The way we were (keep christianity weird - pt. 4)

Michael Frost starts chapter 4 of 'Keep Christianity Weird' with this:

"Before we became conventional, the Christian movement was considered fundamentally out of sync with the powers and principalities that occupy a fallen world. The Christian movement from the beginning was an alternative, redeemed society. It was considered so odd, it continually confounded those around them... But more than being socially odd, the church has always championed uncommon causes. Priorities only recently taken up by the Weird Cities movement -- social justice, community development, responsible business practices, environmentalism, conviviality, community, and the like -- have always been Christian priorities. So any call to keep Christianity weird should have the emphasis on the word 'keep.' At our best, we are weird, and this has been proven throughout history."

Yessir. Frost then references another book I have been wanting to read, 'The Patient Ferment of the Early Church,' where Alan Kreider "...examined the first 400 years of the church's history, in order to figure out, 'Why did this minor mystery religion from the eastern Mediterranean - marginal, despised, discriminated against - grow substantially, eventually supplanting the well-endowed, respectable cults that were supported by the empire and aristocracy?'"

Kreider says, rather than embracing the latest in evangelistic strategies, "...the early church focused their attention not on strategy, but on habits, prayer, teaching, and worship. They trusted that God was at work in the world, lived in radical obedience to Jesus, and shaped an alternative lifestyle that intrigued and attracted outsiders."

Frost spends the rest of the chapter sharing how several different movements through history went about keeping this 'weirdness' going. The Hiberno-Scottish missionaries of the 6th century, the Cistercians of the 11th century, Anabaptists of the 16th century, and finally the Pentecostals of the 20th century. All groups who were viewed suspiciously by the norms of "acceptable" church in their time, and in some cases persecuted outright.

So, the idea to keep Christianity weird is not about being hip or popular, but devout. Disciplined. Having a faith that can turn the world upside down.

"It's the ability to keep the tradition while breaking the rules that makes all the difference."