Conversion Today

"The Call of Saul," Art-glass Window, First Presbyterian Church, Edwardsville, Illinois .... The Acts of the Apostles 9:1-20This New Testament lesson is the archetypal story of conversion that is the standard for all others.  It is the textual counterpart to the art-glass version of the story, portrayed in our “Call of Saul” window. Saul (or “Paul,” as he is known after his conversion) sees the blinding but ultimately transforming light of Christ. He realizes that Jesus is the alpha and omega, the beginning and end of all things.Like Paul’s, most conversion stories have a “before Christ” period, a meeting of Christ moment, and an “after Christ” period during which the nature and purpose of life has changed.  Even when we don’t have such a conversion experience, we hear Christians measure their experience against Paul’s: “I’ve followed Jesus since my parents took me to church as a child, and I grew slowly in my understanding and commitment to Christ. I didn’t have a ‘Damascus road’ experience like Paul’s.”If you don’t have a conversion story, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Christ hasn’t been at work in your life.  In fact, Presbyterians tend to distance themselves from conversion experiences a little more often than some Christian groups.  In one respect, this is a healthy reaction against the excesses of revivalism.  In some segments of the larger Church, the chief measurement of successful ministry is a head count of how many individuals have prayed a certain formulaic prayer to accept Christ. Many ethically questionable methods have been used to elicit such conversions. It seems right that many Presbyterians question the faithfulness and fruitfulness of such ministry. When people are drawn to church by offers of free iPads or televisions, then encouraged to talk to prayer counselors and commit their lives to Christ, I can’t help but be skeptical of the legitimacy of such “conversions.”Back in the nineteenth century, a pastor by the name of Horace Bushnell also reacted negatively against the stress that some were placing on spectacular conversion experiences. In fact, he wrote a book about it, arguing that true conversion usually required a long period of training and Christian nurture.[1]Careful preparation through the years provided the context for the moment in which conversion could take place.  For several generations, Bushnell influenced the model for Christian education in our Presbyterian Church, with its emphasis on Sunday school attendance and a well-defined curriculum for childhood to adulthood.Today, it would be difficult to find a candidate for the “perfect attendance” ribbons once presented in Sunday schools.  What does it mean to be an “above-average attender” today?  How often does one have to participate in Christian community to have the relationships and foundation of knowledge to live as a Christian in today’s world?  Is it 26 Sundays of attendance, or 20, or 12?Former Methodist bishop Will Willimon thinks it’s time to re-emphasize the language of conversion. “Now we are rescuing, detoxifying, saving people from a corrupt, fallen though alluring world that wants to hold them captive. Therefore, stories like Paul’s conversion make new sense ….” “We are no longer growing a seedling in the warm, hospitable soil of Christian culture,” he says. “That world is over for the church.”^[2]How we will grow young Christians in this new world is one way to describe the subject of a short-term book study being held on Sunday mornings. Scott Hagin is leading the class, and it’s based on the book, “You Lost Me. Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church.” “Young Christians” are defined more or less as the “Millenial” or “Mosaic” generation, born 1984-2002.  The book covers more ground than I could meaningfully mention in one sermon, but a couple general areas seem worth mentioning in connection with our scripture passage.As Paul’s story is unique, so each person’s journey toward faith in Christ will be unique because each person is different, because, as the author David Kinnamon frequently reminds readers, “every story matters.”  Kinnamon encourages readers to think about the different ways young people can be “lost” in biblical terms. Some are “prodigals,” who have lost their faith, describing themselves as “no longer Christian.” Some are “nomads,” who have walked away from engagement with a church, but still consider themselves to be Christians. And some are “exiles,” still invested in a life of faith, but driven away from the church by things like bad behavior or exclusive attitudes. As Paul modeled in his ministry to the Gentiles, today’s strategy for conveying the good news of Christ might be as unique as the individual for whom the message is intended. One approach doesn’t necessarily fit all, because, again, “every story matters.”An aspect of the book that I find particularly encouraging is the author’s sense that what young people need and are searching for can be found in churches like ours, if only we can help them discover us.  Based on his 1,000+ interviews, he says they need a faith community:

• that risks helping them understand and transform the larger culture, rather than overprotectively avoiding culture;
• that teaches deep faith, rather than superficial faith, more focused on quality apprenticeship than mass production;
• that is not oriented to be anti-science, but rather to science-minded persons of faith, trying to understand the mysteries of God’s creation;
• that is not exclusive, but inclusive of persons in terms of ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation.

He doesn’t say that young adults need rock bands and faith communities composed of people their age, although there is nothing intrinsically wrong with rock bands or being with your peers. Instead, he says, young adults need intergenerational relationships. “If younger generations are to avoid the mistakes of the past, young leaders desperately need a sense of what has gone before – and you can only get that sense from soul-shaping friendships with older Christians.”[3]A natural question for those of us engaged in ministry to youth and young adults is: “How do we know whether what we have done has made a difference?” “How do we know whether the ‘conversion’ we think we witness at confirmation, on a mission trip, at Great Escape, or in some other setting, has been authentic or not? Commentators on the ninth chapter of Acts often have wondered about how to distinguish true conversion from counterfeit excitement. Some suggest looking at growth in character and service, like Paul’s as “signs” of authentic conversion.  Does the one converted to Christ move:

• from a life of hate to a life of love,
• from a spirit of self-righteousness to a spirit of humility?

They point to the way in which Paul’s original religious commitment led him to value his status as a Pharisee of Pharisees, and to practice a zealousness that condoned murder as a legitimate means to the end of religious purity, much like the young Fundamentalist Orthodox Presbyterian who recently killed one and wounded several in the San Diego synagogue shooting.  (By the way, the Orthodox Presbyterians are notour denomination, but rather one formed in the 1930s by professors committed to Fundamentalism, who broke away from Princeton Seminary). After Christ revealed himself to Paul, after a period of blindness and what must have been a painful process of introspection and self-evaluation, his pride was tempered by humility, his self-righteousness checked by the gifts of grace Christ offered to him.Humility supplanting pride. Gifts of grace more prominent than self-righteousness. I can’t think of better measures of true conversion today.  May it be so for our young people, and for all the members of our church!NOTES [1]Horace Bushnell, “On Christian Nurture.” [2]William H. Willimon, “Proclaiming the Text,” Pulpit Resource, 29 Apr. 2001 [3]David Kinnaman, “You Lost Me. Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church … And Rethinking Faith,” Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2011, p. 204.