An Apology for the Church (Part 1)

Here's a fun fact you can bust out at your next social gathering. Did you know that the word "apology" has two meanings? The first meaning is the popular one: admitting error. The second meaning is less well-known: a defense of something. For example, the ancient philosopher Plato wrote a book about Socrates called "The Apology" which is about Socrates defending his beliefs and behaviours, not admitting he was wrong.

I've been thinking a lot about the Christian Church recently, and I've come to think that it needs both kinds of apology: a whole-hearted admission of error as well as a defense of its value in spite of all it's errors.

Let's start with the admission of error kind of apology first, because nowadays in Western society it is the most obvious kind of apology the Church needs. As a culture we have become painfully aware of all the failures and sins of the church both past and present. It seems like not a year goes by without hearing about a major Christian figure having some sort of moral failure. Ravi Zacharias and Bill Hybels have been two of the biggest recent examples. A whole documentary has been made about the abuse and exploitation that has taken place within Hillsong Church. Our culture's general opinion has generally soured towards white evangelicals in particular for such things as their indiscriminate support of Trump or denying Covid.

And all of that has been within just the past 5 or so years! That's not to mention the horrors the Church has been responsible for in its 2000 year history. The Crusades, witch-hunts, and colonization are three examples that come quickly to mind. In Canada we have recently been reconning with the horrific way Indigenous people have been treated by white Christian settlers and Canadians.

This awareness of and reaction against the Church's evils is not just an abstract feeling "out there" in the culture. It is something that close family and friends have been grappling with. I've heard a number of people I know say they hate the Church and/or Christians (which is gutsy for them to admit to me considering I'm a pastor!). And I get it. I don't blame them or judge them for it. Many of them have experienced hurt in the church. I think some people are understandably just too ashamed of and disenchanted with the Church to remain a part of it.

As Christians we need to own these sins and failures and apologize (admit error) for them. A

really cool series of videos was made in an attempt to do this. A handful Christian leaders came together to apologize for things like LGBTQ discrimination, racism, and discrimination of Indigenous peoples. However, the sad irony of this series of videos is that Bruxy Cavey was one of the featured Christian leaders, and in the years since the release of the videos he was found to be engaging in sexual misconduct!

I want to make the following preliminary statement loud and clear, because it is important to keeping the rest of what I have to say in proper perspective. The Christian Church is legitimately guilty for all of the above-mentioned sins/failures and more. None of what I am about to say is meant to minimize, soften, or excuse those sins and failures.

I am going to write a few more posts in this series attempting to do the second meaning of "apology" for the Church: a defense. But the preliminary statement just mentioned is important because in defending the Church's value I am not intending to excuse its evils; my goal is to show that it is not only evil. The Church is a complex mix of evil and good, darkness and light.

In Cognitive Behavioural Therapy one of the cognitive distortions they warn against is generalization. An example of generalization is when a student fails on a test and then concludes "I fail at everything" or "I am a failure". It's when you assume that what is true of a specific set of scenarios is true in every other scenario. I believe that in a sense this is what is happening with our culture's view of the Church. It is painting all Christians, churches, and pastors with the same negative brush.

And to be clear, my point is not just about what the Church does but also what the Church is. On one level I think a case can and should be made that the Church is responsible for a lot of good in the world, but as a Christian that's ultimately not the most important level. Deeper than that is the theological and biblical reality that the Church is God's idea. It was His plan A and He has no plan B. Biblically the response to bad church is not no church but good church.

Looking forward to digging deeper into this significant discussion in upcoming posts :)