Monday Matters: On not listening to others

Fascinating article in the New York Times about Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church in Seattle called “Who Would Jesus Smack Down?”

The article is long but I think it’s worth the read. The Internet Monk’s analysis of the article is perhaps a bit more charitable towards Driscoll than I will probably be in this post.

My first real introduction to Mark Driscoll came from a chapter he wrote in a book called “Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches.” It was a book that featured the view points and ministries of five different pastors in the varied ‘emerging church’ movement.

While there was much I objected to in his chapter, the thing I found most objectionable was that in a book entitled ‘Listening to the Beliefs…’, Driscoll came across as someone who does not listen.

This also comes across quite clearly in the New York Times article. Towards the end, the article talks about some dissent at Driscoll’s church. The author writes:

When one of the renegade elders refused to repent, the church leadership ordered members to shun him. One member complained on an online message board and instantly found his membership privileges suspended. “They are sinning through questioning,” Driscoll preached.

I have wondered why this sort of behavior from Driscoll might be the case, and I have come to the conclusion that it has everything to do with his particular brand of theology some call the “New Calvinism.”

Now, without going into full detail, “New Calvinism” essentially asserts God’s total and complete control over every aspect of life.

So, one 20 year old member of the congregation in critique of other theological frameworks says, “There are plenty of comfortable people who can say, ‘God’s on my side,’ But they couldn’t turn around and say, ‘God gave me cancer.’ ” Another former crack smoking member of Driscoll’s congregation asserts that Driscoll’s theological framework was the only one that made sense of his life.

While I personally find it a bit of a mystery that some people find comfort and hope in that sort of theological framework, I don’t want to discount the good that this message does for those who do find hope and new life within that theological framework. Apparently it has saved the lives of thousands of members of Driscoll’s congregation. I respect that (and I’m trying to use my listening skills to hear that…)

But it seems that it all comes at a cost in that it becomes impossible to listen to others. It especially limits the ability to listen to and respect any other theological framework. Either God is in complete and total control and this framework for understanding the world is the right one or it is not.

The logical conclusion that one can draw to all of this is quite clear: “They are sinning through questioning.” Case closed.