Bow down to your god: Diversity

Wayne Holst, a Lutheran pastor, tells us in the Anglican Journal that mainline Canadian churches have, since the 1960s, been becoming more diverse. He seems to think that is a good thing. What he fails to mention is that in the same period, mainline churches have also lost most of their people. Those that remain, though, are more diverse, apparently. Diversity is more important than countless run of the mill Yahweh worshippers because diversity is  – god.

One definition of diversity is “the inclusion of individuals representing more than one national origin, colour, religion, socioeconomic stratum, sexual orientation, etc.” A half-century ago, little was made of diverse communities of faith. At best, we tended to deny or soft-pedal this characteristic in favour of a certain “uniformity.” Sameness, even combativeness, was honoured. But Canadian social values have evolved. Today, we are much more committed to embracing diversity.

As Canadian society has changed from mono- and bi-cultural to multi- and intercultural, our Christian communities have continued, albeit hesitantly, to reflect societal composition and tendencies.

When and how did we change from being churches that valued uniformity to becoming communities valuing diversity? I believe it was during the 1960s when (at the Canadian centennial) we became more intentionally focused on our distinct identity as a nation.

Meanwhile, another group established by Justin Welby last year has been picking over what diversity really means. To forestall any inadvertent stumbling into discovering anything useful, they avoided theological discussions completely. The reason is obvious: it’s much easier to maintain unity in a church devoid of theology; a side benefit is that a diverse church, unshackled from the constraints of having to believe in anything coherent, attracts no-one – other than clergy. No people, no arguments. This is called “walking together”

From here:

“We have been developing a greater understanding between us of the diversity within the Communion,” he said. “But, significantly, we have been seeing the many, many areas of commonality.

“It has not been a theological discussion. Instead, we have been examining what differences mean at a practical level. In particular, we looked at marriage practices and relationships in different parts of the Communion. But we also looked at the spiritual dimensions of the idea of walking together.”

The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon – who serves the group as secretary – added that it had been considering how the authority of primates and bishops was practiced in different parts of the Communion.

The group was established in January 2016 by the Archbishop of Canterbury at the request of the primates. It was given the task of restoring relationships, rebuilding mutual trust and responsibility, healing the legacy of hurt and exploring deeper relationships. The group met for the first time last September.  Seven of the nine-member group met this week. Canon Elizabeth Paver – the former vice chair of the ACC — and Bishop Paul Sarker from Bangladesh were unable to attend on this occasion.

Islamic dictator better than Trump-infection

According to this ex-Lutheran pastor, at least:

I have observed how Oman, with a rich Islamic heritage and an embracing society, is learning how to combine its proud heritage and identity with a highly educated and globally inclusive workforce.

Helping Oman achieve some remarkable social and economic goals over the past 50 years is its beloved, Western-educated sultan, Qaboos bin Said, who seems to be the best kind of benevolent dictator.

[…..]

The first thing I noticed about Oman was the warmth and authenticity of its people. Decorum between persons, especially between the sexes, is respected, but that does not prevent high-level, authentic, interpersonal exchange that seems so sadly lacking in the West, and our Trump-infected times.

The benevolent dictator of Oman does not permit Christians to gather in private homes to pray, nor can church services be conducted anywhere but at benevolent dictator approved locations.

Muslims who convert to Christianity tend to be private about the fact since they stand to lose everything if discovered.

So much better than Trump-infection.