A Good Thing About "The Good Place"

My wife and I have extremely different tastes in film and television, so it’s rare that we’d find something we both enjoy. Once she suggested a show called “The Good Place.” Once I heard the premise, I brushed off the idea. A year later, after hearing some good reviews from Christians I respect, I thought I’d give it a try. My wife and I just finished watching the first two seasons together.

My early assessment: The Good Place isn’t Christian, but it sure isn’t relativist, either.

In the first few minutes, you see the main character Eleanor (played by Kristen Bell) waking up in the afterlife. Michael (played by Ted Danson) is a seeming mayor and architect of a village in “The Good Place” (the Heaven equivalent) and he welcomes Eleanor and explains to her the truths of afterlife. This explanation clarifies that none of the earthly religions got things correct, but her humanitarian work earned Eleanor her spot in “The Good Place” and not in “The Bad Place.” Eleanor seems overall relieved, but is worried, because she quietly recounts that she actually led a selfish life and was not charitable. Whoever or whatever arranged her spot in “The Good Place” made a mistake, but what should Eleanor do?

No, of course this TV show isn’t Christian. It doesn’t adhere to really any of the biblical characteristics of the afterlife, not even as much as C.S. Lewis’s The Great Divorce. In the afterlife, according to the Bible, there are no misplacements, misunderstandings or unexpected disruption in Heaven. We’re two seasons into the show, and we haven’t even seen the producers’ interpretation of Hell (from the tormented’s perspective). If we take the theology of The Good Place literally, it’s a “works-based salvation” type of universalism. So, of course, we’re not going to hear about the transcendent veracity and authority of Bible and the Penal Substitution view of the Doctrine of Atonement in this TV series. This is a show that doesn’t take its own theological interpretation of the afterlife seriously. It’s not The DaVinci Code.

However, this TV show is not, however, a politically-correct shrug to moral relativism. In this show, as Eleanor juggles her aforementioned dilemma, morals matter. There actually is a good place and a bad place. There actually are good things to do and bad things to do. What you do in your life on earth matters. The level of selflessness matters. Underlying motivations matter. Being selfish and striving for whatever is one’s fulfillment is certainly frowned upon. We should do good, not for its rewards, even though it is difficult. These are the kinds of themes one might hope to see deep didactic dramas like West Wing or any recent movie with Captain America, not a 25-minute comedy show. Sometimes it kinda feels like a very light-hearted version of LOST (and sometimes the light-heartedness feels strange when eternity is at stake). And the show is really funny, largely without being raunchy or profane.

The violence, sex, and language of The Good Place have it rattling between TV-PG and TV-14 (leaning much more toward the former). The Good Place is certainly not a show you show your friends just before you read the the “Romans road. However, it’s a very funny show that regularly tells viewers that selfishness is bad. That there is a such thing as universal right and wrong. And that life is not all about individual fulfillment.

So, no, The Good Place doesn’t teach biblical doctrine. But, to our pluralist, selfish and confused world, it tells viewers that there are right and selfless things to do, even if they are costly. And that’s a good thing.

Disappointment in the NFL

I’m not a die-hard NFL guy, but I really enjoy the unfolding drama of each season, as teams struggle to get the coveted Lombardi Trophy. It’s one of the main things that helps me say goodbye to the warm weather of summer each year. And last season was fun. The NFC Championship was heartbreaking to me as a Vikings fan, but it was good to see the Eagles, led by a Christian coach and a Christian quarterback, at least interrupt the annoying Patriots dynasty and get some new blood on the Lombardi Trophy.

But I’ve become really disappointed in the NFL the past couple of years. At first, there was the issue of concussions and other medical conditions that occur to players because of what happens on the field (I was told as a kid that football players don’t live nearly as long). People should really read or watch League of Denial, appropriately titled because it seems the NFL’s main PR machine has downplayed, given lip service, or downright denied the medical impacts of football on their main money-makers (the players), even as research stacks up. Despite an ethical cost, this helps them make more money.

And there’s also the whole issue of kneeling at the flag. The silence and seeming confusion in the NFL authorities’ response is telling. Now, I’m not going to take a political side here, but it should be pointed out that the national anthem protests (begun by Colin Kaepernick), did cause a serious drop in the NFL’s TV ratings in 2016. The NFL authorities and the team owners had more than ample opportunity to make a statement that might even start a crucial conversation about race issues, free speech, respect and accountability for police officers, etc. in a country so divided that you can’t even eat a chicken sandwich without being political. Such conversations are difficult but very rewarding, but the NFL leadership didn’t pursue them. Not a single coach or team owner sought out Colin Kaepernick (while other players without his charity, integrity and football skills play in his stead), and the NFL leaders have implemented a new policy that forbids kneeling during the national anthem, punishable by fine. Perhaps, in their view, this new policy will brush the issue under the proverbial rug and restore TV ratings. Despite an ethical cost, this helps them make more money. 

I’m detecting a theme, here.

I have several friends who are boycotting the NFL, and I totally understand. I’m willing to boycott the NFL, but what change would it bring? I don’t think it’s right that the NFL makes the money it does with the methods it employs, but it’s such a massive entity with such a following. 

And football is fun to watch, too. Basketball and hockey games are fast-paced and intense, and baseball and soccer games seem almost lethargic, but football games are just the right pace of watchability. This isn’t about politics or patriotism. These are questions I have about a corporation who has arguably limited free speech, perpetuated socio-political division, and sacrificed the physical health of its employees, all seemingly in the pursuit of further profit. As Christians, how do we wrestle with that?

So, what do we do?

The Complacency of White Evangelical Men?

      I’m not athletic and I never have been. Some of the best days for my social status were when I actually achieved something in an athletic competition (e.g. when I won the mini-sandbag throwing competition for my 2nd grade class, when I won an exhibition match for my school’s wrestling team in junior high, etc.). But through eighth grade, most of my involvement in sports was primarily for weight loss. I’m an artsy thinker type, so the little competitive attitude I did have I brought into the field of music. And I did this from mid-elementary school all the way through college.

      All throughout my educational years, in jazz band, show choir, singing, spelling, reading, and math events, my competition (that I mainly lost to) was dominantly women and POC. We’re talking about some talented people here. People that went on to become doctors or businessmen in the center of the Twin Cities, opera singers at the Met, producers in Hollywood, etc. all women and POC.

      So, the idea that white males, like myself, have a natural advantage or have discovered the only effective keys to success, particularly in the arts, sciences, ministry leadership, business or anything is new to me. Through God’s hand in my life, I’ve been taught to recognize giftedness, work ethic and good character when I see it. As a music composer, God has taught me to respect the dignity of His Creation, as he didn’t “spend more work” on me than anyone else.

      All the stuff I’ve seen alleged against ministry leaders over the past few years (including physical actions, circumstances and/or words), I’m still wrestling with. I’m not the perfect pastor, but in my years in full-time ministry, I always followed “The Billy Graham Rule” and have strived to avoid the temptation to abuse the privileges in my job description. And I just don’t think certain jokes, much less say them.

      A few years back, I preached on the story of King David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11-12), the story of a king who, while home from the war, noticed a pretty girl (the wife of one of his loyal soldiers) and slept with her. Trying to cover up her pregnancy, he first asked the soldier to temporarily abandon his brothers in arms. When that didn’t work, the king quietly asked someone from his military leadership to let him get killed in the war on the frontline. To cover that up, several soldiers were also sent to the frontline for the slaughter. King David didn’t even know of his own wrongdoing until a prophet had to do a very explanatory rebuke.

      The main application of that story, as I had been told, was to flee from sexual immorality. Just don’t do it. But as I looked into the passage and into my own life and experiences, I learned another application that could have helped David. And it was more helpful than just the instruction of controlling one’s hormones: be wary of complacency.

      The word "complacent" is defined as:

“pleased, especially with oneself or one's merits, advantages, situation, etc., often without awareness of some potential danger or defect”

      King David should have been fighting alongside his soldiers. He should have been aware of the danger in which he was putting the entire kingdom by chasing one night’s lustful desire. There are other examples how we could say King David was complacent. But I’ve been complacent, too. And I’m worried that white males of our country’s church leadership are being complacent.

-We’re too pleased with our own academic prowess and theological conservatism that we become unaware of the transcendent beauty of the Gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit.

-We’re too pleased with our own appearance of righteousness that we’re unaware of our call to justice. (In the Bible, righteousness and justice are the same word).

-We’re too pleased with our numerically-successful ministry models in our business-loving world that we’re unaware of the spiritual and relational faults of our ministry.

      Churches led by white males have been going through a storm recently, as leaders have been stepping down in the midst of allegations of sexual misconduct, financial wrongdoing, favoritism, and/or inappropriate comments regarding race and gender. I think this is just the beginning. The Church is more and more visible to our country’s empowered populists, and anyone can know what a church’s congregation and leadership looks like, what its youth pastor eats for dinner, and its Yelp reviews. No longer can any Christian have an opaque wall between his private and public life where the “good actors” can compartmentalize their relationship with God. This is a very seeing world looking, first and foremost, for integrity, grace and compassion, and we (as white male Christians) have just shown them (often hypocritical) moral condescension and/or tried to appeal to them with what we think is snazzy advertising.

      Fellow white males in ministry leadership, hear me out. By what many of us have said and done in the past few years, we have really shot ourselves in the feet. As Bible-believing Christians, we believe that God created ALL humans and inspired ALL traditions of His worship, and that everyone has something to bring to the table where they always belonged in the first place. Our white-male-run, 50’s-inspired, conservative and personal-holiness model of ministry is failing. Judging by today’s news, it’s largely scaring women and POC, and judging by statistics, it’s not even reaching white males under the age of 40. Meanwhile, Hispanics will soon be the majority of our country's population, and African-American churches have congregants who have the most biblical beliefs by far (according to a recent report from the Pew Research Forum). Yet many white male ministry leaders still, for whatever reason(s) or lack thereof, seem to think that our modernist Western methods are the universal standard and metric for ministry to the diverse and post-modern world.

      We need to acknowledge that our God is not the “white man’s God.” He never was. And we need to, as white male leaders, show humility and respect for women and POC. Consider Philippians 2:1-4, James 1:19, and 1 Peter 2:12. Admit complacency if you need to, before it’s too late.

A Closed Letter To Our Government On Religion And Policy

So many people have been writing open letters, so I figured I'd write a closed one. Hope you enjoyed it!

The Sounds of Silas

Even in the deepest hallways of biblical scholarship, it is still little known that, first, the Apostle Paul did actually write a short letter about his brief time in prison with Silas and Philippi, an additional source on the events to Luke’s account in Acts 16. Secondly, one of the first minstrel groups of the early Church, known as Simon & Barthumkel, wrote a song about it called “The Sounds of Silas.” We actually have the lyrics below, translated from Koine Greek.

Stanza 1

Hello prison, my old friend

I've come to be with you again

Because I’d rather be free, preaching

But I suppose another way, outreaching, 

Is writing letters to the churches across the plains

But still remains are the sounds of Silas

Stanza 2

In restless dreams he tends to snore

Restful nights I have no more

Inside this jail down here in Philippi

I turn and toss, and my throat is dry

When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of angelic light

That split the night

And stopped the sounds of Silas

Stanza 3

And in the shaking jail I saw

All the chains and all the doors

Chains unlocking without creaking

Cell doors clearing without squeaking

We’d be fleeing, but our jailer would take his life

He had much strife

But for my shout with Silas

Stanza 4

“Do not give yourself such pain,”

Said I, “for in our cell we’ve stayed.”

The jailer called the cell, “Illuminate!”

And then before us, fell the man prostrate

Asking, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

He was depraved

Down on the ground near Silas

Stanza 5

“Believe in Jesus,” we relayed 

And at the jailer’s home we stayed 

And our wounds were washed before morning

And more relationships with God forming

And the household was also baptized in the holy name

That we proclaim

The God of Paul and Silas

The Church and the Need for Visible Authority on Race Relations

(FYI: I wrote this weeks ago, not in response to what happened in Charlottesville this past weekend.)

Should we be worried about the future of American churches?

I know that some people are. But they’re worried because of other reasons, such as the music (it’s either too old or too anti-intellectual, etc.), the watering down of the message (just preach the Penal Substitution aspect of the Doctrine of Atonement, dang it!), and various (sometimes orthodox, sometimes not) capitulations to popular culture. I’m not worried about any of those issues eliminating the Church.

Many outside the Church (and some within) think that its survival will depend on its whole affirmation with the LGBT community (get with "the times"!). The Church should be against all forms of bullying, but it still mostly struggles to minister to the LGBT community, while afraid of its wealth of political and cultural capital. The outspoken leaders for the LGBT community, however, require nothing short of complete theological affirmation. This brings the two communities to an impasse, sadly stunting the ability to work or even live together in the name of charity and cultural flourishing. However, the Church has survived far worse persecution than any social or political action the States have ever seen on their own turf. So no, unlike others, I’m not worried about that issue eliminating the Church.

However, I’m worried about a hurdle that plagued the global Church for centuries since its inception, and with which many American churches continue to struggle: truly communicating the full message of Jesus Christ to different cultures.

No, seriously, how many different races and cultures attend the same particular church service?

Because of discourse in recent and current politics, the rise of #BlackLivesMatter, and a host of late and tragic incidents, the need for all types of racial reconciliation continues to grow. And it needs to be addressed by an organization (not just one person) with visible (not just theoretical) authority on the issue. 

Who can do this? Not a culturally-homogenous group of people. Not a group that will sell out to money and influence. Not a group that regularly vilifies or condemns the disagreeable. There are many political organizations and pop-culture icons who give lipservice to the racial tension in our diverse country, but they can’t speak or act effectively to the issue. The American Church can. The question, I believe, is a matter of if it will.

Two significant changes in the past 75 years:

1) Good news: Christian gatherings are now regularly occuring all over the world. From basements of secrecy to beautifully-decorated sanctuaries, the message of Jesus Christ and the group efforts to exposit the Holy Bible have been very (but not thoroughly) globalized. The Church of Christ, born in the Middle East and raised in Europe, was challenged by the Enlightenment and is no longer the “white man’s religion.”

2) Bad news: Very few Americans (regardless of their religion) can really see that, partially because our diverse country has become very culturally-segregated. My home metropolis of Chicago is, perhaps, the strongest example, as its cultural demographic layout is basically striped.

Now, there’s nothing wrong, inherently, with living and worshipping with what’s familiar, but if Christianity is truly a global religion, what should a church service in a diverse country look like? How tied to local culture should theology be? For example, the most headline-grabbing denominational leaders and influential bloggers of churches in the States are predominantly white, male and suburban/rural. However, some places with more exponential church growth are Africa and China. That’s a bit of a worrisome disconnect (among many).

I’m worried that as the occurence of race-based tragic incidents and need for racial reconciliation grows (and it will), our information age will bring American churches’ congregations to light. The cultural segregation of our country’s congregations will be made apparent to all in a time of crisis, and the Church (even the Gospel message?) could then wrongfully lose its credibility of transcendence. 

In the Church’s early days in the Roman Empire (a very racist, misogynist and overly carnal culture), one of the (many) reasons that gatherings grew is that men, women, Jews, Greeks, Romans (and every kind of Gentile), rich, poor, slave, literally anyone felt equally welcome there.

Today, when there are suspected (at the least) racially-motived kidnappings, murders, and hate crimes, people should be able to come to the Church. But most churches today are culturally segregated. And because of the cultural trappings that dominate the homogenous church services, many people are feeling excluded where they should be “one in Christ Jesus.” Building unity despite diversity with grace and (sometimes) reconciliation is messy, but the result is much better than anyone’s default tribalism. But so many people and organizations (including most churches) aren’t making the effort. So, I’m worried.

Should I be worried? If not, why not? If so, what should we (as Christians) do? 

God, Humankind, and Cell Phones

Sometimes I feel like God’s relationship with me is like my relationship with my cell phone.

There are times I’ll be riding in the car through an area packed with businesses, and I want to check my email. My cell phone tires, to no avail, to connect to the internet using an “unlocked” and weak WiFi network that it might have found 30 feet away. My cell phone does this without my approval, supposedly to save me data, or maybe it’s just being too lazy to connect to the cellular network.

I wish my cell phone would trust me. For I have paid, sometimes dearly, for its reliable cellular network and safe WiFi networks where it can find rest for its weary connection-finder. But my cell phone feels it can do this and other things on its own, such as dictating and interpreting my words, understanding where I want to put the cursor, and when I want the screen horizontal.

If only my cell phone would learn to trust me and the internet connections I have paid to provide it, as well as the gentle commands I give it, it would serve me well and it would live a long and prosperous life. For I will not forsake a cell phone before it is well-utilized.

I am actually a caring cell phone user. I don’t exhaust the gigabytes with photos, videos and applications. I make efforts to keep dust from getting in ports and I buy cases when necessary. I have access to a plethora of cell phone doctors. I haven’t and never will use it for more than what it’s built for.

So, if I could say something to my cell phone, it would be: “Please don’t exhaust yourself. You’re a wonderful creation and I yearn for your service to me. But you must learn to trust how I’ve made you, my provisions for you, and my commands to you.”

Anything you want to add?