Urbane Humane Evangelism Things could not be going better doing humane street evangelism at Downtown Crossing in Boston. Well, I sometimes suspect if I had more faith than I do things might be dramatically better. But, my faith has always been weak by my estimation. At the time of this writing the San Francisco Giants just defeated the Kansas City Royals in the World Series of baseball in 7 games. It was an excellent series. The World Series always reminds me of my childhood in Havre de Grace, Maryland running home from the bus stop to watch Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford and the Yankees in the Series. Me and dad and my brother Eliot went in the den, ate tuna sandwiches and became gripped by the drama of the game. In those days baseball games weren’t at night. By the time we got home from school the game was already in the early innings. I wore ‘the Mick’s’ number 7 on my Orioles Little League uniform. These street accounts are very hard for me to write. I always think about the Charles Dickens novels I read in undergraduate school. How magically CD described his characters. I have no such literary gift and it frustrates me. The people I meet ‘on the street’ are unbelievably interesting and complex and I cannot do them justice in these short accounts. Whenever I see nuns I approach them. It is because Brian Ashland and I spent endless hours at seminary studying church history so we could do well on the mid-term and final exam. We took two semesters of church history. One from the days of the apostles up until the Reformation. One from the Reformation onward. We reviewed the many monastic movements down through the ages over and over so we could ace the critical exams. So, nuns interest me. While preaching at Park St., I spied two nuns front and center. I walked over to them and respectfully asked: “Do you tell people about your religion.” One responded, “If they ask.” “I’m asking,” said I. The next forty-five minutes were thoroughly enjoyable. The nun on the left was Polish and pretty. The other was from Canada. I asked questions like – “Do you ever see people with families, a husband and kids, and think maybe you’re missing out on something?” The Polish chic answered wisely and brilliantly citing her vows and convictions about Christ. Nothing wooden - straight from the heart. It was impressive to see how both of them had left ‘the world’ behind them. Not fanatically, like cultists, but ‘by faith’. As they spoke, to me they began to represent a remarkable departure from the American feminist fare out there that revolves around personal happiness and self-gratification. Also, I was surprised that these Catholic nuns both firmly believed in justification by faith. It shocked me. When I made a joke about Martin Luther they responded by stating that Luther was a Catholic! Which is entirely true. But Catholics always call him a heretic or worse. Nope, not these nuns. At the last, I complimented them on how gracious they were. Both deferential to the other when questions were posed. Profoundly courteous and respectful toward one another and me. And, best of all, and many Protestants I know don’t do this for me, I saw Christ in these two nuns. I saw the character of Christ. Authentic humility in the two of them. And a precious gentleness. It is after dark. I stand proclaiming on the sewer plate between Macy’s and the rebuilding project that was once Filene’s. Off to my left stands a man in a handsome suit. He comes to me and says: “Thanks for preaching the good word” while shaking my hand. A hooded youth leans sitting against the newspaper dispenser on Tremont St. I am preaching with him to my left and two motorcycled cops eight feet to my right. Saying something like this. “One of the things that makes the good word good is it is designed to awaken in you a sense of urgency about your sins. That won’t come from anywhere else, No one is going to come to you and question the moral choices you’re making. We have no moral code or standard of righteousness anymore in this country. If your ship was foundering at sea with souls on board and you called the Coast Guard and they said, ‘You’re in luck. We are highly trained at sea rescue and are fearless in such danger. We’ll be there in an hour and a half.’ You might say, ‘You don’t understand. We are taking on water! We are sinking! Lives may be lost.’ Because the Coast Guard dispatcher didn’t show a sense of urgency that fit the present danger. If you dialed 911 and got the fire department to report your home was in flames and gave your address and forty-five minutes passed and still no fire engines you’d be shocked that the fire department failed to understand the sense of urgency in your situation. The good word is designed to awaken in you a sense of urgency about your sins. Jesus said: ‘If you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.’ That is a sober warning.” The hooded youth arises at the completion of my little message standing now in the glow of a street lamp above and near us and says: “You’re not like the others who are full of shit. You’re just telling it straight. Thanks man.” I have to force myself to speak about sin or moral failure or stuff in Scripture that is grave that is serious. It is against the natural grain of my personality. I have become progressively more serious than I ever would have become because of personal protracted misery. Not because I’m angry but because I think I’ve learned the hard way that what the Hebrew prophets all say is true. People are rebellious, obstinate, defiant and hostile toward God. It is one thing to read it. Another, to experience it. I choose to preach TOUGH. Concluding anything less would be deficient given the godless immoral state of the culture I’m addressing. Ricardo has long dark hair. Is somewhere in his twenties. Just started doing stand up comedy at Boston clubs. Appears at the Middle East sometimes. My, that takes courage. I was preaching and said this: “Atheists don’t want there to be a God with a moral code. Don’t want a God who judges them for immoral choices.” These words drew Ricardo to me. He tells me so. And initially asks, “What kind of morals would this God represent.” I think carefully for a bit and assert he’d prohibit murder. An hour + conversation unfolds. Ricardo is a very unique individual. Tells me he believes in a “multiverse” not the usual ‘universe’. He got this idea from a book he no longer remembers. He describes what a multiverse entails. Quite novel and intriguing. The nice thing about humane street evangelism is people like Ricardo. Who cause you to consider new takes on reality just when you thought you’d heard everything ‘on the street’ after 30+ years. Plus, articulating the Christian faith to an endless diversity of people I believe is one the best things you can do as a Christian. It causes super valuable inward reflection as to who you, the Christian, really are. All my time evangelizing has constantly accomplished one thing above many others. Established the genius of the Apostle Paul and my confidence he got his gospel from the Ruler on high. That Christianity is truly REVELATORY. Anymoose, Ricardo and I have a great time exchanging theological ideas and he emerges as a very unique individual who I hope shows up again. He’s the kind of guy who inhumane evangelism would offend senseless. Most Christians wouldn’t listen to or entertain his mindset. They’d bully him with Bible verses. Seth said these words as we parted company. “Anyone who believes in God is my brother.” This may sound ordinary to you but it wasn’t. You’d have to meet Seth. He came up to me because he heard my preaching. “Your words are intriguing,” he said. An hour plus later I had gotten to know him a bit. He is the 7th of 9 children. “I always believed in God,” he tells me. Meaning, as a kid. Seth is Catholic. He is slight of build and has moved here to seek work. No work up in New Hampshire where he was. Whether he is talking about employment or theology Seth is unmistakably wise. Comments he makes about the daily human drama are subtly profound. He mentions how everybody is “struggling” and his empathy is real. Realer than mine. The track my mental train is heading down these days is destined for the station whose name is CYNICISM. I hope Seth resurfaces. Robert Costa takes the train in from Providence. He’s begun preaching the gospel at Downtown Crossing. He does humane evangelism not inhumane. I’ve heard his preaching several times now. Robert reminds me of me back living in Bennington, Vt. He is pure passion for Christ. Unfettered. Costa has only been a Christian for four years. He evidences no fear of people’s opinions about what he’s doing. How refreshing I find that. I’ve heard 8,194,032 excuses from ‘church’ Christians why not to preach the good news to the lost. Robert’s no fool. Written by Stuart Charles Diamond on November 3, 2014
Posted on: Wed, 07 Jan 2015 19:47:09 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015