Is a radical church possible?
Michael Wright welcomes a challenging new book
Adrian Alker, now retired from full-time Anglican ministry and chair of the Progressive Christianity Network in Britain, challenges the churches to radically reexamine their understanding of the Bible, and their theology in general, in his new book Is a Radical Church Possible?: Reshaping its Life for Jesus’ Sake. It could either create an explosion in mainline churches or else it will be a damp squib.
Currently, the Church of England is working towards a big effort in evangelism, but this author thinks that is all pointless unless the church addresses the fundamental issue of its theological basis.
He writes: ‘I love the church enough to want it to change radically.’ The classic dogmas he believes have long since proved to be inadequate, and have robbed Christianity of its central dynamic ‘as a transforming experience of the God power which had so filled the person of Jesus, and which is about transforming lives’.
‘I remain convinced that until we can be more honest about the heart of Christian faith, more honest about the use of Scripture, more honest about those big questions to do with belief in God and our understanding of the person of Jesus, then no amount of “Fresh Expressions of Church” will be adequate. We need to freshly express our theology for this third millennium.’
He finds theological perspectives for our age articulated in the writings of theologians and biblical scholars of the last fifty years – from John Robinson’s Honest to God to John Spong’s A New Christianity for a New World, and Marcus Borg’s The Heart of Christianity.
He commends modern Biblical studies, which although taught in seminaries rarely feature in congregational studies. The Reformation was principally a protest against idolatry, yet ironically raised the Bible to be a new idol. Biblical literalism has led to the danger of confusing history with metaphor. He argues that Christians are not so much people of the Book, as those who are inspired by the life and teaching of Jesus.
In seeking to engage with Jesus, he is critical of much modern worship: unhappy with busy services full of words, corporate confessions, and recitation of creeds. ‘Churches of whatever tradition need to recapture the gift of silence and awe as part of the Sunday diet.’ He wants to free up worship to enable spiritual vitality to do its work.
My own Anglican experience leads me to doubt many clergy and congregations can embrace the changes this will require. It will disturb too many people attached to what is familiar.
I wonder what constructive part Quakers can play in responding to Adrian’s question – Is a radical church possible? We are not committed to the creeds that he feels are straitjackets on the church community. We are encouraged to explore, indeed to consider new light from whatever source it may come. Advices & queries 5 and 7 are important challenges and encouragement to us.
I wish we Quakers were more familiar with and at home with modern biblical scholarship and ready to engage with it. It opens windows and doors to our understanding of Jesus and of our own religious tradition. We certainly have a positive contribution to make in our use of and understanding of silence in worship. Our Quaker focus on the practical application of Christian values to issues of social justice and personal growth is valued by members of churches who know us. We can contribute to what he calls for – reshaping Christian life and faith for Jesus’ sake – throughout engagement with Churches Together in our local areas.
This book is important for Friends as well as members of mainline churches to read and digest. Is a radical church possible? Can it reshape its life for Jesus’ sake? I hope so.
Is a Radical Church Possible?: Reshaping its Life for Jesus’ Sake by Adrian Alker, Christian Alternative. ISBN: 9781785352508. £12.99.
