Is your worship really yours?

This continues our last conversation on tribalism.
We choose places and groups with which to worship, but how often have we really looked at why we have chosen this place.  Do our friends attend this church?  Is it the most prestigious church in the neighborhood? Is the music just so fabulous?  Is the leader handsome or beautiful or pleasant to watch.  I have heard persons remark on the quality of the food served after church.  What is it that sends you off on an early Sunday morning to sit with these people? Is this really your way of worshiping.  Are these worship practices feeding your spirit, or have you just decided what difference does it all make?  IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE!  Whatever you do to feed your spirit changes you.  It's not really about the church, it's more about , as John Wesley said, "How fares your soul?  If what you choose does not really feed you, it is time to get serious about your spiritual needs.  Some people go places for years and don't grow, allowing their souls to become stagnant and diseased. We do not all have the same diets and we should not all be seeking the same worship experience. What do you need?  Find what feeds you and changes you - that is your authentic worship.  There is the most important word for all of us - "authentic".  Stop judging what others do and find what works for you. Preachers feed well those that choose your place and don't worry what is happening at some other church.  Jesus said where two or three are gathered , he would be in their midst. Find what feeds you, it may be a loud place or a quiet place, it may be 1hour or 3 hours, they may teach scripture verse by verse or issue by issue.  One thing is clear, there should be great love there, and you should feel valued and respected plus fed well. Your spiritual life is important, treat it like it is.

Peace

What's Your Tribe?

In the April 9th, 2012 issue of Newsweek magazine, there is an article by E.O. Wilson, on Tribalism. This article outlines humans need to affiliate with like persons and see all non-members as "other". Without knowing much history we can see there is a logic to what Dr. Wilson says about our need to relate in specific ways.  I don't want to bore you with the biological and social implications of this article. Most of you who read this blog are looking at spiritual concerns.  Don't stop reading.  This is a serious concern for all of us.  The article says we have evidenced throughout history a need to align ourselves with like persons and label all those outside of our group as "other".  We, then give ourselves permission to take from the "other" (without asking) or persecute the other for not agreeing with us, or destroy the "other" or judge the other less than ourselves. We often speak of how awful it is when someone is shot or hurt by one gang encroaching on another gang's territory.  We don't seem to see the same behavior in ourselves, when we speak of persons with a different belief system than our own or cultural expression than ours. We are always on the lookout for the "other" in our experience. I can hear some of you saying as you read this I am never guilty of this. Each time we determine that someone else's religion is not as good as ours we act just like the gang members.  We now have churches that represent gangs in our lives.  We consider one better than another.  One preacher better than another. Christians better than Muslims, Jews better than B'hai, Mormons better than Jehovah Witness or Methodist better than all of those listed. For those who claim to follow Jesus, pay attention to who you are making the "other".  The story Jesus tells of the Good Samaritan in

 John 10:29-37, answering the question of  "who is my neighbor?" should give all Christians pause to think differently about our response to "others" in our lives.

The example of what is happening in our political life should scare all of us back into a saner way of living out our beliefs.  For one group to want to interpret for all of us what it means to be Christian and to interpret the Bible for us, should awaken in us a move to teach, worship and live out our beliefs in a less tribal way.  If Dr. Wilson is right and somehow it is inscribed on our DNA, we must live more consciously aware of even our conversations about "others" in our lives. 

We are not simply our basest instincts, but have been gifted with a spark of divinity which when accessed can lead us into more fruitful living. What's your tribe?  Is it your church, your religion or are you living consciously aware of the worth and value of others. As a Christian I am compelled to choose the consciously aware life.