Jesus Camp

I watched Jesus Camp last night, rapt with attention. Although I didn't grow up Pentecostal (tongues was considered "of the devil"in my church), I certainly grew up with the same principals and basic teachings and attended many a Christian day and overnight camp. I find it interesting that a lot of the criticism of the adults in the film revolves around the war-paint song and dance. It seems to me that's more a product of middle America (camo as day-wear) than these people's differing beliefs. See, a lot of the more  "mainline" Christians apparently don't want to admit it in their criticism of this movie, but the Bible is very clear that the ultimate sacrifice one can make for God is to give one's life (the perfect example being Jesus himself). I remember singing songs about "being more than conquerers," being called "warriors for God" and doing "Bible drills." I think the warfare theme is as common in the Bible as it is in the pulpit. The Bible also talks about love and forgiveness, but there is no doubt in the doctrine that the war is against sin, and that all Christians are engaged in it on a day-to-day basis. There might be some legitimate reasons many Christians don't want to identify with the adults in this movie (mine would be that constantly manipulation kids' emotions is unfair to them and will eventually backfire), but Becky Fischer isn't really so far off doctrinally from many evangelicals, only in visible application of said doctrine.

What seems to scare people about Christians is their insistence that they are always right. This is, in my opinion, Christianity's biggest weakness. Being right is a slippery slope. It's one thing to think you worship the right God (seems a prerequisite to me if you're to have a religion or belief), and from there it naturally follows that you would be right about how to worship your God (in this scenario, already we have splintering, but that is probably to some extent healthy), but then it quickly becomes what one should and shouldn't eat, drink, watch, wear, think, do, be, how to raise your children, cut your hair, etc. Suddenly you are unable to experience and enjoy life but in the narrowest of religious confines. And that, I think, is why I no longer go to church. I spent so long watching and observing people who could only enjoy life in the narrowest of ways that I finally said enough is enough. They were for the most part sincerely nice, good people, but they had focused their world so small, they were blind to everything else. In the church I went to as a child, this was the goal. You are to steel yourself against the world and its enchantments and keep all focus on God, but that version of God seemed very small in day-to-day practice.

Children are naturally curious, the more you stop them from exploring, the more they will reach out to the wrong things (and often because the conservative Christian ones are so naive and isolated,they will make monumental mistakes in comparison to their non-religious counterparts from stable homes), or be so racked with guilt that they are paralyzed with fear. Eventually, though, we all grow up.