Christianity is moving backwards
and how to honor the tradition by reinventing it
Like in politics, there are at least two major currents within Christianity—progressive and conservative.
Some adherents are focused on moving forward, learning more, and advancing into a more equitable and just future. Meanwhile, others want to carry the movement backward to a time they consider more idyllic by restoring the religion to its roots.
Of course, faith is more fluid and complex than a binary between progressives and conservatives allows. Generally speaking, however, progressives talk about what the future holds, while conservatives want to drag folks back to the non-existent glory days. In many Christian communities, the only movement is regressive.
If you look at the arc of evolutionary history, humans have made great progress, but that doesn’t mean that the trajectory of human consciousness is always forward. The violent horrors of the past few centuries should warn us against naively optimistic thinking about the inevitability of progress. And yet, Spirit is always leading people of faith to ask new questions and reexamine old beliefs.
Why would Christians want to resist this forward movement? Because it’s unbelievably frightening to live in a constant state of flux.
Without absolutes to cling to, we feel we have less of a grip on reality. The fluidity of faith allows for change and growth to coexist alongside feelings of uncertainty. Unfortunately, the dominant narrative of fear-based pseudo-faith tells us to dig our heels in and remain safely within the bounds of fundamentalist ideologies and interpretations.
However, the social and historical development of religion is inherently revolutionary. New religious traditions must first be birthed out of something preexistent, which usually means a break with established patterns of belief and behavior. Then, throughout their lifespan, traditions and faith communities are constantly regrouping and reforming.
Surprisingly, efforts to reclaim more ancient elements of Christianity could help reform the modern dysfunctions of a tradition gone badly wrong. Christians can honor the wisdom of their tradition’s founders by adapting their teachings to be reconfigured by future generations.
This counterintuitive process of reinvention involves leaving behind antiquated aspects of the tradition which over time are revealed to be inconsistent with the essence of central Christian tenets like love, justice, and peace/nonviolence. (Might I suggest Christian nationalism, purity culture, and original sin be some of the first false idols we burn?)
Faith that is alive and forward-thinking is constantly evolving. If you are a person of faith, you may need to continuously reinvent and reinterpret yourself to keep growing. Faith communities that are truly committed to your spiritual growth will honor your development, not discourage it.
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Author’s note: This post was drafted on the unceded and traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) First Nations. I published this post on Meusebach-Comanche Treaty land. I am grateful to live, work, and study on the traditional territories of the Nʉmʉnʉʉ Sookobitʉ (Comanche), Tonkawa, Jumanos, and Ndé Kónitsąąíí Gokíyaa (Lipan Apache) peoples.
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