Between the sacred and the secular

One of the largest problems in contemporary American Christianity today is that self proclaiming Christians are not acting like Jesus. There could be a lot of unpacking done with that statement, but I would rather be broad in saying that, in general, American Christianity is more focused on things like politics, institutionalizing, media, and culture than it is on its founder, who is Christ. I've been (slowly) reading Alan Hirsch's book The Forgotten Ways which talks about this idea of returning to the roots of what he calls the "Apostolic Genius" in both living and proclaiming a missional style of Christianity. I've found it rather intriguing that in his chapter on the heart of Christianity how he talks about this split between a Christian's understanding of the sacred and the secular, and how that split in a Christian's mind and thus lifestyle can be disastrous to the name by which we claim. Here are a couple interesting quotations on this topic:

"By setting up a place that we call 'sacred' because of the lighting, the incense, and the religious feel, what are we thereby saying about the rest of life? Is it not sacred? We cannot escape the conclusion that by setting up so called sacred spaces we , by implication, make all else 'not-sacred,' thereby assigning large aspect of life in a non-God, or secular, area." (p. 95)

"It is left to the believer to live one way in the sacred sphere and to have to live otherwise in the secular." (p. 96)

Whether you are a long-time devoted Christian or an occasional church go-er, this statement can speak volumes to you. This question begs to be asked: Is God only God on Sunday, in a church building, and under certain predetermined conditions, or is he God everywhere in the lives of everyone whether they choose to acknowledge him or not? I believe that the latter far outweighs the former. I mean come on, we're talking about God here, and yet how many times is there this mental and behavioral split between the sacred and the secular in our lives? Hirsch continues on about this subject by bringing attention to a pretty current event where this split is happening: the Rwandan genocide in Africa. He quotes Lee Camp who said:

"In fact, the Rwandan genocide highlights a recurrent failure of much historic Christianity. The proclamation of the 'gospel' has often failed to emphasize a fundamental element of the teaching of Jesus, and indeed, of orthodox Christian doctrine: 'Jesus is Lord' is a radical claim, one that is ultimately rooted in questions of allegiance, of ultimate authority, of the ultimate norm and standard for human life. Instead, Christianity has often sought to ally itself comfortably with allegiance to other authorities, be they political, economic, cultural, or ethic. Could it be that 'Jesus is Lord' has become one of the most widespread Christian lies? Have Christians claimed the lordship of Jesus, but systematically set aside the call to obedience to this Lord? At least in Rwanda, with 'Christian Hutus' slaughtering 'Christian Tutsis' (and vice versa), 'Christian' apparently served as a brand name - a 'spirituality,' or a 'religion' - but not a commitment to a common Lord" (p. 99)

Hirsch interpets this by saying:

"What does all this practically mean for those seeking to recover the Apostolic Genius in the life of the community of God? For one, it will involve (re)engaging directly the central confession of 'Jesus is Lord' and attempting to reorient the church around this life-orienting claim"

"...we need to constantly go back to our Founder and reset our faith and communal life on him." (p. 99)

"The first step in the recovery of Apostolic Genius is thus the recovery of the Lordship of Jesus in all its utter simplicity"

(p. 100)

The subtraction of the sacred away from all aspects of one's life can be highly damaging, whether one is a practicing Christian or not. Obviously the consequences can be deadly, and it's not just been in Rwanda, but in any injustice or genocide caused by Christians throughout history. A Christian needs to understand that their allegiance is to be to Christ, and his agenda, not ours, needs to come first and be promoted. Christians need to act the way Jesus wanted them to act. The sacred and the secular cannot be two but must be one. Jesus' lordship is the foundation to the Gospel moving forward effectively.