June 20, 2009

2 Timothy 3:6 These are the kind of people who smooth-talk themselves into the homes of unstable and needy women and take advantage of them; women who, depressed by their sinfulness, take up with every new religious fad that calls itself “truth.”

Ok; get past what seems like sexist language; this is the first century and the place of women was different for the most part and this Afterthought isn’t about that anyway. It’s about the idea of people coming into our homes with the latest “religious fad” (can you spell TV?). Whether it’s Oprah and The Secret or PBS and their latest guru or the major networks at Christmas and Easter with a religious cover story for their prime-time news magazines, we get hit with some exciting breakthrough that will change our lives for the better, at least until the next cycle brings the next breakthrough. The people seem sincere, the packaging appealing, and the presentation provocative. Many of these folks end up making a lot of money and have adherents who profess to be truly helped. But for most of us it’s just the latest in a series of “the latest thing.” The writer of 2 Timothy urges caution, very strongly urges caution, regarding such things. How do we evaluate these new ideas and methods that come at us through the media? We are the core values and beliefs that we can use as a frame of reference. Christianity has always sought these in the Bible and the Church. While they have not remained static over the past two thousand years, they have proven to be more than just another fad. What’s your base, your foundation of belief from which you evaluate all that information out there? The Bible makes great summer reading and, yes, churches remain open in the summer. And really, doesn’t it beat what you get on TV?

Don