and staring in disbelief at the remains of what they once called their home. The world is racing to help these people in unimaginable crisis, but who will help the church?”
This explicit co-opting of the charitable impulse may be characteristic of successful mega-churches. In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren hops among 15(!) Bible translations to back up his points, one of which is right in line with Driscoll. Warren chooses the New Revised Standard Version to ensure that readers don’t think God is talking about “general population poor” when Jesus says “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these . . . you did it to me.” (In place of the elipses, the NRSV says “who are members of my family”, which Warren has already defined as the tribe of born again believers. p. 126.) Later in the book, Warren comments, “Notice that God says the needs of your church family are to be given preference . . .. ” (p.259). To top it off,for Warren becoming a “World Class Citizen” means this:
(Note: If you didn’t fully appreciate the name of “Harvest Bible Chapel” you have the context now.)
After I wrote about solar Bibles and Churches Helping Churches, one Huffington Post reader (and, I presume, Mars Hill Member) pushed back: “While it is true that Mars Hill Church is encouraging efforts to rebuild churches in Haiti, it shouldn't be overlooked that the congregation donated over $429,000 to general relief efforts (not including the church rebuilding project).” As evidence, he or she provided a link to the church blog, so I went there. Perhaps their ratio of aid to recruiting was higher than I thought. But were the Mars Hill members donating to general relief efforts or the church general fund? The blog seemed to suggest the latter. (And wasn’t Driscoll explicitly teaching against the former?)
Here was Pastor Jamie Munson’s advice to people who want to actually do something in response to Haiti.
In my experience visiting Mars Hill, this is in keeping with the church’s general philosophy. At my last visit, the church newspaper Pop Vox made the case that God (not Mark Driscoll, but God) wants Christians to give first and foremost to their home church—and to do it regularly and to do it till it hurts. Perhaps one of the secrets to mega-growth is making sure to capture community resources and channel them in the service of that growth.
I am not saying that the Mars Hill effort is ill intended, and I have no doubt that at some level it will involve providing food, shelter and medical care to people in dire need. In a place where people are dying of trauma and hunger, Bibles and church buildings are likely to be much better received if they are paired with goods and services that meet people’s basic needs. Also, it must be remembered that congregation members who are opening their checkbooks are genuinely compassionate people, seeking to do good – or they wouldn’t be susceptible to the appeal.
But at what cost?
Because Bible believing Christians perceive themselves as a light shining in darkness, a moral beacon to the world, they often don’t understand that much of the critique written about their religion, like this article, is prompted by moral distress. For Evangelicals the diversion of energy into recruiting activities seems to be in the service of a higher good. From the outside, it seems opportunistic, just like Scientology’s high-profile relief work. It is morally distressing, with a high opportunity cost and, consequently, a high human cost: Genuinely decent, loving people who seek to serve Goodness are having their precious empathy and compassion channeled into activities that range from exploitative to merely inefficient or insensitive.
A young Christian friend of mine caught sight of the Solar Bibles headline. “Really?” she asked (with that inflection that only teenagers can conjure). “It seems so elitist. You have to be really not hungry and not in pain to think—Hmm. What would comfort me is a Bible. I think that’s what I’ll send.”
Note: Interesting comments at: The Daily Kos.
There is little more sacred to me than compassion – the part of us that feels someone else’s pain as our own and seeks to alleviate it. My deepest spiritual values were violated by what Mars Hill was doing; I would say that the moral heart of humanity was violated.
The solar Bibles project struck a similar note, which is why it occurred to me to see what Mars Hill is up to now. To my dismay, they were once again channeling the compassionate impulse into what is best described as self-promotion : promotion of the church, it’s pastor, Mark Driscoll, and the viral fundamentalist ideology that both serve.
God never meant for Christians to take care of poor, suffering people but rather poor suffering Christian people. The Mars Hill website directs people to one of Driscoll’s side projects – a website (ChurchesHelpingChurches.org) seeking to direct aid money into church reconstruction. By filtering and selecting Bible verses, Driscoll makes the case that God never meant for Christians to take care of poor, suffering people but rather poor suffering Christian people (and potential converts.) “ I challenge all thoughtful, biblically-minded Christians to find a single instance of the New Testament church filling the plates of the ‘general population’ poor.” Cofounder of the site, James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel penned these words: “Children are crouching in shivering fear as people stand stunned and staring in disbelief at the remains of what they once called their home. The world is racing to help these people in unimaginable crisis, but who will help the church?”
This explicit co-opting of the charitable impulse may be characteristic of successful mega-churches. In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren hops among 15(!) Bible translations to back up his points, one of which is right in line with Driscoll. Warren chooses the New Revised Standard Version to ensure that readers don’t think God is talking about “general population poor” when Jesus says “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these . . . you did it to me.” (In place of the elipses, the NRSV says “who are members of my family”, which Warren has already defined as the tribe of born again believers. p. 126.) Later in the book, Warren comments, “Notice that God says the needs of your church family are to be given preference . . .. ” (p.259). To top it off,for Warren becoming a “World Class Citizen” means this:
If you ask me, I will give you the nations; all the people on earth will be yours.(Psalm 2:8 NCV) Prayer is the most important tool for your mission in the world. People may refuse our love or reject our message, but they are defenseless against our prayers. Like an intercontinental missile, you can aim a prayer at a person’s heart whether you are ten feet away or 10,000 miles away. What should you pray for? The Bible tells us to pray for opportunities to witness, for courage to speak up, for those who will believe, for the rapid spread of the message, and for more workers. Prayer makes you a partner with others around the world. You should also pray for missionaries and everyone involved in the global harvest.
(Note: If you didn’t fully appreciate the name of “Harvest Bible Chapel” you have the context now.)
After I wrote about solar Bibles and Churches Helping Churches, one Huffington Post reader (and, I presume, Mars Hill Member) pushed back: “While it is true that Mars Hill Church is encouraging efforts to rebuild churches in Haiti, it shouldn't be overlooked that the congregation donated over $429,000 to general relief efforts (not including the church rebuilding project).” As evidence, he or she provided a link to the church blog, so I went there. Perhaps their ratio of aid to recruiting was higher than I thought. But were the Mars Hill members donating to general relief efforts or the church general fund? The blog seemed to suggest the latter. (And wasn’t Driscoll explicitly teaching against the former?)
Here was Pastor Jamie Munson’s advice to people who want to actually do something in response to Haiti.
• Start giving to the church.
• Quit living on your own and join a community group.
• Pursue church membership and align formally with your church family.
• Confess to your community group about lack of giving or participation in Jesus’ mission.
• Consider financial coaching: get help building a budget so that you can align your finances with right priorities.
In my experience visiting Mars Hill, this is in keeping with the church’s general philosophy. At my last visit, the church newspaper Pop Vox made the case that God (not Mark Driscoll, but God) wants Christians to give first and foremost to their home church—and to do it regularly and to do it till it hurts. Perhaps one of the secrets to mega-growth is making sure to capture community resources and channel them in the service of that growth.
I am not saying that the Mars Hill effort is ill intended, and I have no doubt that at some level it will involve providing food, shelter and medical care to people in dire need. In a place where people are dying of trauma and hunger, Bibles and church buildings are likely to be much better received if they are paired with goods and services that meet people’s basic needs. Also, it must be remembered that congregation members who are opening their checkbooks are genuinely compassionate people, seeking to do good – or they wouldn’t be susceptible to the appeal.
But at what cost?
Because Bible believing Christians perceive themselves as a light shining in darkness, a moral beacon to the world, they often don’t understand that much of the critique written about their religion, like this article, is prompted by moral distress. For Evangelicals the diversion of energy into recruiting activities seems to be in the service of a higher good. From the outside, it seems opportunistic, just like Scientology’s high-profile relief work. It is morally distressing, with a high opportunity cost and, consequently, a high human cost: Genuinely decent, loving people who seek to serve Goodness are having their precious empathy and compassion channeled into activities that range from exploitative to merely inefficient or insensitive.
A young Christian friend of mine caught sight of the Solar Bibles headline. “Really?” she asked (with that inflection that only teenagers can conjure). “It seems so elitist. You have to be really not hungry and not in pain to think—Hmm. What would comfort me is a Bible. I think that’s what I’ll send.”
Note: Interesting comments at: The Daily Kos.
Comments
What really craps me off is that just the RC Church alone(and 80% of Haitians are RC) could provide all the money that is needed to completely feed, clothe and shelter the whole population. Will they? Of course not. The Pope will say some prayers and send a small cheque.
When you think that without the RC Church, with its anti birth control rules, the families in Haiti would have been totally heaps smaller, the death toll wouldn't have been so high and much less relief would be necessary because the population would have been smaller.
I know the feeling and it seems like churches, not to mention mosques etc, do this a lot. Not to mention their ideas concerning the poor, victims of whatever, and alike are appalling to me. I never read Rick Warren's book, for I have a feeling it would get me ranting. Instead, I read Robert Price's rebuttal The Reason Driven Life which made a whole lot more sense to me.
IMHO, they need to stop wasting money on high tech Bibles and alike, because that money they waste on such things could give even more food and other basic needs to those who need it desperately. I realize I sound like Judas and the oil story, you know the oil Mary Magdalene was using on Jesus's feet, but IMHO, that money would be better served if spent on more food and other basic needs. Even then I agreed with Judas on that one. You can't eat Bibles. You can't clothe yourself in a church. You maybe able to get temporary shelter in a church, but it serves very little purpose other than that. You might also be able to get some heat out of a Bible, if you burn it, but not much more.
You Bastards!!
This attitude is part of the reason I left the ministry.
I remember one Sunday Night (back in the 1980s) when out of the blue our Church Organization's Superintendent & his wife dropped by for the Worship Service.
I was Associate Pastor and worship leader so I was caught by surprise when told (by the Senior Pastor) that Sister M. would be doing the music and Brother M. would be preaching. After the service and a late night pizza, they zipped away in their big, blue Caddy.
I asked the senior pastor what was up?? (basically WTF?). He informed me that his wife had accidentally forgotten to send their tithe check from the preceeding Sunday...GASSP! The Super picked up two checks and gave the pastor's wife a stern reprimand before their speedy departure. They never returned to our church (while I was there), I guess the pastor's wife got the message!
For most churches (especially the big ones) it's all about the Money.
What do you think Mars Hill would do if a large group of Atheists showed up in their parking lot and held picket signs that read, "Do away with all non-profit, Religous Tax Breaks!" or "Millionaire preachers are an abomination unto the Lord!" ???
Thanks again for your recent posts......Great as always! We love you!
XPD (Ex-Pastor Dan)
It is all an elaborate excuse to make money selling their books to their flocks. And the megachurch building business is big business, with Christian contractors getting the jobs.
A big circle jerk disguised as religious piety.
A pox on religion.
FYI
There is NO link to this article on the notification page nor on the notification email I received.
Thx,
swabby
You mentioned that your "deepest spiritual values were violated by what Mars Hill was doing". Out of curiousity, why do you use the term "spiritual" rather than "human" when describing your values? Do you believe humans have a spirit?
Woah there sid. There are a lot of spiritual ex-Xtians on this site. The word spiritual is a word with many connotations, and not all of them imply that a person has a spirit. I'm not really a spiritual person, but i definitely feel spiritual after a nice long swim. Even the Chinese communists say they are trying to build a "spiritual civilization" in China, and they are certainly no friends of any organized religion, other than Marxism. (When high leaders die, they are said to have "gone to see Marx.)
All they need is one more and they can be sent home.
There are more, but those are the ones I use most often.
There are more, but those are the ones I use most often.
All they need is one more and they can be sent home.
You mentioned that your "deepest spiritual values were violated by what Mars Hill was doing". Out of curiousity, why do you use the term "spiritual" rather than "human" when describing your values? Do you believe humans have a spirit?
Woah there sid. There are a lot of spiritual ex-Xtians on this site. The word spiritual is a word with many connotations, and not all of them imply that a person has a spirit. I'm not really a spiritual person, but i definitely feel spiritual after a nice long swim. Even the Chinese communists say they are trying to build a "spiritual civilization" in China, and they are certainly no friends of any organized religion, other than Marxism. (When high leaders die, they are said to have "gone to see Marx.")
FYI
There is NO link to this article on the notification page nor on the notification email I received.
Thx,
swabby
A pox on religion.
It is all an elaborate excuse to make money selling their books to their flocks. And the megachurch building business is big business, with Christian contractors getting the jobs.
A big circle jerk disguised as religious piety.
This attitude is part of the reason I left the ministry.
I remember one Sunday Night (back in the 1980s) when out of the blue our Church Organization's Superintendent & his wife dropped by for the Worship Service.
I was Associate Pastor and worship leader so I was caught by surprise when told (by the Senior Pastor) that Sister M. would be doing the music and Brother M. would be preaching. After the service and a late night pizza, they zipped away in their big, blue Caddy.
I asked the senior pastor what was up?? (basically WTF?). He informed me that his wife had accidentally forgotten to send their tithe check from the preceeding Sunday...GASSP! The Super picked up two checks and gave the pastor's wife a stern reprimand before their speedy departure. They never returned to our church (while I was there), I guess the pastor's wife got the message!
For most churches (especially the big ones) it's all about the Money.
What do you think Mars Hill would do if a large group of Atheists showed up in their parking lot and held picket signs that read, "Do away with all non-profit, Religous Tax Breaks!" or "Millionaire preachers are an abomination unto the Lord!" ???
Thanks again for your recent posts......Great as always! We love you!
XPD (Ex-Pastor Dan)
You Bastards!!
I know the feeling and it seems like churches, not to mention mosques etc, do this a lot. Not to mention their ideas concerning the poor, victims of whatever, and alike are appalling to me. I never read Rick Warren's book, for I have a feeling it would get me ranting. Instead, I read Robert Price's rebuttal The Reason Driven Life which made a whole lot more sense to me.
IMHO, they need to stop wasting money on high tech Bibles and alike, because that money they waste on such things could give even more food and other basic needs to those who need it desperately. I realize I sound like Judas and the oil story, you know the oil Mary Magdalene was using on Jesus's feet, but IMHO, that money would be better served if spent on more food and other basic needs. Even then I agreed with Judas on that one. You can't eat Bibles. You can't clothe yourself in a church. You maybe able to get temporary shelter in a church, but it serves very little purpose other than that. You might also be able to get some heat out of a Bible, if you burn it, but not much more.
What really craps me off is that just the RC Church alone(and 80% of Haitians are RC) could provide all the money that is needed to completely feed, clothe and shelter the whole population. Will they? Of course not. The Pope will say some prayers and send a small cheque.
When you think that without the RC Church, with its anti birth control rules, the families in Haiti would have been totally heaps smaller, the death toll wouldn't have been so high and much less relief would be necessary because the population would have been smaller.
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