Mike's musings

Problems with the countercultural model

In a comment to one of my posts yesterday, Sally said...

"Interesting Mike so come on explain a little more your thinking regarding the countercultural model- do you have a specific problem with this model of does it simply go against the grain?"

So, I thought I'd better reply. I've a bit of a think about it, and although I won't pretend that I've gone through it all, here are some initial thoughts about the problems I have.

1. I think there's a huge danger that the countercultural model requires you to choose one theology and say "all the others are wrong: this is how we have to live". If you think about the Nigerian Anglican church's reaction to the liberal side of the US and UK (and other) Anglican churches, you see an extreme example. I'm not happy with being dictated to by a model which can be used as a condemnatory, rather than redemptive, force.
2. following on from that, I think there's a very big danger that the conservative voices will be the strongest, and will win the day. Who's to say this is right?
3. I worry that voices will be shouted down, and that really concerns me.
4. I believe, very, very strongly, that the Holy Spirit talks to us through the lives and culture of those around us. I believe that She is at work in non-Christians, and in the culture around us. There are things we can learn, and if we decide that we can draw a line in the sand, and say "we know everything there is to know about the world, and you're all wrong", then we'll keep slavery and child labour and burning witches and the ptolemaic solar system and the belief that the ruling monarch can cure a variety of nasty skin complaints. You'll note that some of those were from the "hard" sciences, and some weren't. That was deliberate.
5. my view of the coming of the Kingdom of God is that we should work to shape our culture(s), and not set ourselves apart. I know Christians like that, and they worry me. They worried me at school, they worried me at university, and although there's a place for lots of different ways of being a Christian in the world, when God spoke to me a few years ago and I finally got the message that he wanted me to pursue an ordained ministry, the two big things he left me with were:
   • a statement: "if you really believe in this Church, now's the time to step up and do something about it";
   • a question: "would you be happy being part of the church if you were you, now, and not in it?"
   Both of these are ongoing issues, and I suspect that the countercultural model won't help me much with the second.