"We're not in Kansas anymore!"

By the Rev. John Dreyer

As an Admission Counselor, I traveled to a lot of schools and churches. In the midst of visiting with people, I hear a lot of discussions regarding the state of the Church and our society today. Many say that we are living in a Post-Modern Era. Though this may be true, one could argue that we are also living in a Post-Constantinian time.

One might recall the history of Constantine. Quite simply Christianity was persecuted until A.D. 313 when the Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity. It soon became a state religion under Theodosius. Somehow, from then on, Christianity was seen as a religion of the state or, like in the United States, Christianity became a very intimate heritage of our American culture.

Previously, if people were religious, they went to a Christian church. If they were not religious, they did not go to church. Today, in our Post Constantinian way of thinking, Christianity is no longer viewed as our nation's religion. If someone is religious, it is not whether being Christian or not, but people are considered religious by being either spiritual, moral, or a good person who follows a certain manner of life.

One could say we are facing a different world compared to that of our Mom's and Dad's. In the past it was a world that in some way was familiar with Christianity, a society that in its own way supported certain principles of the Christian faith. Presently, it is not so. Instead we find our churches trying to deal with the changes and challenges of our day, groping to determine the best response to a world that needs to hear the Gospel in a faithful and meaningful way.

As a church, are we prepared to respond to these new movements? We have been living in a fairly structured society, assumed certain Christian ways and expressions of our faith, and have taken much for granted. Many of these new religions and philosophies of life are foreign to our way of thinking.

In general I find Christians responding to these changes in three different ways. We become very conservative and unchanging in our old ways, finding security in what we know best. This position can be very good in some ways but sometimes finds itself blindly holding to certain things without reflection on "What does this mean?" or "How can I understand what and why we do things in light of my faith and life?"

The other person does not know how to respond to the new environment, so he becomes accepting of new ideas, suggesting that times have changed and we need to change and become more contemporary. This change typically happens without any accountability, but the change is merely for the sake of what is called "contemporary." Getting right down to it, no one knows what that word means.

Perhaps, "contemporary" could be understood by taking our culture and integrating it with the Christian culture. This has been done in history, and the Christian religion has been influenced with false perspectives of the faith because the social culture motivated and influenced the faith. It no doubt offers an honorable purpose of making our faith meaningful to the lives of the people; however, the church is not motivated by this because it is God, despite us, who defines our life and worship.

Finally, the third kind of person tends to be the person who asks the question, "What do we believe and how can we engage our society today in a meaningful way while remaining faithful to our belief and confession as a Christian?" No doubt this is the best approach, which requires good catechesis by the pastor. Where do we begin? Most likely with a good understanding of God believe it or not. I am also a Ph.D. (doctorate) student. I study world religions but more specifically Islam (even before 9-11). I am more convinced that Christians have difficulty in expressing their faith in light of our confession of God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Jesus prayed, "This is eternal life, that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (ESV Jn 17:3). It is a very simple notion that the Christian is to know life and the world in which we live simply by knowing God as He reveals His very self through His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. That is why, while making the sign of the cross, we speak the name of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is why our Baptism is the basis of our faith that defines our life, as the Name of God is placed upon us and we can now pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hollowed be Thy Name." A religion that centers only in God's divine and revealed activity cannot go wrong or be considered imperfect because it is God's work and not our own. This is why the Divine Service is the defining factor of who we are and how we are to live. It is the idea that we do not give meaning, structure, value, or worth in this life but God does because He is the author and giver of life.

For us to engage this world, ourselves, and the issues that lie before us is to engage God through His Son Jesus Christ as He comes to us bearing gifts that define our life under the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is what we call "Theology."

In the ancient church, especially before Constantine, the people of God lived in a very diverse world. This was nothing new to Christianity, for this was the world in which Christianity grew and prospered under the grace of God even in the face of persecution. Today we renew the spirit of the ancient church; bearing the confession of the Faith of old. We engage this world of sin with the true life and light of the Gospel. It is an exciting time in which we are given opportunity to bear witness of this certain life before God now and forever more.

The Rev. John Dreyer is an Admission Counselor at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana.