What kind of spiritual movement could challenge willing sectors of Christian faith to migrate from their systems of belief to a shared way of life centered on love?
—Brian McLaren, The Great Spiritual Migration
CAC faculty member Brian McLaren shows how Jesus and his followers embodied a communal, public way of life representing a social movement:
On page after page [of the Gospels], Jesus and his disciples practiced movement dynamics in Galilee, Judea, and Samaria. Jesus seized the opportunity for change created by unrest in Galilee … by the injustices of the Roman occupation, and by corruption among the religious elite. He framed his message through a powerful central image (kingdom of God), a unique art form (parables), and through powerful slogans (“Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand,”… “Love your enemies,” “Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me,” for example). He developed a protest and messaging strategy that included public teach-ins (the Sermon on the Mount), demonstrations (healings, exorcisms, feeding of the five thousand), guerrilla theater (his triumphal entry into Jerusalem), and advanced action-reflection leadership training (deployments and retreats with disciples).
His mobilizing structures included the three, the twelve, the seventy, and special two-by-two initiatives. In addition, he taught his disciples to build allies among “people of peace,” and to be willing to let people walk away if they were not ready for the demands of movement involvement. He developed rituals of initiation (baptism) and renewal (Eucharist), calling people to initial commitment and strengthening them for the long haul. His movement culture was unique and distinctive, characterized by feasts, parties, joyful processions, and outdoor festivals at which usually stigmatized and outcast people were warmly welcomed. He gave women an unprecedented level of responsibility in his movement, and among his inner circle he included people of diverse gifts and temperaments, from a poet like John to an activist like Simon the Zealot to a steady pillar like Peter (at his best). His movement culture also emphasized the value of contemplative solitude and withdrawal to nourish the inner life and sustain the struggle over the long haul…. Their lives in the movement were characterized by great joy, great sorrow, and great love.
I could see these same dynamics at work in Paul and his colleagues around the Mediterranean, as the “kingdom of God” movement expanded to the far corners of the earth. And I could see similar patterns reemerging throughout Christian history—in the desert fathers and mothers, in Saint Patrick and the Celts, in Saint Francis and Saint Clare, in the Wesleys and the early Pentecostals, in Dr. King and Desmond Tutu, in Dorothy Day and Oscar Romero. Since its earliest and most dynamic centuries, Christianity has been most vital when it has been energized by movements of self-organizing—or perhaps we should say “Spirit-organizing”—cells. These cells have taken root and grown like seeds in communities and institutions. There they have grown, multiplied, and borne fruit—fruit in just and vibrant institutions, fruit in thriving, peaceful, joyful communities.
Reference:
Brian D. McLaren, The Great Spiritual Migration: How the World’s Largest Religion Is Seeking a Better Way to Be Christian (Convergent Books, 2016), 141–143.
Image credit and inspiration: Brice Xerty, untitled (detail), 2023, photo, India, Unsplash. Click here to enlarge image. Like these tree rings, the early church’s imperfect but living community grows circles of love, joy, and fellowship through time.
Story from Our Community:
The Birth of a Community meditation spoke to me and was very moving. A few years ago in our ecumenical Bible study, we were studying the parable of the Prodigal Son, and it was an epiphany for me. I truly value my Catholic education, but I realize that what I absorbed was the fear of damnation. I believe in the revelation that God has unending love for all God’s creation and that God’s forgiveness is boundless. Amen!
— Helen D.
