Did Jesus mean it to come to this?
It is too easy to put words into Jesus’ mouth and say what he would or wouldn’t approve of. I won’t fall into that trap, but I will ask some pointed questions.
If Jesus could have foreseen twenty-first century western christianity, what would he think? For instance, what would he think of some of the buildings we construct for churches?
What would he think of the money spent on large ornamental gardens, lakes and fountains?
Would he think large megachurches become impersonal and dehumanise ordinary people while raising up the megapastors until they become greater than their master?
I can’t answer those questions, but I can say that these church edifices make me feel uneasy. I can’t help feeling leaders who are servants should also feel uneasy about them.
Photos mostly taken from the video Underground People, which I will be reviewing next post.
That’s a lot of money that could be spent on housing the homeless or feeding the poor.
Yes … agreed. Thanks.
Yes, it’s a lot of money. I am also mindful of the fact that I too spend money that could go to other people who need it more, so I have to be careful I am not a hypocrite. But some of what we see in these pictures seems to go further and be less justifiable. It is difficult, but good to at least consider.
Hi Karl, thanks for reading and commenting (and agreeing!).
I wouldn’t be worried about spending per se, it’s all money that goes back into the economy and provides jobs, but building unnecessary monuments doesn’t seem to be an efficient use of money.
Yeah, hoarding money doesn’t do much good, but if someone is seriously trying to follow Jesus, i.e. live by his teachings, spending so much on luxuries and so little on the poor and needy is rather probematic, to say the least.