Modern Christian Culture and Post-Rapture Radio

Every summer I make a point to spend some time reading longer books because I have much more time to do so during the summer rather than during the regular school year. This summer I chose to read Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov and Augustine's City of God. I thought that I would have a full plate of reading before me, but when I arrived in Minnesota my sister persuaded me to read one more book over the summer. I took her advice, not knowing that the book she would recommend to me would truly be a perspective changing book.

The book was Post-Rapture Radio, written by one of the pastor's of my sister's church, Russell Rathbun. The book was written as a sort of response to the Left Behind Series, but turns the idea on its head, instead making the government of the anti-Christ modern Christian culture. As a result, the book gives an almost disturbing critique of our own Christian sub-culture.

In the book Rathbun presents many differnet ideas and critiques, but the most striking ones for me included his arguments about interpretation of scripture and reliance on faith. He addresses the fact that many of us, especially those who grew up in the church, are caught in a way of thinking only one way about scripture, and tend to interpret the Bible as being more about us than it is about God. Also, he presents the all important reality that Christianity is based more on faith than we are many times willing to admit. It is sometimes a reality that is often looked over, but at the same time is very comforting.

I thouroghly enjoyed the book and purposely meant to leave out most of the details of the book because this book is something that needs to be experienced and not described. If you do read the book, prepare to have your christian worldview a little bit shaken, especially if you have experience with contemporary Christian sub-culture. Get ready to have the waters of Christianity muddied and be ready to enjoy it!

Back from the Wilderness

As it is prone to do, the summer has slipped by extremely quickly and the school year is already underway. A week ago I found myself packing up my belongings and leaving Wilderness Canoe Base to return to college and to begin my senior year. After spending three months in the North Woods of Minnesota, I became very accustomed to the slowed down pace of life, the extremely close community that I lived and worked alongside, and the beauty of my surroundings. Being able to be in the wilderness and lead multi-day trips into the backcountry was an absolute dream job for me and suited me perfectly, making Wilderness a very hard place for me to leave by the end of August.

However, by the month of August I was beginning to feel the desire to return to the university environment, to start learning again, and to continue my ministry at my campus through Intervarsity. But it was also extremely hard for me to leave my newfound friends and to leave the wilderness lifestyle I had adopted, especially because I am not sure if and when I will return to Minnesota and Wilderness Canoe Base again. I also experienced some aspects of culture shock when I returned to the "civilized world", from small things lilke not paddling and using a canoe at least once a day and not being used to seeing women wearing make-up, to bigger things like trying to find quiet places to meditate after being surrounded by places after by places to go all summer long. I almost felt like wanting to be in two places at once, somehow either moving ODU onto a raft in the Boundary Waters, or digging a giant hole in front of my dorm room, filling it with water, then paddling and portaging on it from time to time whenever I wanted to.

I have now officially returned to ODU and still absolutely love the college atmosphere, but I still am searching for some way to blend the two environments that I love so much. I now very well that I can't canoe everyday and camp every night while I am here at school, but I do know that I can try to foster the close community that I experienced up there into the relationships that I have withe people back here at school, honestly caring about them and loving them, not because I have to, but because I have seen what happens to people when they are cared for and I know that it is good. No matter where I am, hopefully I can draw in the "wilderness" experiences that I have had and will treasure, even if I never go back to the north country that I have newly begun to love dearly.