Kovach Corner

a good talk with mom

I had a good talk with mom the other day. Ironically, we were able to discuss complex faith issues in such a way that lightened and encouraged our spirits, rather than puff-up, darken, or serious-ify us--as is the status quo for us Russells. The nature of the conversation says something to me about this "emergent" theology: it is full of HOPE. But not the kind that is inflated--not a sort of whoopi-cushion theology--but a kind that has real and challenging substance behind it: i.e. a holistic as well as specific Biblical integrity.
Mom is really a clever and insightful cat. I think she has a far more difficult time articulating herself than we (her children) do. But when she does spit something out (in such a way that is a cogent reflection of her inner [psychological] critical analysis) it is almost always far more insightful and accurate than anything I was pondering. Case in point: we were talking about altar calls, and she noted that the rrcc pastor has a fetish for altar calls--even to the point that he will manipulate the congregation into feeling guilty in order to get people up to the front of the church after a sermon. Of course, this makes me wiggle in my seat with agitated frustration and post-dramatic-stress-disorders of all sorts. And while I was nervously attempting to corral all the wildly trigger-happy neurons firing wildly in my brain, trying to hack away at the jungle of SEP (severe emotional problems), Mom made a simple comment that cut right to the heart of the Dispensationalist Disorder. She said that she felt like her pastor was pressuring her to be dishonest.

posted by Josh @ 4:17 PM