The Beautiful Mess by John Pavlovitz
The Beautiful Mess by John Pavlovitz Podcast
Why It May Be Time to Leave Your Church
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Why It May Be Time to Leave Your Church

Sunday is coming.

Soon, millions of Americans will find themselves
in the houses of worship that dot nearly every
corner of this country: disparate buildings where
they'll gather under the banner of religion, of faith,
of goodness.

Whether set in trappings that are ancient or modern, filled with polished pews, reclaimed restaurant booths, or plush concert
seating, a vast multitude will leave their homes
this weekend and purposefully head to those
places to be part of redemptive community that
seeks to perpetuate the loving heart of God in the world—
or so the story goes.

You may be among the faithful making this weekly
pilgrimage in person or online, and whether you've
spent a month or a lifetime at your current spiritual
home I'm suggesting this might be a good time to leave it.

Our country is experiencing a real-time human
rights emergency, a horrible repetition of history
(or more accurately a sickening continuation of it).
We are witnessing an unthinkable renaissance of
hatred, much of which is finding its home and its
allies in the American Christian Church.

People of faith need to make it accountable.

If there was ever a time when the Church
should be visible and vocal, it should be now.
If there was ever a moment moral leaders were
made for, it is this one.
If there ever was a day where spiritual leaders
should stand bravely in front of their faithful and
speak the hardest of truths, complaint and mass
exodus be damned—it should be this one.

But it probably won't happen.

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Many of these would-be prophets will remain
silent, either out of cowardice, self-preservation—
or worse yet, agreement with these sins against
diverse humanity.
This Sunday they will deftly dance around the
reality and preach around the issues.
They will sedate their audiences with flowery,
intentionally vague prayers that pretend to
speak but actually say nothing.
They will attempt to distract their flocks for
an hour or so and sidestep the urgency outside
their buildings, because they don't have the
intestinal fortitude to brave the turbulence that
taking bold stands creates.
They will offer platitudes that hope to placate
their people in the moment, just long enough
for the uncomfortable crisis to die down.

Many of the professed spiritual leaders in these
faith communities will count on people filling their
pews and booths and chairs, not giving a damn
enough to ask them to speak with absolute clarity
about the present crisis against humanity in America.

You can't let them be right.

Every white pastor, priest, and minister should be
standing before their various communities this
weekend and specifically naming white nationalist
violence and condemning acts of hatred against
their neighbors.
They should be explicitly condemning these
violations against humanity and calling their
communities to do the same.
They should be directly confronting the privilege
they have benefitted from and participated in.
They should be specifically naming the stoking
white nationalism and the abuse of power we're
seeing as fully antithetical to the heart of their
faith tradition.

If not, you may want to ask yourself what the
point is and why you need to stay another day.

You may want to ask yourself what use the religion
they espouse there actually is, if not to rescue
the most vulnerable from the most powerful,
if not to advocate for the least of these, if not to
care for their neighbor of color as themselves.
If your faith leaders can't find their prophetic
voices to defend endangered people from
imminent harm, are they really worth looking
to for guidance on how to live one's faith, know
God's will, or emulate Jesus?
If they have silent tongues and feet of clay in
these days, why should you remain and nurture
such moral impotence?

This is about demanding the courage of the
people who lead your community; about insisting
that local churches and their ministers fulfill
their greatest calling: delivering the expansive
Gospel of Good News to the poor and the
orphans and the widows and the outcasts,
regardless of the cost.

If you're a member of a predominately
white church or led by a white minister
and the leaders there don't specifically
reference the predatory, phobic religion
on display right now and push back hard
against it—you should ask them why they
aren't. Ask them directly and if you aren't
satisfied with their answer, seriously
consider leaving then and there. This
may be your greatest spiritual declaration,
the most concrete affirmation of your beliefs
that you'll ever make.

You may need to empty the pews and exit the
buildings, and go loudly speak the words of
truth and compassion and justice that need
to be spoken right now.

You may need to fill their silent voids with
your rafter-shaking voice.

You may need to follow your deepest faith
convictions right out the door and toward
the families assailed in these moments.

If the people of God where you gather this
week, will not bring equity and justice while
such things are in such great demand, that
may be your cue to exit.

You may need to leave the church to find
your religion or to find Jesus.

Now, you may need to follow God right out
of the building in order to hold on to your soul.

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