(A video play I wrote, to be aired on Sunday at my church--a place that, unlike many others, welcomes and thoughtfully engages with questions like Joe's).
Characters:
Joe: Curious,
intelligent newish Christian who doesn’t mean any harm but hasn’t yet had
church culture instilled in him.
Mary: Type A
brownnoser desperately trying to curry favor of religious leaders, but without
any depth to her beliefs. Peter's wife.
Peter: Lifelong
churchgoer who fancies himself an intellectual and would like to be a church
leader one day. Probably a white business man.
Steven: Christian without strong or original ideas. Just wants
to have his beliefs validated and try not to stir the pot.
Emily: Lifelong churchgoer whose never asked too
many questions or caused problems, but has a few creeping doubts.
Mr. Lawson: White
male who wears sweater vests and probably bears resemblance to Rick Santorum. Formal but pleasant to the group members who buy into his thought process,
but pious and condescending to “troublemakers,” and would prefer to get through
the lesson plan rather than debate anything thoroughly. Can be cold to group
and may seem disappointed, but never shows much emotion with group as he views
it as weakness).
------------
(Group in Progress, everyone has bibles open. A male leader
stands.)
Mr. Lawson: Ok, who wants to read Proverbs Chapter 3, verse 7?
Mary: (Overanxious) I’ll do it!
Mr. Lawson: Proceed.
Mary: “Be not wise in
your own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil.
Mr. Lawson: Ok, so who are we supposed to fear?
Steven: The Lord!
Mr. Lawson: Good. And as to evil, what
should we do?
Emily: Um, depart from it?
Mr. Lawson: Great. And why do you
think God wants us to depart from evil?
Mary: Because God is good!
Mr. Lawson: That’s exactly right. Now
who can be the first to find and read Mathew 6:19? (a fervent Bible-drill race
ensues)
Peter: (Stands) I got it! “Store not
for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroy and thieves
steal. But store up treasure in heaven where moths and rust do not destroy and
there are no thieves.
Mr. Lawson: So where should we store
our treasure?
Mary: Heaven!
Mr. Lawson: And why is that?
Steven: Because things on earth pass
away, but our treasures last forever in Heaven.
Peter: I’m living my life to do all
the right things and store up as much treasure in Heaven as possible! Like a
pirate for the Lord!
Mr. Lawson: That’s a great way of
putting it! I’m so proud of all of you! You’re demonstrating such great depth
in your faith today with these correct answers.
Steven: Well, that’s what I love about
this group. We can talk about our faith and discuss these hard questions. And
everyone accepts us as we are.
(A door opens. Joe walks in late.
Everyone stares. ) Joe: Sorry I’m late…
Mr. Lawson: (interrupting) Welcome,
Joe. I know you work on the other side of town, but please keep in mind that we
start at 6:30. I know you’re new to the group, but please try to keep in mind
how we do things here. We have a lot of material to cover.
Joe: Sorry. One of my co-workers
left their headlights on and I happened to have jumper cables on me…
Mr. Lawson: Oh, that’s ok. It’s time
that we move on to our question and answer session irregardless. Now remember everyone, now
is the time that you can ask any Bible question you have on your mind. But to get the
conversation started, I’ll ask an easy one we can discuss: why do bad things
happen to good people?
Peter: That’s easy. Free will. God
doesn’t prevent us from being hurt by other people’s sin. (everyone nods) (VIDEO GRAPHIC ON SCREEN:
REPEATING AN ANSWER YOU HEARD IN SUNDAY SCHOOL: 25 HEAVENLY TREASURE POINTS.)
Mr. Lawson: That’s exactly right…
Joe: But wait, what about things like earthquakes
and tornados? Why did God put us in a
world that seems to have all these natural booby traps? (Asking a Follow-Up Question IN CHURCH: 15
DEMERITS.)
(Reaction: stunned silence. Angry
stare from Mary and Peter. Dumbfounded look from Steven, who looks to leader to come to the
rescue. Confused and slightly annoyed look from Emily)
Mary: (self-satisfied) Well, I think
it’s like Jesus said, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” (Steven nods
heartily). (SUPPORTING AN ARGUMENT WITH A PLATITUDE: 5 POINTS.)
Joe: But some people do die in
natural disasters. And was that Jesus or Kelly Clarkson?
(Reactions slightly more fervent version
of last reactions).
Steven: Well, we all know God works in
mysterious ways. (everyone but Joe nods) (SUPPORTING AN ARGUMENT WITH A RELIGIOUS PLATITUDE: 15 POINTS).
Mr. Lawson: I think that’s the kind of
thing we’ll just have to ask God when we get to Heaven. (DEFLECTING HARD
QUESTIONS: 30 POINTS).
Emily: I have a friend who says that she
can’t be a believer because science has disproven the idea that the earth was
created in six days a few thousand years ago. What should I say to her?
Peter: This relates back to that
first passage we read about how we shouldn’t be wise in our own eyes.
(REFERENCING A BIBLE VERSE THAT DOESN’T ANSWER THE QUESTION: 50 POINTS)
Mary: Yeah, science is science, but
God is God. (Amens all around, except from Joe, and Emily, who seems slightly
unsatisfied).
Steven: Well, I have a question for
the group. I have a co-worker who’s not a Christian who says that Noah couldn’t
have possibly had a boat big enough to fit two of all the animals of the whole
world, and that it could have never rained enough to cover Mt. Everest. How do I convince him that he’s wrong?
Mary: You should tell him to read the
Bible. (ANSWERING QUESTION WITH: “THE
BIBLE”: 100 POINTS).
Joe: But if he doesn’t believe the
Bible is true, how will reading it convince him? (POINTING OUT CIRCULAR REASONG
IN CHURCH SETTING: 200 DEMERITS).
Mary: But maybe if he reads it
himself, a light will come on for him. It’s like the Bible says: "God helps
those who help themselves."
Steven: We just have to pray for him!
(folds hands and mouths a silent prayer).
Peter: People don’t understand that
the Bible is what our whole faith is based on. If you start questioning asking
questions, then your whole faith might just start to unravel.
Joe: But does the Bible even say that? And how do we really know we
can trust the Bible anyway?
(Reaction Shock: Mary almost hyperventilates.
Peter clenches fists and steams. Steven spit takes. Then panics and looks around for
someone to answer. Emily’s annoyance slowly turns to agitated thoughtfulness)
Emily: I don’t know about you Joe,
but I’ve always believed the Bible is true because my parents taught me that
from the very beginning, and it’s just been part of who I am. And Pastor Thomas
taught that too. Who am I to question?
Mary: Well, I believe it’s true.
Peter: Here’s what you’re missing,
Joe. We can rest assured that the Bible is the word of God, because it says that
it is.
Mr. Lawson: That’s exactly right. It
says right in 2nd Timothy 3:16, that all Scripture is God’s word. So
if you ever have doubts, you can just read that verse and believe it and know you’ll
be counted among the righteous. (REFERRING TO THE BIBLE AS PROOF OF THE BIBLE: POINTS JACKPOT!!!!!).
Joe: But what about all the books
that came after 2nd Timothy? And doesn’t every religion claim that
it’s right? If we were all born in India, wouldn’t we all be attending a Hindu
Bible study right now?
(Reactions: Mary: Holding chest,
breathing deeply. Peter: Anger rising, grinding teeth. Steven: Panic. Looking for someone
to answer. Emily: Fascinated.
Peter: No, because there IS no Hindu
Bible. And our Bible is the word of God. Jesus said so.
Mr. Lawson: Peter hit the nail on the
head. No other religion claims Jesus, and he said we should believe the Bible.
(satisfied nods from all but Joe). And if he said it, we can believe it.
Joe: But wasn’t the New Testament
written years after he ascended to Heaven? How could he have validated it before
it was written? So who decided that all these books written after Jesus left us
should be so important?
(Reactions: Mary breathes into paper
bag. Peter breaks pencil while staring angrily at Joe. Steven stares at Mr. Lawson,
motions for him to give an answer because he can’t think of anything. Emily
Perplexed.)
Emily: (suddenly) And how do we know
that the people quoting Jesus all that time later remembered everything right?
Mr. Lawson: Now Joe, we just have to
have faith that God guided the process. And when you’re stronger in your faith
in Jesus, he’ll removed all these doubts. And Emily, don’t let Satan put doubts
in your heart. (Mary, Peter and Steven satisfied with this answer, Emily still pondering.)
Joe: But how do we know Jesus really
was God and not just a great prophet?
(Reactions: Mary passes out. Peter
stands up and screams. Steven falls on knees and starts praying. Emily is perplexed,
broken, buries head in hands.)
Mr. Lawson: (Authoritatively) All right, everyone
calm down. Return to order. We know we can trust in Jesus because the Bible
says so. Joe, some of these questions are better left unasked right now. These
are the type of discussions that I like to have with people only after new
Christians become stronger in their faith.
Joe: But how do I become stronger
in my faith without thinking through these kinds of questions?
(Pause.)
Mr. Lawson: That’s something I
encourage you to pray about and maybe we can discuss next week, because our
time is up for now. Remember to have your five
Bibles verses ready to recite to complete this semester’s discipleship
training. Also, please everyone remember that group starts at 6:30, so please
be respectful of that if you are going to come. I’ll see everyone next week.
(Everyone disperses)
Emily: (Catches Joe, looking
discouraged, as he leaves.) You know, I’ve always wondered some of those things
too. Everyone else around here seems so sure they have it all figured out that,
it’s hard to even know who it’s even safe to ask.
Joe: (Gives a knowingly glance as they walk off together.)
