Once again someone has gone off into a world of his own and murdered people in the name of his religion. In this case, the religion is Christianity. The murdered people were suspected of nurturing a rival religion–Islam. This was in Norway–a country that usually makes news only in relation to oil or fjords.
Jon Swanson has an interesting analysis in his blog 300 Words a Day. He looks at Christian evangelicalism and Christian fundamentalism. But he took the time to read some of the murderer’s manifesto. The point is that the killer looked at Christianity as a culture. Belief doesn’t matter. It’s about the culture.
It’s easy for us–especially those of us who grew up in small town Midwest USA where everyone was the same–to slip into Christianity as a culture, a practice. Small town people the world over are suspicious of outsiders. We’re suspicious of people who act differently, speak differently, dress differently, believe differently. If we brood on those differences, our hearts can grow hard (compare to the soil parable).
I’m developing a short course to introduce people into the practice of spiritual disciplines. Perhaps the hardest thing will be to get them to realize that this isn’t an intellectual exercise. Also it’s not a forced habit. Spiritual disciplines are practices that you cultivate that will bring you into a closer, deeper relationship with God.
It’s not culture, but it is how you live your life. How cool it would be if we lived like those Christians in Acts who lived so differently that people were attracted to “The Way”–as Christianity was called in those days.
Check out Jon’s thoughts. Ponder the question, “Am I living in a culture, or am I living in a close relationship with God?”
Faith Venture 
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