Thanks to the wonders of Facebook, in the last few weeks I have heard from a couple old friends I haven’t heard from since I graduated from college in 1982. It was interesting catching up and finding out just a tiny bit about what has happened to them since 1982.
One of my friends works for (I’m not making this up) Hustler magazine now. Another of my friends works for a well known denomination at a kind of middle management level responsible for a missions aspect of the denomination. (In order to understand some comparisons I am going to make in this post you’ll have to read my previous post.)
After some reflection I decided that maybe there wasn’t much difference between those two occupations. They both are trying to evangelize people. The first one uses the lure of artificial women while the second one uses the lure of an artificial Jesus. They both are trying to build the Kingdoms of their respective bosses. The first one is building kingdoms for Larry Flynt. The second one is build kingdoms for Humanistic “Christianity.” They both are involved in businesses that excel in the lost of innocence. The first excels in the loss of sexual innocence while the second excels in the loss of spiritual innocence. Finally, the end effect of both is to create cynicism among their thoughtful converts. The first will find eventual cynicism about all things sexual in his thoughtful converts while the other will find eventual cynicism about all things spiritual in his thoughtful converts.
It is interesting but I find myself more concerned for the soul of my friend working for the Church then I am for the soul of my friend working for Larry Flynt. My friend working for Hustler is in a business that is far easier to see through the emptiness and charade of what it offers, and thus he is far more likely, humanly speaking, to come to the end of his pursuits and himself. My other friend working for the Church and saturated in a Church growth mentality is involved in a giant con game that works so well because everyone involved are “true believers” thinking they are doing the “Lord’s work.” He is far less likely to come to the end of himself and to see the emptiness and charade of what it pretends to offer.
Pray for my friends that they might know the delight of being captivated by the beauty, goodness, and truth that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
