Consuming Christianity

  
An interesting Op-Ed piece in The New York Times by a Massachusetts minister highlights reasons why the minister believes American clergy is suffering from burnout.

His primary argument is that many Christians today approach the church as consumers, looking to be reassured of their lifestyles through entertaining services and sermons that revolve around funny stories and take little time to sit through.  Instead of working to help congregants grow and be challenged in their faith, and instead of speaking of Christians' need to turn from our love of self and instead look to love God and others, pastors are succumbing to pressures to deliver messages and offer guidance that makes their congregants feel comfortable.  As churchgoers resist messages from pastors that are challenging or edifying, they create environments that lead pastors to "become candidates for stress and depression."

In response, the author challenges congregants to recognize that, rather than entering the profession desiring to be "soothsayers or entertainers," pastors generally respond to a calling to lead the church towards reconciliation, mercy, and community.  In light of this, he argues that churchgoers must change their perspective from one that seeks to be comforted and entertained as consumers, to instead be one that seeks to be challenged and led as members of Christ's body.

To read the article, click here.