Mar. 24, 2008
Culture · Contextualization · City Reformed · Community
He Has Risen Indeed?
I was talking to one of the elders at my church after our Easter service, and we were discussing the historic Easter greeting: He has risen. He has risen, indeed!
This elder and I were talking about how we use a phrase once a year, that many people might really understand. This elder said that he was talking to a middle-aged man in our congregation and greeted him by saying “He has risen.” The man responded by saying “Yes, he has!”, rather than the traditional “He is risen indeed!”
So here is my question is there ever a time when we have to drop “historic” phrases because they no longer are understandable within out current use of language? This has been something that I have been thinking about for a while, and “He has risen indeed” is just one example.
This is something that presbyterians have to worry about more than other traditions. Most Presbyterians hold to, or at least interact with, the Westminster Confession of Faith, and at its Shorter Catechism.
The clearest example of using a phrase that is simply catechism Question: “What is sin?” Answer: “Sin is any want of conformity, or transgression of the law of God.”
The catechism is not saying that it is a sin to desire to conform to the law of God, but that it is a sin lack of conformity to the law of God.
Getting back to my original point. Would there be a greeting that would communicate the resurrection of Christ, in a way that is more understandable to modern America people?
“He is risen!” gets used in our church more than just Easter, but then again, it’s one of my favorite phrases and, as Acting Director of Communications, I do tend to use it whenever it fits — or at least where I think it fits.
That said, I spend a lot of my time as ADoC putting phrases into relatively modern English. Language changes, and if you don’t change the language the church uses, that language becomes a shibboleth — something that identifies and separates and keeps separate those in the church from those outside the church. Most people won’t even know what a shibboleth is — if I were to use that, I’d briefly explain what happened in Judges 12:5-6. Even here, I give the verses, just in case someone needs to look it up. Force of habit…
Of course, for those churches that want to evangelize people but doesn’t want anyone new actually coming into the church, the more “churchspeak” you can come up with, the better!
We’re living in a post-Christian world. Those outside the church think a Samaritan is a religious person who does nice things, and in fact have never heard even the most common of parables. In preparation for Communion, our pastors go over what Communion is, who can take it, and, more often than not, how to take it. I’m actually working a revamp of our bulletin so that it’s even friendlier for people who have never been to a church before.
Yvon Prehn (who does excellent workshops on church communications) tells the story of an elder who never understood a part of the service (I forget what) until she explained it in the bulletin!
Our middle school youth group is using Spider-Man 3 to teach the kids about sin. They’re learning in a “language” that they understand. The religious overtones of the three Spider-Man movies are…amazing!
As a child, I didn’t understand why I wouldn’t want God to be my shepherd. Little kids are great barometers — if your children are afraid to go to church because they fear they will be eaten by some pet God has called a “zeal,” well, you know when a word or phrase is a problem!
I’d either reword that “want” or make sure it was explained to the congregation. “Risen?” Rise is still in common usage, especially for waking up, and since sleep is a common metaphor for death, I would think most people would get it. If the context isn’t established on Easter, of all days…there’s more problems in the church than word choice!
Perhaps “Jesus Christ is risen from the dead! He is risen!” “He is risen indeed.” That also explains the pronoun referent, which is another problem for us folks doing communication! Alternatives? I can’t come up with anything that doesn’t sound like John Sheridan returning to the Babylon 5 station in “The Summoning.”
I keep complaining that people get more excited by the Steelers than Easter, but I’m really not looking forward to people waving “Terrible Gravecloths” during the service.
And somewhere, someone will do that, and it will be meaningful to them and bring them closer to God and, should I be present, may I have the grace and wisdom to wave with them and cheer Jesus on and keep the snide comments to myself.
I’m getting to the age where the only reason I don’t say the same sorts of things that (as a teenager) drove me insane when my parents said them is sheer force of will.
Posted by Rob on Monday, Mar. 24, 2008.