Comments on: Contextualization Gone Hog Wild

By: Jesse

Jesse — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 04:26:52 +0000

Enlightening article. I am a graduate of the Master’s College living in Northern AZ. I am a Navajo and currently Pastor a church on the Navajo Reservation. In recent years I have seen a growing resurgence of “culture”; by culture many mean a return to Navajo religion, a religion masquerading as culture. A growing number of Navajo Christians here are flocking to practices that are clearly paganistic. Perhaps many of these Christians feel they must accommodate pagan practices in order to preserve Navajo culture. For example, our church invited a guest to provide information on their discipleship ministries at another part of the reservation; they use the Navigator discipleship program. He is white and married to a Navajo lady. The ministry is very commendable and they seem to genuinely want to honor the Lord. To make a long story short we eventually came to the topic of involvement in Navajo religious practices and how they felt about it. He described several practices, which I know clearly represented pagan worship, in which he participated with his wife. He justified his involvement as an attempt to show his in-laws his acceptance of their beliefs so that sharing the gospel with them would not be too offensive. I informed him that it was probably not the best way to present the gospel to them. After an extended discussion on the merits of presenting the gospel using “culture” he brought up the idea of contextualization. I told him my viewpoint was that as God’s spokesmen we must make a distinction between the gospel and pagan beliefs, in principle and practice. Any attempt to integrate, or use “cultural” religious practices as a spring board to present the gospel is detrimental, if not wrong. Eventually we agreed to disagree. Pray for our people, as this error in understanding the exclusivity of the gospel is under attack on our reservation, that many will not be led astray.

By: Andrew B. Middleton

Andrew B. Middleton — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 04:27:40 +0000

This is one of the few times I’ve looked up your web site, and I too was a little unsure if the article was a spoof!
Unbelievable. I wouldn’t have called it contextualising though, but rather pathetic mis-use of Scripture. Almost sounds as if the “Pastor” isn’t a Christian at all!
Have heard lots of the same excuses for bad behaviour, bad language, bad thinking and bad ethics before, both inside and outside the Christian churches.

By: tunji

tunji — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:47:56 +0000

When Paul said that he became all things to all men,so that by whatever means they would come to a knowledge of the saving grace of Christ,I have no doubt the he did not have the types of the Set Free Soldiers in mind!

This is contextualization gone too far.

By: Prodigal Knot

Prodigal Knot — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:45:07 +0000

Here’s a “Praise the Lord!” for people like Shawn, who know and love the truth of God’s Word. Far too many people see the freedom in Christ as a license to do whatever seems right for them, instead of freedom to do what’s right according to God’s standards. I’m encouraged by honest Christians, like Shawn, who seem to be so rare these days.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 01:19:28 +0000

From a related article linked on the referenced article page:

Police believe the Set Free Soldiers initiated the meeting and wanted to ambush the Hells Angels.

One Set Free pastor caught fleeing with a bloody knife in his car told police the brawl began when the Hells Angels’ leader confronted Aguilar and accused him of claiming affiliation with the Hells Angels, the documents state.

The Hells Angel leader allegedly told Aguilar that Set Free Soldiers was not authorized to take business from the Hells Angels.

Set Free member Glenn Schoeman told police he was afraid the Hells Angels would now be “green-lighted” to kill him and other Set Free members because they had drawn blood in the fight, the documents state.Schoeman has since been charged with a felony count of concealing evidence in the stabbing for allegedly hiding the knife, as well as street terrorism.

Looks like it’s more a militia type thing than a “cultural contextualization” thing, or maybe a mix of the two. But you know, I read this stuff, these folks demanding all these “rights” and all puffed up and proud about fighting back, and my heart can’t help but to break as my thoughts turn to this:

All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not open His mouth;
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the living
For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a rich man in His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
But the LORD was pleased
To crush Him,putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the goodpleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:6-11, NASB)

By: Patrick

Patrick — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:57:36 +0000

While there’s certainly something to be said for a pastor caring deeply for his sheep, this seems to be an example of that being taken way to far, and thinking that the pastor needs to actually be like his sheep. I know this doesn’t seem very popular these days, but it seems as if pastors and churches would spend considerably less time focusing on their audience, and more time focusing on the message (Christ crucified for our sins), we could avoid a lot of these problems.

Patrick
http://www.TheologyOfOmaha.com

By: Jesse Johnson

Jesse Johnson — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:54:41 +0000

Trevor,
With thanks to my pastor, here is the a summary of what I take coarse jesting to be:
Coarse jesting is talk that is “determined and pointed” to make even an innocent statement into something that is obscene or suggestive. It is the filthy talk of a person who uses words or circumstance to display his immoral wit. It is the stock-in-trade of the clever commenter who is never at a loss for sexual innuendo. It is contrasted with the word before it (NKJV: “silly talk”). While “silly talk” refers to a sort of low-brow humor, “coarse jesting” refers to a more sophisticated sophistry. They both come from the same heart, and Paul says it is a heart given over to moral “filthiness.” For that reason it is something which is not fitting for a pastor, even if—actually, especially if—it is tolerated in the culture.
Jesse

By: Trevor

Trevor — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 17:32:27 +0000

Jesse,

What’s your definition of course jesting?

By: Truth Unites... and Divides

Truth Unites... and Divides — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:09:43 +0000

I was being sarcastic by the way.

I’m glad you said so. You just never know what people will do… as this article demonstrates.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:53:00 +0000

I was being sarcastic by the way.