AA = Church?
A little while ago I was reading a devotional/short stories book and came across one about Alcoholics Anonymous being like a church. It was really intriguing.
Before I go on I should say that I've lent the book to a friend and either haven't got it back or I'm not sure where I put it so my memory is a bit vague. I'll have to update this post and provide the name of the book and author when I get it back/find it!
The writer spoke about how a friend of his found AA to provide the pastoral care that he needed in the way churches have done and continue to do. I've been thinking a lot about pastoral care at the moment as I'm on a team that's organizing pastoral care for an upcoming conference. The idea of AA being a church and 'beating' churches at pastoral care in challenging as we do our organization.
I know it's not a competition! But it starts me asking questions. What does AA offer that a church can't? Perhaps lack of judgment? What can churches offer that can't be found elsewhere? What can we learn about pastoral care and support from organizations that aren't run by religious groups?
Some interesting questions there. The idea of judgment is one that I think we need to be aware of. Do churches judge people? Or more important do they appear to judge people? Acceptance and grace are such an important aspects of the person of Jesus Christ are we modeling that in our churches and in our pastoral care?
I think churches get a bad rap in society for being judgmental. Unfortunately I think that's often been deserved. How do we challenge that idea? What can I do?
I guess to try and change that I have to start with myself because really, where else do I start? I need to be more accepting. I need to remember not to judge people because I don't want to be judged myself. (I'd come across as a terrible person in some cases and I'm not really that terrible!)
Acceptance and grace. There's a challenge to take up.
posted by Kimando @ 1:43 PM
3 Comments:
yep! for a lot of people, church and being judged go hand in hand. There's no escaping it; for many christians, being a christian means adhering to various codes of practice (just which code, depends on your ... um code). Well meaning people can't help but mean well, assessing people against the code and letting them know how they fare (or worse, shunning them because they've strayed too far).
The fact that you're even thinking about how you can make things better, means that you're already making things better. ;-)
Thanks for that - it's encouraging. Now I just need to make sure I go beyond just thinking about things.
Perhaps knowing what God has to say will help clear it up for you:
[9] I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. [10] Yet [I] certainly [did] not [mean] with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. [11] But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. [12] For what [have] I [to do] with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? [13] But those who are outside God judges. Therefore "put away from yourselves the evil person." (1Cr 5:9-13 NKJV)
[6] Your glorying [is] not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? [7] Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.* [8] Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened [bread] of sincerity and truth. [9] I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. [10] Yet [I] certainly [did] not [mean] with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. [11] But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. [12] For what [have] I [to do] with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? [13] But those who are outside God judges. Therefore "put away from yourselves the evil person." (1Cr 5:6-13 NKJV)
[1] Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? [2] Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? [3] Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life? (1Cr 6:1-3 NKJV)
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