LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South St. Petersburg, FL 33712
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com
Date: August 27, 2023
Scripture Lessons: Isaiah 43:18-19 and Mark 12:1-12, 38-44
Sermon: Talkin’ ‘Bout Evolution
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells
In 1859 Charles Darwin published, On the Origin of Species. He had worked on his theories for many years following up on the work of Alexander von Humboldt among others. And thus we have the theory of evolution, an explanation of what is readily observable in the natural world. And it is so beautiful to think that Creation has built in adaptability eternally perpetuating life. The power of the life force and the genius of nature are astounding and the theory of evolution helps us to see and appreciate that.
But the theory of evolution has also been controversial, in some measure among scientists but more often in the realm of religion. Just after On the Origin of Species was published, there was a debate in Oxford between the prestigious biologist Thomas Huxley and Bishop Samuel Wilberforce of the Church of England. Apparently, Wilberforce provocatively asked Huxley if he was related to an ape on his grandmother’s side or his grandfather’s side. Huxley replied that he would rather be descended from an ape than a bishop.
The theory of evolution was radical and hotly debated. But the theory of evolution is not in conflict with the Bible or Christian teachings. In fact, it reinforces much of our Christian belief system – the eternal love of God constantly being made manifest in new ways, a constantly renewing and regenerating web of life. An echo of the words from the prophet Isaiah, “Look, I am doing something new.” Beautiful!
Someone recently emailed me and included in the email, as an aside, was the question: “Why can’t Christianity evolve faster?” I found the use of the word ‘evolve’ interesting. Surely religion is always adapting and adjusting to new circumstances. Evolving.
But the person who sent the email admitted to not believing most of what is said in church even though she is a regular attender and she thinks most people in the pew with her share her views.
So, we give some thought to what keeps Christianity entrenched in beliefs, creeds, dogma, tenets, language, and practices that many people don’t really adhere to, even many who go to church.
Let’s start with the scripture lesson from Mark that we heard today. Here is Jesus, teaching and manifesting the core values and teachings of Judaism, and the religious leaders and authorities are out to get him. The church, like any institution or organization, has a power structure. And that power structure is maintained by perpetuating certain beliefs and practices which benefit the leaders of the religion, as well as, hopefully, the people. And the leaders are trained to maintain that structure and to keep benefitting from it. So, part of why Christianity does not evolve faster is because there are people, educational institutions, buildings, gorgeous buildings, property, money, schools, books, traditions, language, music, and so much more dedicated to indoctrinating people in a certain belief system. Christianity, the church, has a huge investment in the way things are and have been. Like those religious authorities in Jesus day, the power structure of the church, in its many forms, does not want the boat rocked.
And that is emphasized in the story of the poor widow. Jesus challenges the assumptions of his day around money and worth. He cites the widow as a model and casts dispersions on the gifts of the wealthy people. Well, you can’t run a temple like that – alienating your biggest donors, scraping by on pennies. How will they pay for the sacrifices (from which they eat) and for their fancy robes and vestments, and the golden candlesticks, and all the rest? As Matthew Fox, Creation theologian puts is, “A particular work of transformation that Jesus undertook was the task of transforming religion itself. He was not pleased with the way things were going in the religion of his time. He did not approve of the privileges of its leaders and the insensitivity to the poor that certain religious leaders and structures exhibited.” [Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality, Matthew Fox, p. 304.] We see that in the reading we heard from the gospel of Mark, and this confrontation with the religious authorities of his day is what lead to Jesus’ death.
So one reason that Christianity doesn’t evolve faster is because of the leadership, power, and resources invested in the way things are.
Another reason that Christianity does not evolve faster is that many things are changing. There is more change in our lives than ever before in the history of humanity. The pace of the increase of new knowledge is exponential. There are constantly new things to deal with and adapt to. In this whirlwind of change, people can become desperate for something to hold on to that is not changing. Like the church. You can go to church and they are doing things the way they have always done them. OK some churches added drums, screens, and chairs instead of pews, a facelift, but the essential message is the same. And that gives people comfort in the face of the battering pace of change.
In 1993 our church led a delegation of local UCC folks to St. Petersburg, Russia to visit our sister church. We brought donations of medical supplies and other things. We did a lot of sightseeing and visiting churches. We went to many services of the Russian Orthodox church where the people stand for the service, except when they kneel or lay down prostrating themselves on the floor of the church. One special festival service we attended involved standing for 3 hours, in a very crowded, hot sanctuary. I started to feel light-headed and had to go outside and sit down. When we had an opportunity, we asked a priest why the churches did not have seats. It is tradition. Not theology. Just tradition. And he told us that there were a lot of changes happening in the society at that time and that the church had to stay the same to give people a sense of comfort and stability in the face of all the change.
I believe that is part of what is holding back the evolution of the church today. People like to have something familiar and comfortable that they can count on in the face of exponential change.
A third reason that I believe the church in America does not change is that here we have a particularly individualistic expression of Christianity. Believing that Jesus died for my sins, and Jesus will get me into heaven, is very popular here. We like our individualism. So we like a Christianity where Jesus saves – me. People are holding on to that. While things around us go askew, people can feel like they are going to be ok because Jesus is taking care of it for us. And as far as eternal salvation is concerned, I only have to worry about myself. So the individualistic version of Christianity that is popular in America is another reason why I think Christianity is so slow to evolve here. It’s me and Jesus. We like a religion that is anthropocentric – focussed on humanity – with humanity taking priority over other life forms and Creation itself. It’s about me. And we like a religion that is anthropomorphic with a God that is like a super hero, who comes to save us. This all feeds into our cultural assumptions and makes the version of Christianity that is prevalent in the US comfortable and familiar. It ties into our cultural sensibilities. This I think is another part of what is slowing the evolution of Christianity in our context.
And here is a fourth thing that I think is slowing the evolution of Christianity. We’re too darned busy trying to keep our lives together. This was mentioned by a preacher at the UCC General Synod that I attended in June in Indianapolis. The preacher was the head of Council for Health and Human Service Ministries of the United Church of Christ, Jamar Doyle. The theme for the event, was ‘Making All Things New,’ an echo of the verses we heard today from Isaiah. Here is one of the ideas shared in the sermon: Tradition is listening to the instruction of dead people. And why do we do this? Because we are so overwhelmed with every day life that we just go on auto pilot with church. We go through the motions. We’ve always done it this way. Doyle labeled this being ‘cruise control Christians.’ Exactly. We’re too overwhelmed and busy and battered by life to discern, examine, and reflect. We just go on auto pilot.
So these are four responses to the question, Why doesn’t the church evolve faster? There are many more things that could be said, but this is a good beginning.
Having said all of this, let’s remind ourselves of a couple of things. Our faith tradition is set up to be always evolving and changing.
The beauty of the Bible, of our faith tradition, is that it tells the stories of how people in many different times and places have experienced Divine Love, the presence and power of God. We have inherited many different stories and many different teachings, with many layers, that are intended to show how truth has been made manifest in all ages and all times. And it is up to each generation to adapt religious beliefs and practices so that the way of Divine Love speaks to that time and to the needs of that age and to those circumstances. That’s how it works with a living God. Religion should be constantly changing and adapting to be always freshly meeting the needs of the current population. That is how evolution is built into our sacred texts and our tradition.
And the church, the faith community, has always had a variety of expressions, many different streams, and it has been constantly changing, as it should.
At the General Synod, the newly elected General Minister and President, Karen Georgia Thompson, who was a member of this church when she lived in St. Petersburg, challenged the church to change. She told us that what we are doing on Sunday morning is fine for those of us who are in church. But we are living among a population of people who are seeking spiritual sustenance, meaning, practice, and guidance, who are never going to find their way into a service on Sunday morning. So, what will we do to reach out to these people?
To me, that is the crux of the evolution of the church today. We have this desperately needed message of love, justice, hope, community, purpose, and meaning. We have a spiritual message about the goodness and sacredness of life, and about caring for one another and Earth as one community. We have the Gospel, Good News, that we have received from the tradition and teachings of Jesus. And it is a message desperately needed in our context today.
And a lot of the traditional messaging of the church is hampering Christianity from evolving and meeting the needs of people today. In fact, there is a mass exodus from church. And for good reason. A lot of what the church focusses on is not meeting the spiritual needs of people in today’s world. It is not conveying the transforming power of universal, unconditional Divine Love.
I met someone this week who told me that he used to go to church. But he noticed that the people in the church would gossip, were petty, were selfish, and actually mean. They sang all the songs and said all the prayers and felt there was a place waiting for them in heaven. But this new friend felt that the church was hypocritical. All that talk of love, etc. but the people weren’t all that loving. He also mentioned all the harm that the church has done, excluding people, etc. So, he made the decision to leave the church. And this, by the way, was a Presbyterian church.
In response, first I told him that I could spend hours telling him about all the harm the church has done and what’s wrong with the church. I get it.
But then I told him, in our church, we try to be Jesus followers. Believe what you will, but we try to follow the teachings of Jesus about how to live, how to treat other people, and how to work for justice and good in the world. Love your neighbor. Love your enemy.
To me, beliefs about heaven, Jesus’ bodily resurrection, the miracles in the New Testament, Jesus being God, all of that, that’s up to the individual to sort out in a way that makes sense for them, but embracing the sacred and living out love for ourselves, for others, for Creation, and working for peace, like Jesus did, that’s what we try to focus on. My new friend who has left the church gave me a hug. It was sweet.
The church has so much to offer the world, the people of our community, in terms of helping us ground ourselves in love, and offering support in keeping our spirits centered while we are buffeted by the gales of greed, violence, and self centeredness that assault us. The church helps us to find a sense of purpose and hope that give life meaning and help to get us through difficult times. The church offers community in which to share joy and pain. The church has so much that people today are looking for. But offering those gifts to the wider world is being hampered in part by the traditional language and tenets and practices that the church is holding on to.
Here’s what I know. Evolution is real. I’ve got apes on my grandmother’s side and my grandfather’s side. Things change and adapt to perpetuate life. Humanity needs to adapt to a more loving and just and peaceful way of inhabiting this Earth to stay alive as a species. And humanity is going to evolve in this direction to perpetuate life, human and other than human. The stories of the Bible tell of a God that foments life, that supports life, that perpetuates life, that renews life. As we heard from Isaiah, “Forget the events of the past, ignore the things of long ago! Look, I am doing something new! Now it springs forth — can’t you see it? I’m making a road in the desert and setting rivers to flow in the wasteland.” So, I believe that the message of love and compassion that is at the heart of way of Jesus, is going to evolve to promote the thriving and flourishing of life. This may or may not happen through Christianity and the church as we know it.
At Lakewood Church we are trying to be part of this evolution, trying to promote it, trying to fan the flames of transition to a new version of Christianity. And we are excited about having the congregation of Trinity UCC as partners in this ministry.
Evolution is happening. All around us. All the time. In nature, and in our nature. And Love will prevail. Life will flourish and thrive. That is the essence of our faith. It’s the message of the resurrection whether or not Jesus’ body came out of a tomb. Amen.
A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.
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