#crucifiedgod

[ladyleona]

Relevance vs. Identity

This Lent, I am reading The Crucified God by Jurgen Moltmann, a supposed “classic” theological text. The first chapter names poignantly well the tension of relevance and identity in the church. At times, we are drawn to move with the times, adapting to the needs of today. While at other times we want to maintain our grounding in the tradition and foundation of the first church. This can often cause strong divisions in the church; it becomes a fight between the liberal and conservative mind, social justice and tradition.

It was only after the first group discussion that it caught me how well Moltmann named the theme highlighted in the Netflix movie, The Two Popes (spoilers ahead). This movie begins with Benedict and Francis, two leaders in the church with radically different ideas of where the church needs to be going (or staying, for that matter), arguing about what should be done differently to make the church what it needs to be.

Benedict sees the church as the needed constant in the world, the unchanging force that will provide people a place to be apart from the secular world. In Moltmann’s words, he is fighting to maintain the church’s identity.

In contrast, Francis sees the church as an old dodgy institution that needs to think critically about who it’s leaving out and make changes to become more welcoming and open to all. He is fighting to maintain the church’s relevance.

They can’t agree on anything.

Until they go to the cross.

One day, they are brought together for a meeting in the Sistine Chapel. It is here that they continue their fighting until Benedict begins prodding for more. He begins asking Francis the why. And all of this leads them into a time of confession.

Francis then shares his story of his early years as a priest in Argentina, and how it was due to his actions that his priest friends were tortured for many years by the state. You can feel the weight of guilt and shame on his shoulders. You witness his need to make up for his mistakes by working toward a church that can stand up for all people. He doesn’t realize he is confessing until Benedict stands up and forgives him. Forgives him for his actions and releases him from his burdens. It is a moving moment to see two men who think very differently and are at the top of the Catholic church engage in the simple sacrament (they are Catholic) of confession.

But Benedict reminds him, even he – the Pope – is worthy of forgiveness. So through the power and gifts of the Holy Spirit, Francis forgives him of all his sins, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

This moment was the catalyst for their future together.

These two men went to the cross together. These two men, who in the eyes of the world are closest to God, entered into the suffering and dirtiness of the cross and came clean. They became more human to each other than they had to anyone else. They named their sins, giving away the power it had over them.

And in this holy moment, they were brought together in one vision. They became friends. The church was strengthened. Their humanity was forgiven and made new through reconciliation.

This is the cross. This is what Moltmann points to over and over again as the focus of the church. We can not come together if we do not go to the cross together. The church will lose sight of Jesus if we are not pointing to the crucified Christ.

The sucky part is that it is really messy to point to the cross. It means forgiving people – even the Pope – who have done us wrong. It means being vulnerable with people. It means sharing the shame and guilt we carry around with us. It means being human with those who we see as different than ourselves. This call to point to the cross of Christ is not easy; fighting over identity and relevance is a lot easier. But it is the only way the church will continue to proclaim the Gospel.

What’s striking to me as I ponder this first chapter and think back to the movie is that this tension is not new. Moltmann wrote this poignant chapter in the 1970s and 50 years later, we still see this fight between tension and relevance among us, even at the highest levels of the church. But it is in this tension that we are forced to look toward the cross. It is the only answer. It is the only thing that will bring us together into the one Body.