Wednesday, November 12, 2008

"In Praise of the Altar Call," or, "There's No Such Thing As A Private Christian"

A book I am reading for seminary, "Life on the Vine: Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit in Christian Community" by Philip D. Kenneson (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), highlights a troubling trend within some congregations of contemporary Evangelicaldom, the culturally-approved bent toward "private religion." Apart from vague appeals to God or even Christianity from both political parties during this recent election season, most Americans, though they tend to claim belief in God on some level (and many claim to be a Christian of one brand or another), most in practice seem to prefer to keep their faith to themselves, feeling it is a "private matter" better left discussed at their own places of worship, their home, or--for many—only between themselves and God.

Kenneson feels this stems from a popularly held dualism that separates the “spiritual” aspects of life and reality from the “material” and mundane. Religion, being exclusively “spiritual” many believe, is therefore something to be kept private, for oneself and those (somehow) already like-minded alone. Kenneson notes that “Most Christians at other times and places believed that disciples of Christ needed to make a public profession of faith.” (93) But today, with the “privatization” of the faith of many, altar calls and other forms of one’s public conversion have been replaced with simply praying “a silent prayer to themselves (and presumably to God) in order to welcome Jesus into their hearts.” (Ibid)

Traditionally, baptism has been the time in which a convert publicly confesses Christ to the congregation and receives the initiatory rite into the faith. In the Evangelical church since the 19th century, the altar call, in which the repentant are asked to come down to the front of the church to pray with elders to receive Christ or to begin that process has been quite popular as another public expression of entering faith. Either way, the Church has long viewed conversion as a public experience, one in which a person joins the body of Christ, of which she or he is only a part. The private prayer version encourages “Lone Ranger Christianity,” where it’s just “me and Jesus.” Churches need to set the tone by providing opportunities for those who wish to come to Christ to be embraced by the body of believers, as initially awkward as that might be. Like the old saying about marriage, you aren’t just receiving a spouse; you’re joining a family!