Ageism in the church
In one of his recent posts on Christians and business, Dan Edelen explains how ageism in business has bled over into the church:
Clarification: I don't intend this post to be critical in particular of the three Christian writers listed (nor do I interpret that to be Dan's purpose). As I see it, Kennedy, Wallis, and Maxwell are listed as examples of a wide range of prominent Christian writers---none of whom are writing about the issues Dan addresses in his series.
Update: Blogotional's John Schroeder continues the discussion here.
The "old is bad" meme has caught on even within God's Body. Churches preach that your appearance does not matter and that age means nothing--while at the same time they kick out the gray-haired worship pastor in favor of the trendy postmodern guy who loves Coldplay.Dan's one of the best writing craftsman in the Christian blogosphere, and his latest series is incisive as well.
You can't go a day and not her some radio preacher talking about bringing legal challenges to abortion, gay marriage, or some other pet Evangelical cause. But where was D. James Kennedy when a guy in his fifties got a pink slip in California for being "too old?" Why isn't Jim Wallis camped out in Sacramento protesting? Where's the book by John Maxwell decrying "employment euthanasia" amid all that talk about leadership? . . . .
This is no way to live folks. And the Church's silence is pervasive.
Clarification: I don't intend this post to be critical in particular of the three Christian writers listed (nor do I interpret that to be Dan's purpose). As I see it, Kennedy, Wallis, and Maxwell are listed as examples of a wide range of prominent Christian writers---none of whom are writing about the issues Dan addresses in his series.
Update: Blogotional's John Schroeder continues the discussion here.
posted by Milton Stanley at 4:07 PM
5 Comments:
Don't worry about returning the favor; by design this blog is more of a referring page than a place where new material is posted.
I appreciate what you're doing in your series; it is a neglected topic.
Hmmm.... Although I agree with the main premise of this post, I do have to add that all of us have different callings and I don't believe it's correct/fair/right to ask, "Where was so-and-so when...?" Each of us is given by God a certain area of passion(s) in the body of Christ. To cover every single area of need would exhaust and send us to early graves. All I can do is address the areas God has put upon my heart and trust that other people will follow-through on their God-ordained gifts/promptings/passions. I would never criticize anyone for not being passionate about my passions--that's too much like that scripture which says something like "Can the mouth say to the ear, I don't need you?" Well, anyway..... just had to add my two cents because this area is a specific passion of mine. :) (But again, I believe that following youthful trends instead of following God is not right.) God bless... Debra
You're exactly right, Debra, and you've brought up a very good point. I certainly didn't mean this post to be (nor do I think Dan meant for his original post to be) a critique of any of James Kennedy, Jim Wallis, or John Maxwell. I think their names are used here more as types than as individuals. But, then again, their names are used and it certainly can be interpreted as being critical of them in particular. Thanks for brining it to my attention. Peace.
Great Stuff -- Linked to it here
Glad you liked it, John.
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