Fear and the Church

Fear.
Fear is what tears us apart today.
Fear; with its silent doubting;
that nightmare within a dream.
- a sad parody of this by Jason Schroeder.

Why don't more Christians talk about their belief in an old earth? Fear of what people will think of them. Fear that people will treat them differently. In the case of pastors and professors it could sometimes even mean losing their job. Only a few short years ago a study was done as to why young people leave the church as early as age 15 with most never returning  It's not because they don't know their Bibles well or other myths. There were six major themes that emerged and not simply one reason, but I would classify most of them as essentially reflecting the reality that there is a culture of fear in the church. Here are three of the top six reasons young people gave as to why they became disconnected and/or left the church:

Reason #1 – Churches seem overprotective.
Reason #3 – Churches come across as antagonistic to science.
Reason #6 – The church feels unfriendly to those who doubt.

You can find the article with the other three reasons and further explanation here. However, These three reasons essentially make a 'fear of science' sandwich. If you are reading this and don't think you have contributed to this problem I would ask you to think again. At minimum, I know I have in the past. This happens not only be action, but also by omission. When we keep silent we maintain the culture of fear. We nod to it and allow it to remain. Another blogger picked up on these problems and explains that it's not only young people, but those considering the faith who stumble on this issue. He says that one of the last road blocks people have before following Jesus is that they think that in order to do so they must reject the idea of an old earth and evolution.

So if you are a Christian, this is my challenge to you. Regardless of your view on the age of the earth or your interpretation of Genesis and other creation texts, I ask you to have healthy conversations. Listen. Ask questions. Understand. Respect one another. Eat together. Go bowling. Go out for coffee. Have a beer. Have a BBQ (soon...maybe? C'mon sun!). Whatever you can do to stop the culture of fear and create dialogue, do it. Invite young people to come ask questions and don't just give them pad answers. Walk with them. Read through a book with them. Learn with them. Let them challenge you as much or more than you challenge them. It doesn't matter if you know more because right now they need to be heard and told that it's ok to question and have doubts. They don't want to be protected. They want to know you will still be their friend no matter what. When Suzy tells you she wants to be an evolutionary biologist how will you react? Or how about when Mr. Sanchez the astronomer comes to church for the first time in his life? Get ready, because they're already in your church. This culture of fear is not just perception. It's a reality.