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Evangelical Angst About Ash Wednesday
Aleteia ^
| February 17, 2015
| DAVID MILLS
Posted on 02/18/2015 3:24:56 PM PST by NYer
You wouldnt think that anyone would fight about Ash Wednesday and Lent. For Catholics its part of what we do. For others its something they can use or not as they find it helpful, and increasing numbers do. Down-the-line Evangelical churches have started to hold special services for Ash Wednesday complete with ashes and to treat the Sundays after it as Sundays in Lent. Rather severely anti-sacramental Evangelicals now speak of giving things up and fasting on Fridays.
I find this cheering, but my friend Carl Trueman doesnt. Carl teaches Church history at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, the flagship of serious Reformed (i.e., Calvinist) Christianity in America. Hes a pastor in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. If youre thinking of the somewhat wooly-minded, generically Protestant Presbyterians in the church in middle of town, youre not thinking of Carls kind of Presbyterian. The mainline Presbyterians are the ones in tweed and corduroy; Carls type are in biker leathers. Hes one John Calvin would have recognized as a brother.
Writing on Reformation21, the website of the Alliance for Confessing Evangelicals, Carl notes that Evangelicals have started observing the season and then lets loose:
American evangelicals are past masters at appropriating anything that catches their fancy in church history and claiming it as their own, from the ancient Fathers as the first emergents to the Old School men of Old Princeton as the precursors of the Young, Restless, and Reformed to Dietrich Bonhoeffer as modern American Evangelical.
He is a genial and liberal-minded man. His office bookshelf has very large Aquinas and Newman sections along with the works of Luther, Calvin, and their descendants. (Hes just written a book titled Luther On the Christian Life.) I have spent a pleasant night in the Truemans home after speaking at the seminary at his invitation. He is generous to Catholics. But Evangelicals observing Lent, this sets him off. I also fear that it speaks of a certain carnality, he continues:
The desire to do something which simply looks cool and which has a certain ostentatious spirituality about it. As an act of piety, it costs nothing yet implies a deep seriousness. In fact, far from revealing deep seriousness, in an evangelical context it simply exposes the superficiality, eclectic consumerism and underlying identity confusion of the movement.
They shouldnt do this. Their ecclesiastical commitments do not theologically or historically sanction observance of such things, he writes in a second article on the website, Catholicity Reduced to Ashes. Ash Wednesday is strictly speaking unbiblical and therefore cant be imposed by a church, treated as normative, or understood as offering benefits unavailable in the normal parts of the Christian life. That would be a violation of the Christian liberty the Reformation so stressed (against the illicit binding of consciences in which the late medieval church indulged, as he puts it).
The well-constructed worship service and appropriately rich Reformed sacramentalism render the observance of Ash Wednesday irrelevant. Infant baptism, for example, declares better than the imposition of ashes once a year the priority of God's grace and the helplessness of sinless humanity in the face of God. The Lords Supper does as well.
Worse, Carl argues, these Evangelicals pick from the Catholic tradition the parts they like when that tradition is an indivisible whole. In for a penny, in for a pound seems to be his understanding of Catholicism. He finds it most odd, he writes in the second article, that some might observe Lent as an act of identification with the church catholic while repudiating a catholic practice such as infant baptism or a catholic doctrine such as eternal generation or any hint of catholic polity. (The lower-case c is his but he means the upper-case.) The notion of historic catholicity itself has become just another eclectic consumerist construct. He is clearly not pleased and I can see why. The adoption by Evangelicals of some Catholic practices cheers me, however, because it is a gain for them, an expansion of their ways of living their faith, and one that reduces the gap between divided Christians. And, to be honest, because it opens a way for them to understand what the Catholic Church is about.
Carl is right that theyve picked pieces they like without enough thought about the thing from which theyre picking pieces, but as a Catholic I think thats a blessing rather than a mistake. He wants them to be more consistent and coherent Protestants and I would like them to be Catholics, and movement from one to the other requires some inconsistency and incoherence, the way a man wanders back and forth in the forest trying to find his way until he sees in the distance the place he is looking for.
The Church offers riches like an over-loaded wagon in a fairy tale, spilling gold coins every time it hits a pothole. Evangelicals can find in Catholic practice many things they can use just by walking along behind it. Though they have in their own tradition ways to express penance and forgiveness, as Carl notes, Ash Wednesday the whole rite, not just the imposition of ashes offers them a more dramatic way of hearing the truth and enacting it.
The question for them is how much they can take and adapt to their own purposes without having to face the claims of the Church from which theyre taking the things they like. I think rather a long way, because the Church draws upon a wisdom that it is not exclusively Catholic. You can enjoy the imposition of ashes without asking Who is Peter?
But there should come a point where you ask, What is this thing from whom Im always taking? What makes it a thing from which I can take so much? As Carl says, more pointedly: If your own tradition lacks the historical, liturgical and theological depth for which you are looking, it may be time to join a church which can provide the same.
TOPICS: Catholic; Evangelical Christian; History; Prayer
KEYWORDS: aleteia; ashes; ashwednesday; bornagains; catholic; davidmills; evangelicals
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To: nascarnation
LOL it was an old joke from a priest teacher I had in HS. He said the nominal Catholics only showed up when the church was handing things out:)
Irish priest humor.
81
posted on
02/18/2015 5:58:43 PM PST
by
redleghunter
(He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself. Lk24)
To: CynicalBear
That would be the approach Paul taught wouldnt it.LOL. Where do you think I got it? If it was good enough for Paul, it is good enough for me. 🆒
82
posted on
02/18/2015 5:59:33 PM PST
by
Mark17
(Calvary's love has never faltered, all it's wonder still remains. Souls still take eternal passage)
To: aMorePerfectUnion
83
posted on
02/18/2015 6:00:36 PM PST
by
redleghunter
(He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself. Lk24)
To: Heart-Rest
84
posted on
02/18/2015 6:02:13 PM PST
by
redleghunter
(He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself. Lk24)
To: verga; metmom
LOL The Catholic Church makes up it’s own truth. It’s like the history books of liberals.
85
posted on
02/18/2015 6:11:08 PM PST
by
CynicalBear
(For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus)
To: redleghunter
The term fundamentalist came from a turn of the 19th to 20th century reaction to liberal churches and theological universities. Yes, that is the history of the term. I'm also aware Bob Jones University has issues with the term because it regards it as toxic.
BJU leaders are also weighing alternatives to the "fundamentalist" label that has proudly defined the school (and a wide swath of the Bible Belt) since the 1920s.
"Basically, we've decided that we can't use that term," said Carl Abrams, a BJU history professor and a longtime member of the faculty. "The term has been hijacked and it takes you 30 minutes to explain it. So you need something else."
Scholars disagree about the birth of the term fundamentalism. Many, perhaps the majority, insist it was coined by Baptist editor Curtis Lee Laws in 1920. That may be true of the -ism. But the root fundamentals was being used before then as various groups listed the essentials of true Christianity as fundamentals of the faith. The booklets titled The Fundamentals were published in 1910 and 1911. These were articles written by leading fundamentalist scholars and ministersdefending what they saw as the essentials of Christianity with a strong anti-liberal flavor. (However, ironically, many of the authors would later not fit the emerging fundamentalist profile.) 1919 was the year William Bell Riley founded the World Christian Fundamentals Association and added premillennialism to the list of essential Christian beliefsa move that excluded many people widely recognized as fundamentalists (especially those in the Reformed tradition such as J. Gresham Machen).
So that was early, original fundamentalism. Most contemporary conservative evangelicals would probably have been fundamentalists then. Except in Rileys mind. He and his Texas friend J. Frank Norris joined hands across the Mason-Dixon Line (imaginary as it is in the Midwest) to forge a new, more militant, and exclusive form of fundamentalism. Many fundamentalists were swayed by Rileys and Norris strict and exclusive approach. A divide began to open within the fundamentalist movementbetween the narrow, exclusivist camp that absolutely eschewed evolution in any form, including progressive creationism, insisted on strict biblical inerrancy and literal interpretation (e.g., of Daniel and Revelation including premillennialism and eventually pretribulational dispensationalism) and the somewhat more moderate Reformed camp that followed Machen when he founded Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. There were those in that camp, however, who were more militant and exclusive than Machen and eventually broke off to found hyper-conservative groups and institutions. Carl McIntire was one of them.
Because of this evolution within fundamentalism (no pun intended!), scholars tend to talk about pre-1925 fundamentalism and post-1925 fundamentalism. The main movers and shakers of the fundamentalist movement after 1925 (the year of the infamous Scopes Trial in Dayton, Tennessee widely regarded as a huge humiliation for fundamentalism) informally added biblical separation to the list of essentials of authentic Christian faith. That is, true Christians will refuse Christian fellowship with outright heretics and apostates and theological modernists and liberals (such as Harry Emerson Fosdick and his ilk) belong in those categories. Fundamentalists began founding their own separate Protestant institutions and denominations, publishing houses and missionary agencies. Many organized Bible institutes (where the Bible was supposed to be the basis of the entire curriculum) and urged, even required, Christian young people to attend only those after high school. Throughout the 1930s American fundamentalism especially flourished, but somewhat underground and almost invisible to the mainstream media and religious organizations (such as the Federal Council of Churches).
But something new began to happen within the fundamentalist movement that further fractured it and, in my estimation, anyway, killed it as a movement. That was the introduction by fundamentalist leaders of the doctrine and practice of secondary separation. This meant that pure Christians ought to shun Christian fellowship with other Christians who did not practice biblical separation. Thus, when Billy Graham, a fundamentalist when he began his ministry, began to allow Catholics and liberal-leaning, mainstream Protestant ministers to cooperate with and support his evangelistic crusades, leading fundamentalists criticized him and withdrew their support from him.
86
posted on
02/18/2015 6:13:11 PM PST
by
af_vet_1981
(The bus came by and I got on, That's when it all began.)
To: stinkerpot65
Men arguing over man-made traditions ... Actually, it comes from the Bible. The liturgical use of ashes originates in Old Testament times. Ashes symbolized mourning, mortality and penance. For instance, in the Book of Esther, Mordecai put on sackcloth and ashes when he heard of the decree of King Ahasuerus (or Xerxes, 485-464 B.C.) of Persia to kill all of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire (Est 4:1). Job (whose story was written between the 7th and 5th centuries B.C.) repented in sackcloth and ashes (Job 42:6). Prophesying the Babylonian captivity of Jerusalem, Daniel (c. 550 B.C.) wrote, "I turned to the Lord God, pleading in earnest prayer, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes" (Dn 9:3).
Jesus Himself also made reference to ashes. Referring to towns that refused to repent of sin although they had witnessed the miracles and heard the good news, our Lord said, "If the miracles worked in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they would have reformed in sackcloth and ashes long ago" (Mt 11:21).
87
posted on
02/18/2015 6:15:10 PM PST
by
NYer
(Without justice - what else is the State but a great band of robbers? - St. Augustine)
To: RnMomof7; CynicalBear; daniel1212; Gamecock; HossB86; GreyFriar
The practice of putting ashes on one's forehead has been known from ancient times. In the Nordic pagan religion, placing ashes above one's brow was believed to ensure the protection of the Norse god, Odin. This practice spread to Europe during the Vikings conquests. This laying on of ashes was done on Wednesday, the day named for Odin, Odin's Day. Interestingly enough, according to Wikipedia, one of Odin's names is Ygg. The same is Norse for the World Ash. This name Ygg, closely resembles the Vedic name Agni in pronunciation.. The liturgical use of ashes originates in Old Testament times. Ashes symbolized mourning, mortality and penance. For instance, in the Book of Esther, Mordecai put on sackcloth and ashes when he heard of the decree of King Ahasuerus (or Xerxes, 485-464 B.C.) of Persia to kill all of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire (Est 4:1). Job (whose story was written between the 7th and 5th centuries B.C.) repented in sackcloth and ashes (Job 42:6). Prophesying the Babylonian captivity of Jerusalem, Daniel (c. 550 B.C.) wrote, "I turned to the Lord God, pleading in earnest prayer, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes" (Dn 9:3). In the fifth century B.C., after Jonah's preaching of conversion and repentance, the town of Ninevah proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth, and the king covered himself with sackcloth and sat in the ashes (Jon 3:5-6). These Old Testament examples evidence both a recognized practice of using ashes and a common understanding of their symbolism.
Jesus Himself also made reference to ashes. Referring to towns that refused to repent of sin although they had witnessed the miracles and heard the good news, our Lord said, "If the miracles worked in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they would have reformed in sackcloth and ashes long ago" (Mt 11:21).
88
posted on
02/18/2015 6:18:36 PM PST
by
NYer
(Without justice - what else is the State but a great band of robbers? - St. Augustine)
To: NYer; stinkerpot65
He also said if you do it publicly to be seen of men you already have your reward in full.
Matthew 6:16 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Not a good sign for Catholics who make such a public thing of it..
89
posted on
02/18/2015 6:20:44 PM PST
by
CynicalBear
(For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus)
To: Responsibility2nd
As a die-hard fundie Evangelical; I can promise you this; Evangelical churches ARE NOT observing Ash Wednesday They should....and some are.
90
posted on
02/18/2015 6:23:30 PM PST
by
terycarl
(common sense prevails over all)
To: metmom
Did you poll them or something? Just another Catholic tradition that some protestants are trying to steal. Seems the tinfoil is a little tight. as usual, your hatred of Catholicism is apparent....Over the years I have also OBSERVED that many of the recipients of the ashes on Ash Wednesday were people that I KNEW to be non Catholic....they never denied it nor did I ever consider it that important. I Understand that some Lutheran churches have adopted the practice and we Catholics welcome them as nearer to home...
91
posted on
02/18/2015 6:33:50 PM PST
by
terycarl
(common sense prevails over all)
To: metmom
Church was packed and I as 4th Degree Knight of Columbus welcomed the vast majority of them into the church. I would say at least 50 were not Catholic. How do I know? Most told us. My parish has the top Knights of Columbus council in the state, second in the world. We know every parish member and their children by the first name. It is my job to recruit new Knights. Got to find out if they are Catholic first. Most protestants love getting ashes on their forehead. The only ones that put it down seem to be fallen away Catholics.
92
posted on
02/18/2015 6:34:32 PM PST
by
NKP_Vet
To: Responsibility2nd
And another thing. Im sorry, but WHO has two hours to stop in a parking lot for ashes? Good grief....for a 2 hour period, you could drive by for 30 seconds and get ashes......sheesh
93
posted on
02/18/2015 6:37:43 PM PST
by
terycarl
(common sense prevails over all)
To: redleghunter
Our Protestant founders saw fit to protect Ash Wednesday for Catholics. Go for it. Gee, how nice of you.....thanks!!.....??????
94
posted on
02/18/2015 6:43:41 PM PST
by
terycarl
(common sense prevails over all)
To: Responsibility2nd
My evangelical church does. Does that make me not a true evagelical?
95
posted on
02/18/2015 6:45:26 PM PST
by
Mom MD
To: metmom; NKP_Vet
Seems the tinfoil is a little tight.Metmom, I have a bet with another Catholic FReeper that you can't say something nice to a Catholic about either Catholics or the Catholic Church. Please help me lose that bet.
96
posted on
02/18/2015 6:47:03 PM PST
by
verga
(I might as well be playing Chess with a pigeon.)
To: daniel1212
Really conditions worlds people to recieve "marks" when the final one is required....
ISlam
catholics
Hindu's/Buddists
97
posted on
02/18/2015 6:48:58 PM PST
by
caww
To: NYer
Ashes to go is primarily An Episcopal idea and if you check out those doing it it's them ...and we all know what's happened to the Episcapol church...it's totally fallen away...been fully infilitrated and taken over and operates according to worldy values.....having an appearance of a relegous mask only
Presbyters in The Episcopal Church
98
posted on
02/18/2015 6:48:58 PM PST
by
caww
To: miss marmelstein
Well it’s not something Evangelics do...
I recall as a child when I saw people with a black cross on their forehead I thought they were against Jesus so they took a black mark on their head to show that.
99
posted on
02/18/2015 6:48:58 PM PST
by
caww
To: miss marmelstein
Well it’s not something Evangelics do...
I recall as a child when I saw people with a black cross on their forehead I thought they were against Jesus so they took a black mark on their head to show that.
100
posted on
02/18/2015 6:48:58 PM PST
by
caww
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