outside is better

What The Walking Dead teaches us about Eschatology

If you were one of the many people glued to your television set Sunday night to take in the season finale of The Walking Dead, you certainly enjoyed yourself. While critics have been rough on this season, complaining at the lack of zombies and an increased focus on character development, the writers and producers made sure to give people plenty of the undead to finish the season up. Sunday nights episode was the most viewed show in AMC history.

Zombies fascinate me. Most folks that read or follow me on the internet are aware of that. I think zombies provide the perfect postmodern secular eschatological narrative (how was that for big words?). To mainstream it, zombies tell the best “end of the world” story for folks living in current western society. Zombies interact well with the base level religious past we have in America and are a perfect product of postmodernity. The answers they give fall into the framework Robert Jenson came up when he described postmodern culture as an attempt “to write a Universal story without a universal storyteller.”

I want to offer you three lessons the season finale teaches us about secular eschatology.

A human created heaven can’t survive.
Herschel’s farm provided the backdrop for the entire season. It offered shelter, an alternative to the chaos outside. When the group did leave, violence and fear always came with it. The forest outside the farm functioned as the biblical metaphor of wilderness; with Daryl’s vision quest, various encounters with walker’s, a place of “lostness” and Carl’s odd coming of age in episode 11.

The farm was the character that provided silent security. Towards the end of the season, the various disputes between the two parties calmed and the farm appeared to be a place of finality in the minds of the group. This idyllic vision is shattered. Through either fear of more humans or the herd of walkers that overran it, heaven was earthly in a very real way.

The end of the episode featured the apocalyptic vision of “the prison”, the next arc in the Walking Dead story, an opposite utopian outpost amidst a world of the undead. Where the farm offered freedom, the prison now parallels our own current cultures view of the world. It is a place safe because it is defensible. There are no pretenses of the former life. Human control cannot bring about positive change. The only thing we can do is rewrite a story to be a narrative of control and defense. The Utopian imagination has turned into a Dystopian reality.

Glen provided the perfect end to the farm Sunday night while urging Maggie to leave. “Get off the farm...it’s lost.”

An Alternative Timeline.
Doom is always coming. In the opener last night, walkers are seen in Atlanta looking up at a black helicopter. In the first episode of The Walking Dead, Rick see’s a black helicopter over the streets of Atlanta.

The next few scenes show a herd of walkers steadily growing and moving out of Atlanta and across the countryside. When Carl fires his gun and kills Shane, the herd locates and moves toward the farm. It is that moment the two stories, unfolding simultaneously and independent of each other co-exist. The herd overtakes the farm and causes the breakdown of the hopeful society of survivors.

It took one act to change everything. One single “accident” changed time. If a secular society believes a random event caused the world into being, it takes another random event to destroy itself. No one can control or prevent this. It isn’t a question of “if” but “when”

Faith isn’t denied, but irrelevant.
Faith was a running thread throughout the season. Herschel and Rick had plenty of honest conversations about it. Herschel and Maggie had conversations about Christian conviction. Once Shane opened the barn, things changed. We discovered Hershel had a drinking problem and for an episode it came back. But after the incident in town, Hershel was different. His faith was never totally denied, but it had changed. The enlightenment came because he become aware of life outside the farm (see #1). In the current framework of zombie apocalypse, Hershels faith had no relevance.

Even in the worst situations faith wasn’t denied. We saw a glimpse of old Hershel in the finale while he was talking to Rick. The language of faith and hope cuts through humanity and a desire for it will always be present.

Possibly the best line though was “Christ promised the resurrection of the dead. I just thought he had a little something different in mind.” Hershel’s hermeneutical paradigm was blown.

The examples of faith are a perfect mirror for our culture. Faith and religion are major threads in our history and cannot be denied. The influence western society at every place. Even in a completely secular framework, it must be dealt with because how it has formed us. In that way it will always be relevant, but the context will be the plumbline to how it is viewed.

I hope these three lessons showed you how the Walking Dead gives a perfect example of a secular eschatology. I love the show and can’t wait till season three!

Worship as a Preview of Heaven

Worship and the Language of Home

A few weeks back I drove back to Louisiana for some meetings and to spend some time writing. It is about a 12 hour drive and I drove it in one day, as I usually prefer. About 15 miles into Louisiana, I get of the interstate and drive for two hours down a two lane highway in soybean and cotton country. Darkness had just fallen and I had the windows down taking in the full affect of the smell of rural north Louisiana. For years I lived on the road, and moments like these are my favorite. I get to think and process more than anywhere else.

This trip really signaled the end of this season at seminary and the beginning of re-entering vocational ministry. It was a great time of prayer and thanksgiving.

With my ipod on shuffle, this Tom Petty song hit the rotation. I was struck at the multiple metaphors I found:

Tom Petty: Southern Accent
There's a southern accent, where I come from
The young'uns call it country
The yankees call it dumb
I got my own way of talkin'
But everything is done, with a southern accent
Where I come from

Now that drunk tank in Atlanta's
Just a motel room to me
Think I might go work Orlando
If them orange groves don't freeze
I got my own way of workin'
But everything is run, with a southern accent
Where I come from

For just a minute there I was dreaming
For just a minute it was all so real
For just a minute she was standing there, with me

There's a dream I keep having
Where my mama comes to me
And kneels down over by the window
And says a prayer for me
I got my own way of prayin'
But everyone's begun
With a southern accent
Where I come from

I got my own way of livin'
But everything gets done
With a southern accent
Where I come from

This song is about those separated from home and the task of integrating into a place as a foreign resident. Home never leaves our heart. My thoughts quickly moved from sentimentality to how this describes the Christian in worship. In the world, we have a patterned lifestyle that doesn't make sense. We have particular ways of saying and doing things contrasting to the accent of the world.

For worship leaders and designers this makes us ask some questions. Are we leading services where people are just interacting with this world? Do we lift up our actions or God and His actions? How do we celebrate how God keeps his promises, in this life and the next?

Worship becomes the place were we feel at home. It's like making a favorite family dish when separated by hundreds of miles. In worship, we configure the space of an eternal dwelling with God in the midst of a world in need of redemption. Every piece of our lives serve as an example of the place we call home; the place we are headed back towards. In worship we are at home. We are with our people and with our Father. We simplify the complex relationship that happens in the here and now.

While outside of worship, we should have an accent that gives us away

 

Is Congregational Worship Necessary?

I stumbled upon this blog post tonight. The pastor is explaining why his church will disband weekly worship in favor of an extremely intense discipleship ministry and a once a month large meeting.

Some of it sounds really good. He hits the nail on the head regarding several issues. For those that have a heavy heart for missions and the justice of God his language really fits into the movement that the evangelical church has been going towards in correcting some of its inclusiveness and narcissistic ways.

 But I think this is a great example of doing all the right things completely wrong.

 

Can a church that doesn't worship truly be the church? Before you go wild on me, read the whole post. The pastor gives the idea that the actions in worship aren't formational enough to be important.

I am not saying we do away with them, but we preach and sing too much and serve and love in radical ways far too little.  The answer is not to add love on top of the sermons and songs, but to decrease the sermons and songs and increase the service and love to create a balance that looks like the life of Jesus.

John Wesley notes that good works are only possible once a vibrant and intense relationship with Christ exists in the heart of the individual. His sermon  The Almost Christian speaks about justice being evident to those who still haven't turned their hearts over to Christ. Justification by Faith  mentions that the things of love cannot truly be done in the name of Christ unless we have we have directed our own entire love to him. Finally in his sermon, The Way to the Kingdom, Wesley really develops this by explaining how our good works are only truly righteous when they spring from the inward spirit that is truly only devoted to God.

 I don't mention these things to question the faith and salvation of these folks, but to plead for worship. Hebrews 10:25..."Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." The eschatological makeup of the Church in worship lives with the expectation of the return of Christ.

 When the worship meeting becomes an evangelical outreach only, I would agree with many of the reasons for an evaluation. But worship should never been seen as a pragmatic event to draw people in. Worship develops a ragtag group of people into an eternal priesthood. We worship because we love Jesus Christ and want to join with the church around us, before us and in front of us in praising the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Worship staunchly stands against the world and says "No!!!

Worship stands in an intense relationship with justice. The Old Testament prophets had two messages for Israel; That their worship was bad and the poor in the streets were neglected. My friend JD has mention that if injustice exists in the streets idolatry is present in the sanctuary. The two are not held in opposition or competition, but a co-eternal dance. Mission and worship are in deep cahoots with each other.

Worship develops us into a people that can face the world head on, and bring the kingdom to it. We can't participate in the missio dei without also participating in the doxo dei.

Related Posts:
Geek to Chic: brand identity as Christians
Hymnaling (and being Methodist)
What drives us in Worship?

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This was originally posted at Levite Camp, a community fostering a theological conversation on worship design.

Classics: The Eschatology of Hank Williams Jr.

While I am doing some site maintanence work with both blogs (I also run a blog on eschatology called World Without End), I decided to share some posts between the two, posting some of the best of 2010 at the other blog. This is from last June and it was one of my favorites.

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One of the classic country songs is the seminal "A Country Boy Can Survive".  I remember driving around listening to this song in college and loving it.  It was enough of a cultural marker to be parodied by the rantings of a homeless man in Canadian post-rock Godspeed You! Black Emperor's  song Providence. I think it functions as a great marker of a secular and escapist eschatology. 

 

The preacher man says it’s the end of time
And the Mississippi River she’s a goin’ dry
The interest is up and the Stock Markets down
And you only get mugged
If you go down town

I live back in the woods, you see
A woman and the kids, and the dogs and me
I got a shotgun rifle and a 4-wheel drive
And a country boy can survive
Country folks can survive

I can plow a field all day long
I can catch catfish from dusk till dawn
We make our own whiskey and our own smoke too
Ain’t too many things these ole boys can’t do
We grow good ole tomatoes and homemade wine
And a country boy can survive
Country folks can survive

Because you can’t starve us out
And you cant makes us run
Cause one-of- ‘em old boys raisin ole shotgun
And we say grace and we say Ma’am
And if you ain’t into that we don’t give a damn

We came from the West Virginia coalmines
And the Rocky Mountains and the and the western skies
And we can skin a buck; we can run a trot-line
And a country boy can survive
Country folks can survive

I had a good friend in New York City
He never called me by my name, just hillbilly
My grandpa taught me how to live off the land
And his taught him to be a businessman
He used to send me pictures of the Broadway nights
And I’d send him some homemade wine

But he was killed by a man with a switchblade knife
For 43 dollars my friend lost his life
Id love to spit some beechnut in that dudes eyes
And shoot him with my old 45
Cause a country boy can survive
Country folks can survive

We’re from North California and south Alabam
And little towns all around this land
And we can skin a buck; we can run a trot-line
And a country boy can survive
Country folks can survive

The interesting thing about this song (written in 1981) is the cultural ideas of both escapism and separatism, manifest in Williams thematic description of the city as a dangerous and ruthless place.  It was also re-written and re-released in 1999 by Chad Brock in reference to the supposed Y2K catastrophe.

For those who live in the country, life skills held are what separate them from those who have migrated to the city.  It will be these skills that will allow them to function inside an apocalyptic scenario, and ultimately be the holders of power (another interesting marker).  If anything, this song serves as an introduction to the phenomena of survivalism.  

For Christians, this isn't a good view because it places the realm of trust inside of self-sufficiency, either individual or cultural.  The mark of individuality makes Bocephus thoroughly postmodern, although I imagine I would get chewing tobacco spit in my eye if I accused him of such. One of the patterns that needs to be developing in the current church culture is the reliance and separation from current systems and instead placed in Christ and His kingdom.  The Church is the alternative city, instead of a set of skills and a cultural marker. Where Hank mentions saying "grace", it is placed in the context of a general moral structure, looped in with niceties such as "ma'am".  Faith is mentioned as a passing nod towards a cultural system that is propped up instead by distinction and self-reliance.  To a Christian, faith in the promise of God as well as reliance on His faithfulness is the foundation of a hope centered eschatology.

I hope this little piece shows how much these ideas have crept into mainstream society, even in a 30 year old country song.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be

The Anti-Jabez?

In my scripture reading for the day I was in Isaiah 26 and I stumbled upon this verse-

Is. 26:15     But you have increased the nation, O LORD,
        you have increased the nation; you are glorified;
        you have enlarged all the borders of the land. (NRSV)

The first thing that came to mind was the "Prayer of Jabez" which took the evangelical world by storm and inspired countless pieces of Christian accessories.

The passage from Isaiah is the end of a song of praise of the uprightness of YHWH.  The Prayer of Jabez was criticized from being prosperity gospel and abused for the prayer of material gain. Some were able to speak of it as an increased witness, and I think this was a bit better...but still off the mark.

Inside the larger scope of Isaiah 26, we read about the desires of the LORD and His victory.  What if our view of an increased nation and borders is an eschatological look at the idea of Israel being a land of God, a Eden re-imagined...out of the scope of militiristic Zionism and instead a vision of a new world directed in the worship and prayer of Father, Son and Spirit?

This might be as off based as branding a piece of scripture to throw pillows, blankets and plaques....but it might also be a way us naming the future promise of God of a land of Holiness and praise.

What do you think?

An individual eschatology: Singing like Johnny Cash pt 2.

The last couple of days have been an experiment in cross posting between my two blogs, this and World Without End.  Over at World Without End, I have been exploring the eschatology of Johnny Cash...focusing on his last few records.  Yesterday I wrote here about the influence of revivalism and the American Church.  These seem like history lessons, but the singing of the late 19th and early 20th century determined our current theological landscape.  Here are a few points from the previous post.

1.  The Theology of Revivalism was focused on individual decision.
2.  It was highly developed by gospel singing, songs different from hymns.
3.  It existed across denominational lines.

When we look at Cash's record My Mother's Hymn Book (check out World Without End for a deeper look into this record), we see differences that are thematic across revivalism.  They show a concern for an afterlife that is separated from a sinful body, the "otherness" of heaven, and a pretty hardcore sentimentality.  The songs about death that were sung at these meetings (and crept their way into mainstream Sunday morning) weren't dark, but they were evangelistic songs about death.  The mass religious culture that was being formed was simply trying to find a way to make sense of their lives, and dealing with mortality was a serious issue. Remember this is a generation that isn't that removed from the Civil War, and life was still very hard. This is a deconstructed formal religion that was rebuilt to make sense in the camp meetings.

These songs weren't about formal institutions, or a clerical structure, but a deeply personal relationship with God.  One of the markers of the inner-denominational cooperation was the absence of distinct (and controversial) theology of the unified church.  Often, the absence of many intense theological topics shows the common ground that people wanted to stand on.

Death was seen as the platform for the believer to meet with God in eternity. The fascination with earth and heaven began to draw a serious line and the celebrated the distance between the two. Even as this is sung, many of the songs have an attitude of the hope of the journey towards heaven.  The Arminian influence is found in the stories of triumph over sin but the "real destination to be sought"(Marini).

This developed a very individual eschatology, that was focused not on the Church or restoration of earth-but upon each persons place in heaven.  Again, we realize that these songs and meetings were not originally seen as official worship services, but evangelistic meetings with a specific goal of conversation.  Just as the preachers words were evangelistic, the songs sung by the believer were designed to lead people towards Christ.

The greatest influences of these songs are slight, but important.  It is in revivalism that the American church became fascinated with individual experience and thematic personal singing.  We sang about relationship, faith and promise...and slowly lost songs describing Father, Son and Spirit.  The songs found in many of the hymnals are also absent from anything regarding the nature of God as Triune, as well as the communal nature of the Church in relation to each other and to God.  

The lesson to be learned here is that culture will influence worship, and the measures that we take now to better understand faith might become so crucial that we leave out assumed things for other generations. Meaning-things that we automatically believe and know might not be proclaimed in song that much, but after a generation or two they could be interpreted as not important or fundamental to faith.  We are who we worship-and we need to remember the personal AND communal nature of our God.

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2 works were great sources for these posts.
Honky-Tonk Gospel: The Story of Sin and Salvation in Country Music
Hymnody as history: early evangelical hymns and the recovery of American popular religion-Stephen Martini

A Theology of Song: Singing like Johnny Cash

This post is part of a cross post at my other blog World Without End, regarding the eschatology of Johnny Cash.  Since one of my main focus here is worship, we will be looking at some of the background that helps better explain part of my post at World Without End. Read it there, and I hope this style of posting works out well.

Today we will be looking at the influence on revivalism upon Christian singing and the worship service. Tomorrow, we will look at the specific eschatological views of this time period.  This seems like a history lesson, but for those interested in contemporary worship issues...it is this background that formed the way our churches look at Christian singing and how we are "supposed" to worship.

One of Johnny Cash’s last records was “My Mothers Hymn Book”.  In this record, we find that most of the track listing is proclaiming a very unique and widespread view of heaven, the end of time and an apocalyptic vision.  Coupled with his other songs, we find a very robust and thoughtful vision of how Cash thought about the end of time and the place of the believer.  The biggest influence on Cash was the revival spirit of American Christian singing.

These are all simple hymns, but what they really show us is the development of evangelical singing in the late 1900’s and early 20th century.  This is the affect of circuit riding preachers, tent meetings and an explosion of church growth.  In the 40 or so years that can be described as the 2nd Great Awakening, we find a distinct shift in church worship practice.  The high church Presbyterians and Episcopalians kept much of their high church liturgical developments.  In the lower church, such as Baptists and various strains of Methodism, the revival spirit began controlling the hearts of the believer and changing many of the ways that people worshiped.  Unlike the hymns of the church, the gospel song that developed in the campmeetings and revivals served as a personal evangelical statement.  These services were not seen as worship, but outreach tools, and the singing was an intentional evangelical moment.

These were individual songs-distinct and not practiced within community.  Since they were attempting to elicit an individual response, a communal theology was not important. Also-since these meetings were extremely inner-denominational, complex theological issues (such as predestination, and eternal security) were not often present lyrically.  These songs were written to proclaim an individuals saving experience with God, the life that it gives them now, and the hope towards a future.

It is during this time that popular American faith became a sung theology.  It was a religion en masse. It wasn't a new development, but a modified belief system that had wide appeal.  It offered answers to tough questions, and the spirit of invitation pervaded the entire religious system.  The individual decision made was no longer thought of the entrance into a corporate body, but the beginning of a privatized religion practiced in public. As the 2nd Great Awakening transitioned into formal church, the revival meetings turned into Sunday meetings and many of the thoughts transitioned over.  The best way to look at the theological developments in this 50 year period is to look at the songs that were sung, and they show a distinct development of worship as well as general theology.

The songs in My Mothers Hymnbook are all very individual.  When not, it is about a relationship between a few people that will hopefully be existing in heaven.  Tomorrow, I want to look specifically at the relationship with revival worship, Johnny Cash, and Eschatology.

The Throne Room or the Kingdom

Often I think about how the worship leader describes him or herself.  Even in the idea of resumes and job applications.  I remember reading one once where the leader in question noted the distinct ability to bring people to the throne of God quicker and better than others.....

There are several things troubling about that statement, but one has stuck out the most in the last few months.  What action are we doing in Christian worship that makes it distinct from any other religion?  Attributing qualities to God, or praising his character with our devoted actions?  These are elements of worship, but they are just that....elements.  Ultimately, the gathered qualities of worship are what make it Christian worship.  Yes-our worship is Triune and Yes-our worship is pointed towards the distinct eternal worldview of the Christian.  In the end, all worship is eschatological in nature (and yes, I know that I can get to the end of the world in two steps), and this is what makes it distinctly Christian.

In this manner, the throne room language becomes very important.  I say this because we shouldn't escape in worship.  Often we might hear something like this, "Just prepare yourself for worship in any way that is comfortable to you".  Somehow, in the last century, we have understood worship as an individual action.  But historically that wasn't the case.  Worship was seen as an earthly reality of the company of heaven.  When we want to "go to the throne room", we want worship to be a pragmatic event and take us out of this world.  We want to set boundaries on our home, sinful as it may be, and be taken out of it.

Instead, I want to challenge you to this.  Think of worship as the realization of the Kingdom of God on earth.  In worship, we grab hold of the reality that Christ gave us and we pull it down to earth.  We remember Revelation 21 when we find out that the home of God will be on the redeemed earth with His people.  Yes, worship is a beautiful vision of the Triune God. But worship is what also gives us the eyes to see the reality that He is in this world through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. In worship, through our devotion our tears are wiped away (Rev 7:17 and 21:4), and grace remakes us.

Announcing the Eschatology Round Up

Over the last few weeks I started thinking about doing a "Round Up" of great blog posts, articles and videos about eschatology around the internet.  Today this first post went up at my other site World Without End.  This will be a bi-monthly event, and I hope that it is all information that is highly useful to you.  Go read the first post here.