Let the Midget Demons Come to Me

Salon.com has a feature article today about Mars Hill Church, in my very own neighborhood of Ballard. The friend who sent me the link described this as "scary." I read it carefully, because I was ready to explain to him why progressive, educated salon-readers like us don't need to be scared of every Evangelical Christian we read about.

But then I read it, and I agree that it's scary.

According to the article, Mars Hill teaches an interpretation of the Bible that requires its married female parishioners to "quit their jobs and try to have as many babies as possible," and "submit" to their husbands about little details like their personal purchases and plans. Their pastor speaks flippantly about his own children as "midget demons" and jokes (or is it a joke) about his childhood of "duct-taping and hog-tying his own siblings." Not surprisingly, the article describes the women in the article as tired and frustrated -- complaining about how one child "talks back" while the other one cries alone in the other room during the interview.

Christians don't have to live like this. And I'm not just talking here about liberal, social-justice minded Roman Catholic Christians like myself. I'm talking about Bible-college, homeshooling, fundamentalist Protestant Christians who live by Sola Scriptura -- upholding the text of the Bible as the sole and only basis for all religious belief. Even within the Evangelical community (or communities), many women disagree on whether Titus 2:5 prohibits work outside the home, or whether Paul's Ephesians 5 directive to "submit" requires that a wife defer to all her husband's preferences. Many Fundamentalist families don't believe that Proverbs 23 or Hebrews 12 require them to punish their children. They rely instead on their faith in Christ's Grace as a model and a foundation to for grace-based discipline.

It's not just Christian parents who see their children as adversaries to be wrested under control. Many mainstream parenting sources -- including the abysmal "What to Expect" series -- describe greedy, selfish children who will overwhelm us if we don't train them out of their natural habits as early as possible. And I can name many feminist mothers who have sighed over their mixed feelings and unfinished masters' degrees -- none of them Fundamentalist conservatives like the one described in the article. These are cultural challenges, not just Christian ones.

Evangelical parents, however, may have an added burden. In their conviction that the Bible contains their entire life's directive, they can become vulnerable to charismatic ministries who, in ironic defiance of Sola Scriptura itself, impose their own interpretations of Scripture that are unsupported by Hebraic tradition and linguisitic study. And a cultural bias, given the authority of God's Word, is a heavy burden to labor under.

Along with their great burden, however, many Christians have a great strength -- their faith in a greater love than all the misinformation, legalism, and corruption both of culture and of church. I've been honored to meet many Evangelical mothers online, debate with them, and learn from them (Yes, I cited the above verses from memory). Despite some critical differences of opinion, I've opened my mind and discovered an eduated, diverse, critically-thinking community (and some dear women that I might humbly refer to as friends).

It is scary when Mars Hill -- or any institution -- becomes an amplified voice that threatens to distort such a powerful message as that of Jesus Christ. At the same time, it's important to realize what we have in common -- just as the Salon article described the movements' camraderie, healthy living, and skepticism about corporate tyranny and consumerism. We might aspire to the same strengths and, as women and mothers, might share the same struggles. And maybe with open minds, we can learn from each other.

He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." Mark 10:14

For reference:
www.aolff.org
www.ezzo.info