I asked my Bible teacher to listen to Pam’s podcast: Why He Left the Church. This was his response:
“When I think of my reaction, Reid's story is the story of most Millennials that I meet. This is not a bad thing, but clearly, the church doesn't understand the needs of this generation. When I think of how we try to teach the Bible at APU, we want students to ask honest questions about their faith and learn how to wrestle with the text. Like, Jacob, we want students to wrestle with God and walk away with a blessing, even though that sometimes we might walk away with a limp. It's not wrestling for wrestling's sake. We want to see students leave APU stronger Christians, more secure in their faith, and more articulate about what they believe and why, even if they don't have all of the answers.
I think of an Israeli professor of mine who walked into the first day of class and said, "I am here to enrich you with a new uncertainty." We all looked at each other wondering how one can be enriched by uncertainty. Then Dr. Rainey stated, "One mark of a mature faith is an ability to live with questions." Reid has many questions, but it sounds like he has not yet come to a place where he can live with the uncertainty and still find meaning in his faith. And that's okay because when I heard him talk, I didn't hear the voice of a cynic. I heard a person who believes in God in the deepest more innermost part of his being but the reality of the church today and the doctrinal mindset of too many Christians, cannot allow him to be who he is, the thoughtful, feeling, and seeking person he is, without fearing that he will be misunderstood or judged. He also appears to be waylaid by people who claim to be Christians but don't live out that faith in compassionate service to others. I think of comments I read by Christians on Facebook when they decry the poor, charge immigrants with being a burden on society, and admire leaders who do not exhibit a single Christian virtue in the way they live out their lives. It is no wonder that Reid is disturbed by what he sees and wants to live out his life as Christ would but without the doctrinal mindset and all of the judgment.
In a letter written to the APU Board of Trustees last year, the author (believe it or not, a professor at APU) claimed that 50% of APU students leave with their faith totally destroyed by their Biblical Studies professors. I was stunned by that claim because this is the exact opposite of what students write about us and contrary to what we seek to instill in our students. Ironically, in a survey conducted by the Barnea Group (an organization that polls Christians about their faith and the state of the church), they discovered that 75% of Christian high schoolers abandon their faith by the time they graduate from high school or early into their college years. When asked why the most common reason given was that their pastors refused to let them honestly ask questions they had about their faith and the Bible. This echoes what Reid said. Rather than listening to them in the way your mom did to Reid, these pastors shut them down and tell them that it is a sin to doubt and that they just need to get their act together and believe what the Bible teaches (actually, code for blindly accepting the pastor's interpretation).
One of the dangers of the megachurch movement is that the pressure to conform squeezes out opportunities for Christians to voice their doubts and accept them for who they are. Not all megachurches are like this, mind you, but far too many are, and honest seekers are getting waylaid by them and choosing to abandon the church rather than seek another faith context that might allow them to grow and flourish. Obviously, we cannot keep track of everyone's spiritual state in our classrooms at APU, but we can foster an attitude of openness and honesty that allows students to freely ask the kinds of questions that trouble them. In the end, I personally feel that if I have done my job training students how to read Scripture intelligently and faithfully that when the questions and doubts arise, students will be able to better balance faith and doubt. And while some might judge or ridicule those who doubt, there is a benefit to doubt in that it provides an opening through which the Holy Spirit can enter our lives and dialogue with us. Doubt also forces us off a plateau that many feel comfortable on and do not feel compelled to move on and grow spiritually. Wrestling with doubt gives us a chance to seek new answers to old questions. While some may not survive this journey, most of us do, and in the process, eventually discover that the very God who has indwelt us from the beginning has remained at our side and sustained us throughout, even though we were not fully aware of it. It is another example of "God in action behind the scenes." Personally, I believe Reid is the kind of person who will emerge on the other side a stronger and better Christian than he is already.
Anyway, these are a few of my thoughts. Thanks for sharing the link!”
