White Men Pining for the Old White Christian Order


Traditional, perhaps we could use the term "orthodox", Christians lament the gazillion directions the faith has taken. They want people to read the Bible again and believe what it tells them to believe. One such well known Catholic Christian is Ross Douthat. Douthat longs for the "good old days" when there were authorities in Christianity. The authorities are gone. The faith of the good old days went with them.

Douthat converted to Catholicism. In recent years he has lamented various positions of Catholic leaders. Some say he has buyer's remorse.

Douthat sounds like a conservative Protestant who blogs, Roger E. Olson. He lamented recently about the scattering of views in the faith. He feels his lifetime of study and teaching in religion brought him to a wide and deep understanding of the faith. He knew his own branch and all the other important ones. But now that is all in shambles he wrote. The discipline called "religion" is one he no longer understands.

What was it Douthat and Olson thought would maintain discipline in the faith? There is the Bible. It has many different versions and each version is interpreted differently by different people. The Bible is not an anchor that keeps the faith from drifting. It causes drift. 

What white men who write and teach about the Bible think it should mean is exactly they themselves think it should mean. When it all moves somewhere else the faith is considered out of control.

My impression is the Pope sees Catholicism as a faith that cannot be controlled. He seems more tolerant than many conservative Catholics of drift in the church.

What Christianity needs is woman moving into all phases of leadership, preaching and administration. I follow the denomination of my youth. It has invited women to be pastors for at least 20 years. There are lots of young idealistic women who pass through its seminar and become credentialed preachers. But local congregations have mostly and exclusively men on their pastor search committees. Women do not get offered preaching jobs. 

Christianity will not change fast enough to keep up with society. It will not change because it cannot.  


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