relationship

As I was walking to the office today I noticed a group of people who were in a line along the 16th Street Mall, standing on chairs, and all wearing shirts that read, "Religion is a lie." There was also a link to this site on their shirts.

I figured out fairly quickly what they were doing. They were marking religion as a set of man made rules and regulations and promoting a relationship based Christianity. However, a lot of people along the mall weren't sure what was going on and would engage them in conversation, giving them an opportunity to share their faith.

While I'm not sold on their definition of religion and think that, at some point you need some kind of lens to view Scripture through (the Early Church called this the "rule of faith"), I can say that their approach is a step up from the hunt people down and beat them with Bible verses that occurs far too often along the mall.

Of course, you still have the challenge that it's a one time hit that lacks clear opportunities for follow-up, but at least it's less inclined to build up walls that prevent future conversations.

Through most of Seminary I was told that pastors, at least from a spiritual vantage point, generally prefer funerals over weddings. The basic reasoning is that, with funerals, you have sin sitting right there before people and it really can't be avoided ... you know, that whole, "wages of sin is death" thing. So, at a funeral, you have an audience who is captive, aware of their own mortality, and trying to figure things out (this is especially true when somebody young has died). So, for a pastor, a funeral is a wonderful setup to the message we try and convey all the time.

At a wedding however, sin is the farthest thing from people's minds. Everybody is looking their best, love is in the air, and life is generally good (or at least whitewashed so it looks great on the surface). While the wedding vows and words like "for worse", "for poorer", and "sickness" provide a handle to talk about the Law, it's just not on people's minds (and when couples write their own vows and they're all sappy and lovey, it's even harder).

But, in our world today, I'm not sure if I buy this thinking. Certainly in a time and place where you're thinking, "I have one chance." the funeral is the preferred route. However, if you're in a culture where once isn't going to be enough, a wedding becomes a wonderful opportunity to initiate ongoing relationships and cast a new vision of Christianity in the minds of those who attend.

For example, I did a wedding on Saturday and I didn't meet the groom until the couple was already planning to wed. However, over the past few months, I had the chance to get to know him very well through the pre-marital counseling process. I'd even say that I new consider him a friend and look forward to socializing with him in the coming years. Beyond that, he's wanting to attend a Bible study I'm leading on Hebrews and is now listening to the Super Average Podcast.

Moving beyond that, because of the groom, the best man is also going to be a SAP subscriber and wants to talk faith from a distance (he lives in Iowa). Then of course you have those who attended the wedding who really enjoyed the way I blended reverence with fun. A number of people commented that they'd never found themselves having that much fun at the actual wedding. Me hanging around through the reception, enjoying a few beers, talking sports with the guys, and dancing (or maybe it was more convulsing on the dance floor) also prompted people to rethink what Christianity might be all about.

What do you think, in an age where connecting to a community will most likely precede conversion, will pastors begin to see weddings as more powerful (or at least equal) ministry opportunities than funerals?