The Gospel Also Belongs to Those Outside The Church

Most of the people not in the church don’t believe a word of what the church has to say. This erosion of the church’s viability has been going on at an ever accelerating rate since World War 2. Now in this era of technological expansion and interconnectedness there appears less space for the church in people’s minds or lives. That may not apply to Jesus of Nazareth’s message. Maybe his teaching is just what we need, after all the church teaches this is all His world.

Most doctrine offered by the church is suspect. Formed by Neo-Platonist thinking, medieval superstition and the churches’ need to project power, control and hold a monopoly of the truth, the church, including every denomination speaks to a smaller percentage of the population every decade. However, its power and political control tempts churches into unholy alliances which further corrupt the so called people of God. An Example of this is the number of Christians who support a lying, philandering, manipulative, fraudulent human being as President because he promises them he will support an attack on Women’s rights to control their own bodies. These same Christians will turn a blind eye to the needs of the country to gain an advantage for their ideology.

The church has for the last 2,000 years turned out some extraordinary people. Members of the church, (of any denomination) have built schools, hospitals, universities and so much more. The History of the church is full of great people and great works. Maybe in this century, the church will be called upon to once more do great things, but is it ready to face the issues?

Now in this 21^st Century the human race is up against its own end times. The population has topped 7 billion, climate is changing world wide, masses of people are on the move seeking relief from disastrous environments of one kind or another, our population is more susceptible to new diseases, and from our study of evolutionary history we know we are at a tipping point. Life on this planet could blink out. That would not be the end of creation, for other worlds, other planets and other species will go on. None of us will be there. We cannot get there to those distant worlds, despite the sci-fi  genre’s assertion such a thing was possible. At best no more than a dozen or so could escape the gravity of our world and risk their future in the emptiness of space. The rest of us have to make this planet work for everyone. There is no alternative. We all have a massive job to do.

The teaching of Jesus of Nazareth could be our salvation, not in the church’s meaning of the word, but by re-thinking how we  belong, and how each of us as individuals have a destiny, a purpose of becoming. The Red Sock Ministry wants to grasp the essential truth of Jesus of Nazareth’s teaching, and make it the property of those outside the church.  It may be our collective best bet.  One thing I do know is if you study Jesus’ teaching as found in the gospels it will change you.  You will have found a window into the heart of the divine whether you are inside the church or outside.