why i will never be a pentecostal
i was sitting around with a couple of friends at work. one of them is a coworker who attends a pentecostal church of the independent variety, while the other person is the girlfriend of one of my managers, a catholic. and there i was, spanning the gap, the middleman of the trio. well, it didn't start out as an argument, but things sparked after a good 15 minutes of talk about televangelists. not that the catholic and i were bashing them, but we were talking about how some televangelists wear $5,000 suits and sit on gold thrones purporting to do things, if you give them money, that mother teresa and many other authentic, humble people of faith never did.
anyway, the pentecostal assumes we're bashing all tv preachers and gets uberdefensive, then starts talking about tithes and offerings, saying, "you do it to receive the blessing from God, not being concerned about what the preacher is going to do with it." at that point i kinda got confused, because i know he didn't just say that he gives money just to get a blessing. i mean, isn't the motivation for giving back to God that He would bless others with the hard-earned cashola? since when am i supposed to be concerned about me? and if i'm told that my offering is going to help poor, needy people, then shouldn't i be upset, righteously angry even, if my money goes toward buying preacherman a new suit?
he then started talking to us about how we weren't Spirit-filled (like he was) and it was all over the top of our heads. this was repeated twice as we tried to continue to have a decent conversation, and then he left. the catholic and i then had an awesome hour-long conversation about authenticity and being real in our faith. it's funny, that was the first really good conversation i ever had with a catholic. it was one of those cool moments where you just, for lack of a better word, ping off of someone else with thoughts and crazy ideas. no guards up. just being real for a moment.
it's the spirit of selfishness that i've seen permeate so much of the charismatic movement which leads me to doubt and desert it so strongly. rarely have i seen outreach done out of concern for others instead of self-glorification. it seems like every activity done is for a blessing on oneself. do this and you'll be blessed. do that and you will get a little more of the Spirit. join the tongues club and we'll let you in on a few more things or hug you a little closer or listen when you speak. let's make sure to take up the tithes, but communion can wait for a year or 2. play a little faster to work the crowd. key change here to bring them to a foaming-at-the-mouth climax. song and dance, song and dance. not that i hate pentecostals now; my mom's side of the family is all up in the assemblies of God. i love them, and think that they have a couple of good ideas. but when something that should be sacred and holy and reverent so often turns into a bunch of holy smoke and mirrors, that's a sign to me that something has gotten a little twisted.
as for myself, don't worry. i know full and well that it takes a fake to spot a fake, and i've done plenty of faking in the past. pot. kettle. black. i'm just a Christian trying to love God the best i can.
check it out - 01.20.07
vapor - 11.15.06
can't complain - 11.10.06
turn the page - 11.09.06
who invented the word "me-maw"? - 09.28.06