You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!
Matthew 23:24
The Gnat is the smallest of the unclean species mentioned in the law and the camel is the largest (Lev 11:4). Jesus is making it clear here that while being careful about the minute details of the law and the requirements one must not miss out the the obvious things one normally tends to ignore.
The Church is in crossroads both globally and locally. It is a fact that several church buildings are being closed or being sold. Congregations are becoming more and more elderly in its demographic and there is a visible disinterest and disengagement of young people. We must be clear here that the young people are not drifting away from God or Spirituality but from established religion and the Church. There could be several reasons for this. The primary reason is the credibility of the church and its leadership. We fail to create a welcoming and inviting ambience for the young and offer something that they find relevant and meaningful. Our unwillingness to change and adapt and our rigidness with dogma increases the distance from the younger generations.
Straining Out the Gnats
We must see all the positive aspects of the life of the church around us today. We are careful not to allow gnats to disturb the rhythm of the life of the church. The gnats that we carefully strain away include parochialism and one-up-man-ship. We are careful that any attempt of othering is nipped in the bud and diverse and inclusive communities are encouraged. We make sure that no one is sidelined because of their gender, sexuality, language, ethnicity, accent or race. We are sensitive to the changing demands of the time and are often open to innovative and creative approaches to liturgy and ministry methods. We ensure that faith always remain relational and authentic. We make sure that the people of God does not become self centered or profit oriented but always have their focus on the last, the least and the lost. We are careful that rites and rituals do not become outdated. We ensure that there is space to raise critical questions and the ethical moral dilemma of generations are addressed creatively and openly. We are sensitive to cultural orientations. While acknowledging that we are not in competition with new age churches we are alert to the fact that people are looking for contemporary relevance in the way the church lives out its witness. We claim to be child friendly and elderly friendly at the same time. We make tall claims of being family oriented, inclusive, international, interdenominational, inter-generational and disabled friendly. But, having said all these, if we make a genuine social audit of our witness, ministry and credibility would we not see several gnats that continue to affect our authenticity,
The Camels We Swallow
Albeit unintentionally we must acknowledge that there are camels that we fail to see in the life of the church. These are camels that can be detrimental to the very existence of meaningful communities. One distinctive mark of a sustainable community is that it takes warnings and alarm bells seriously and has the humility to repent and opt for course correction. The camels that we continue to swallow unwittingly are realities that need to be named, acknowledged and addressed.
The first camel that we must notice seriously and delve deeper is the declining church membership. There could be several factors that contribute to the distancing of people from the churches and from religion. It is not only the negative experiences people would have had themselves or heard from others but also the disconnect to modernity and life contexts that causes this decline. People are becoming more and more secular and fewer people tolerate the positions of the church is social and political challenges around. No creative intervention is done for the alleviation of poverty or for the mitigation of conflicts. Church services many a time become far removed from the day to day struggles that people cope with. People think they are busier than ever before and one of the activities that is cut short is the church.
The second camel that we should be aware of is the hypocrisy that is attributed to the church. We fail to be the authentic torchbearers of faith. The allegations and scams that have happened around the church leadership has eroded the credibility of the church in several parts of the world. Corruption and Nepotism continue to be the order of the day in several places. Discreet manifestations of racism and no genuine efforts to break the shackles of the evil of racial discrimination adds to the hypocrisy. The public witness of the church is masked while the inner realities are something that need prayerful cleansing, renewal and reformation.
The third camel is the walls that divide communities within itself and among others. Identity markers continue to huddle people into formations of exclusivity. Within faith communities are several distinct people groups struggling to transcends the walls that divide and webs that entangle. Pluralism and Inter-faith interactions are facing serious challenges even in a world that claims so much of scientific advancement. Divisions are not always about doctrinal disagreements and leadership conflicts but is unfortunately based also on ethnicity, colour and backgrounds of people.
The fourth camel is our inability to cope with the new age digital challenges. Even as the world around us travel from Artificial Intelligence to Generative Intelligence we still live in the era of the Common Prayer Book. Inter-cultural and inter-generational expectations and the rapid technological changes around us are not always in the same pace. In the hybrid era digital engagement can never be a replacement for in person ministry and the subtle balance has to be carefully found. Concerns around privacy and cyber security takes new forms each day. The dark web continues to surround generations like a hydra and finding creative ways to overcome the challenges become imperative.
The fifth camel is the theological and the doctrinal positioning that compromises on justice for the sake of unity. There are several issues that cannot be easily brushed aside or dealt with. People have very district and different opinions on several key issues. Biblical basis fails to be an acceptable criterion for some. Radical Justice is what they advocate for. Using Theology and Doctrine to marginalize people continues to be a painful reality around us. This camel can be devastating unless we are careful.
The sixth camel is the apathy to the tears that are being shed all around us and our attempt to stay within a safe bubble. This creates a deafening silence in our public witness. Where our voice needs to be heard, we continue to be evasive and looking for safe options. Much more is expected of the church as the world goes through another existential angst. Being the voice of the voiceless, sight of the vision impaired and the champions for the cause of the marginalized is an expected norm but not a practiced norm. We must see it.
The seventh camel is the struggle to maintain safe spaces for all. Safeguarding requirements reduce the number of volunteers available to share the task. The people who continue to find the church a unsafe space include the survivors and victims of abuse of any kind, people of minority races or ethnicities, people with mental and physical health challenges, women facing gender discrimination and people of different sexual orientation, people with no faith, the children, the elderly and the vulnerable people groups, people with criminal background, single parents, new comers, non believers. The question is how do we make churches safe spaces for all.
Conclusion
There is an Arab Proverb which says, “Trust in God but tie your camel” and that is perhaps the message that we need to urgently take seriously. It is also worth taking note that the camel does not see its own hump. Our primary concern should be the growth of the church. The campaign that we initiated “Zero Tolerance to Empty Seats” could be the first step we take. We continue to brainstorm and formulate a pathway of growth, sustainability and credibility for the future.
Vinod Victor
September 1, 2024
Freiburg Anglican Church 