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  Mark 8:26 am on September 12, 2011 Permalink | Reply  

  Darwin, Survival and the Weakest 

  What really blows my mind about the Way of Jesus is that it is 100% opposed to the basic mantra and premise of Darwinian evolution.  Even Darwin, a Christian himself, must have seen the irony in this.  The basic premise to remember from 9th Grade biology class is something like this:

  “This world’s basic fundamental principle is: ‘Survival of the Fittest’” — only the strongest will make it to that momentous stage of reproduction and thus pass on their DNA.

  Jesus however, pointed his disciples to an entirely different set of principles — he set us free from a “survival” paradigm for something much, much better…

  Jesus says that it is not about the “Survival of the Fittest,” but the “Redemption of the Weakest.”  It is in this context that the Kingdom of God is played out in this world, acting as a heckler to the clanging chorus chanting the Darwinian refrain from their Grand Temple – the Marketplace – where contending organisms, organizations, corporations and conglomerations all compete for the “#1 spot” before they are trounced and more lives are ruined (both the rich and the poor).

  OK – so I’m off my soap box.  What does this look like in the practical?

  It means - Not caring or “fighting for your rights” – something we Revolutionary Americans have drilled into us – Jesus points us not to defending our respect from others, but by being a servant with no expectation of worldly recognition.

  It means that finally admitting to ourselves and confessing to our sex-obsessed culture, that “We can live without sex, but we cannot live without love.” (a quote by Shane Claiborne)

  It means, in the end, that your survival is not up to you, and in fact, there is no such thing as “survival,” it is a myth – for even the mighty T-Rex, King of the Reptiles, which should have ruled the earth, was subject to the way of all things – we are all dust, and to dust we shall return.  

  The “Fittest” among all of us is Death Himself.  Only he will “survive.”

  This may come as a “downer” to most, (myself included) but when the striving for survival melts away, in Christ we can seek  a grander goal – Redemption.  The word communicates so much:

  Redemption: (noun) An outside force bringing you to safety and completing in you your original and greatest potential. (my own definition)

  When its no longer up to you and “survival” is no longer the goal, then being the “fittest” no longer preoccupies every moment of your existence, and you can give yourself over to better things – like compassion, grace, and promoting the dreams of others.

  I’m not saying that “Survival of the Fittest” doesn’t exist in the world (Just watch any of the Mac Vs. PC commercials… or Animal Planet), I’m just saying that its not the only show on tonight.  Take a deeper look at the road that an Evolutionary Ethic takes you and takes our society.  Maybe Jesus’ basic commandments “Love the Lord your God with everything…and love your neighbor as yourself” is a good retort that creates dissonance in the siren-song of our culture – and brings us to a new matra:

  Redemption of the Weakest.

  

  Mark W, and Kate are discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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    Kate 3:10 pm on September 12, 2011 Permalink

    Since I feel the need to support my namesake, I will share 2 comments: 1) Fittest does not necessarily mean strongest.  Fittest is really referring to the most successful given the constraints of the environment.  Thus things that have supported greater human survival, like compassion and helping others (not violence and raping), tend to have been genetically and socially passed on.  (Side note: There has been a lot of recent research in psychology providing more evidence that we are “hardwired” to help others.  For example, if you do things with the specific goal to make yourself feel better, you feel good momentarily.  If you do things to make others feel better, you feel good over a longer period.)  2) Survival refers to genes, not to actual people, although the person needs to survive long enough to produce children. 

    An idea you might find interesting that we discuss a lot in one of my labs is that idea that “survival of the fittest” might actually promote a specific mix of genes in a population and not just one specific gene.  So, for example, what is the ideal mix of introverts and extroverts for a population?  Conservatives and liberals?  Theists and atheists?

    Thanks for this brief respite from work!  Hope you and Katrina are doing well.

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    Mark W 3:57 pm on September 13, 2011 Permalink

    Kate — Thank you so much for the thoughtful, intriguing comment!  
       I may have written this post with more provocation than was necessary, something I kick myself for only after its been published.  I actually think that there is a lot of realism/truth to Darwinism’s basic premise – and I think your interpretation of that premise is really cool — (eg. “fittest = most successful given constraints…”)  
       I realize that it is historically suspect to try to force two figures from very different times/places into a conversation – comparing Darwin’s and Jesus’s outlooks on life may be like trying to compare the works of Mozart and Shakespeare.  
       So moving forward cautiously on that point, I do think that the popular application of “survival of the fittest” is something that existed long before Darwin, even in Jesus’ day, and that Jesus’ teachings reorients the Darwinian basic premise. 
       In Jesus’ mind, success in life looks nothing like the definition of success society-at-large is trying to sell us.  They are ladders leaning up completely different walls.  One points to amassing as many points as possible (points = cash, relationships, toys, even things like “benevolence” etc)…the other sees the renunciation of self-promotion, for the sake of deeper truer life.  One teaching Jesus is famous for is “If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?l Is anything worth more than your soul?” — 
       What do you think?  Are there conflicts in the essential ends…and means… for the teachings of Jesus, or are they complimentary?  
       Here’s a confession – although I see Jesus’ teaching one thing – I’m basically not living it out.  If I’m being honest with myself, I still seek self-promotion.  Dang it.

       I hear you saying in your comment that “compassion and helping others” have helped human survival as a whole — sort of a “macro” picture of Darwin’s claim, rather than focusing on the fate of one person.  And I find that really interesting/worth thinking more on.  My first blush response is, “Who was the caveman who made the switch?”  What I mean is – how does a society evolve from violence as the best strategy for survival to compassion, helping others?  When a society (say, like 3rd Century Ireland) is filled with violence and fear from Druidic gangs terrorizing towns and villages all over, how does a guy like St. Patrick turn the tide and reinterpret “survival of the fittest” to mean “community, peace, gardening, self-sacrifice,” etc?  This kind of holistic, systemic sea-change stuff really intrigues me.
       Again, thanks for your response.  Hope this comment is a positive contribution…and not just my usual blathering. I’d love any more thoughts/push-backs.  
    Peace! ///Mark

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  Mark 9:02 am on May 3, 2011 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Exponential Conference ( 2 )   

  #Exponential – David Garrison 

  Last week was the #Exponential 2011 Conference, where 3,500 church planters from around the world gathered in Orlando, Florida to worship God, enjoy fellowship and networking with each other, and to talk shop.  It was a profoundly encouraging and mind-stretching time, and you might find a few of my next blog posts covering some of the ground we discovered down there.

  Today I want to focus briefly on David Garrison author of Church Planting Movements.  Garrison has spent years as a missionary in India, and now works to study and collect real-time data on CPMs (church planting movements) around the world.  CPMs as he defines them are a rapidly multiplying, unstoppable virus of churches being planted across a region and across social groups. Typically they become  a movement when 1000s of churches are being planted over just a few short years.

  Now to the good stuff:

  He spoke of 30 different movements he was aware of in the Middle East, where over 100,000+ Muslims had come to Christ in recent years (many of whom had seen an unknown man named Jesus appear to them in a dream).  In one part of India alone, over 130,000 churches have been planted in India in the last 10 years.  Similar movements are happening in the underground church in China, and across Africa.

  When asked about a church planting movement in America, he said that most Americans are “not trying” to see a church planting movement happen here.

  Though it saddens me, I agree with him.  For the most part, we still want to build bigger barns for ourselves – we prefer church “addition” rather than church multiplication.  For most of the Christian world (America only represents about 4% of the Christians on the planet) – it is about seeing God’s glory MULTIPLIED through countless churches.

  Synthesizing decades of study of these movements – he describes 5 common elements in CPMs:

  1. Effective entry strategy – connecting with folks far from Jesus in a contextually relevant way
  2. Effective Gospel communication – simple (not simplistic) exchange of what the Gospel means for this culture
  3. Effective Discipleship – Americans he said have inherited much from seminaries, but we must learn to become not only hearers but doers of God’s Word.
  4. Effective church formation – the essence of a church is Christ himself, everything that forms must be from him
  5. Long Term Leadership Development – when training leaders, think of those they will train, and those they too will train…think of your leader you are training like a lens into the future.  What kind of leaders will grow in this movement?

  But that’s not what gets Garrison excited – he keeps his eyes on what truly matters – a CPM is not an end in itself- it is all about bringing God glory; and every healthy church planted is another chance to display “God on earth as he really is.”  We want to see God’s glory multiplied (as the waters cover the sea, Hab 2:14) – its not about the numbers, or making some list of CPM prescriptions (he spoke of CPMs in articulately descriptive terms alone), it is not even about “missional,” it is about the glory of God.

  Next post I’ll go a little deeper into Garrison’s thoughts – and how we can begin to engage in a church planting movement of God here in America.

  
   
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  Mark 10:41 am on February 18, 2011 Permalink | Reply  

  A Brief Briefing on Christian History 

  Most Protestants approach church history and spiritual formation as though nothing of significance occurred between the closing of the New Testament canon in the first century and the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century!

  As we are considering what a rich spirituality looks like in the twenty-first century, let’s make this the moment when the Church reintroduces itself into the powerful, expansive history filled with resources and insights to propel us forward.

  If we want to know how to connect with God in a deep way, if we want to avoid the common pitfalls that Christian communities make on their way to spiritual maturity, (there are at least 12 I’ve counted, but that’s for another day) and if we are interested in changing our lives and the lives of the people in our faith communities – we’ve got to make this a crucial part of our faith journey.

  3 Parts – the Ancient, Medieval and Modern Spiritualities

  Think of these three eras as shaped like an hourglass.  The ancient church (Pentecost to 600CE) was characterized by rapid exampsion to the continents of Asia, Africa, and Europe.  The medieval church (c.600-1500) was marked by withdrawal as internal divisions and the rise of Islam greatly diminished the Christian influence in Asia and Africa.  The modern church (c.1500-present) saw a new expansion beyond the boundaries of Europe, and in the past few decades the churches of the third world have shown the greatest vitality, expansion and missionary fervor.

  The ancient church – after it became the official religion of the Roman Empire, was rapidly transformed from a network of periodically persecuted believers into a geo-political bishop-states.  While some bishops used their power to fight off doctrinal heresies – (Montanism, Gnosticism, and Neo-Platonism) – others left the Christian empire to pursue desert spirituality, creating monastic orders.

  Christianity became a largely European phenomenon throughout the Middle Ages.  The Western and Eastern branches of the Church (Edessa, and Constantinople) formerly separated during this period.  The Eastern church became increasingly apophatic (mystical in their theology, and their spiritual disciplines – like listening prayer and stillness).  Monasticism flourished in the West, with Benedictine, Carthusian and Cistercian orders continued to develop contemplative and ascetic approaches to spirituality.

  Modern Spirituality begins with the impact of the four branches of the Protestant Reformation (Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist, and Anglican Spirituality).  Each of these understood their relationship to the state in a different light, as well as HOW the church in the West needed to transform.  In the Catholic Church, fantastic spiritual thinkers emerged in Spain and France during this time.  As Christianity found new territory in the far West Americas, new post-Reformation Protestant movements (Puritans, Quakers, Pietists, Evangelicals, revivalism, Methodists, holiness groups, and Pentecostals).  Most recently in our time, we’re seeing the Catholic Church fundamentally reformed in Vatican II, as well as other movements (ecumenical, charismatic, twelve-step spirituality, psychological approaches, and creation-centered spirituality).  Finally – the seeds of Eastern Orthodoxy and Christian developments in Latin America, Africa and Asia are finally making a real impact on the Church of the West after years of isolation.

  This is about as brief as one could span through the movements of 2000 years of Christian Spirituality.  If you’re truly interested in learning more, I recommend a few books to get you started!