Video Assistant Referees and The Evangelical Alliance
In support of preaching, pastoring and prayer, not coercion.
Football may be regarded as the greatest game in the world because of its simplicity. Using your feet to get the ball into the goal can be understood by anyone, although you may have some questions about it once you’ve begun. We might wonder about how the boundaries are defined, what to do if someone gets hurt or who keeps the score. All of these questions are important, but they are not the key values of the game. For as long as anyone can remember people have argued about the interpretation of the rules, so in recent years some technological advances have been introduced to aid referees in the Premier League. This technology was intended to make things less controversial but have actually made judgements seem more important than the game itself. Goals have been chalked off for tiny discrepancies, while some minor disputes have taken many minutes to resolve. There is a growing consensus that this way of working isn’t what was expected or hoped for.
At the heart of Christianity is one simple and joyful fact. Jesus said “I have come that you may have life, and have it abundantly”. Like football, there are further details but the bringing of life is at the heart of Jesus’ message to the world. Sometimes when disputes take over a game of football, trying to put the ball into the goal is almost forgotten. But without that purpose, players might find themselves involved in something entirely different. If life in abundance isn’t the aim for Christians, the joy of Christ’s message is distorted.
The 28th of March 2021 will mark 1000 days since the UK Government promised to abolish conversion therapy. Conversion therapy is a process that intends to ‘stop homosexuality’ by encouraging ‘straightness’ or celibacy in individuals. Because of this upcoming milestone, various publications have reminded the Government of their stated intention. Boris Johnson replied last week saying “we're determined to take further steps to stamp it out”. In the wake of this renewed intention, a group called the Evangelical Alliance wrote a letter that questions the Prime Minister’s aims.
Their statement in the letter professes a concern that some activities they believe to be legitimate might be categorised as conversion therapy and banned accordingly. This correspondence to Mr Johnson was abridged into a tweet stating that “Any policies to end conversion practice must focus on abusive and coercive activities and not put Christians at risk of arrest for preaching, pastoring or praying with someone”.
The Evangelical Alliance are a UK-wide collective of churches who identify as being evangelical. They often campaign collectively for the rights of their members or on issues of morality. The definition of evangelical belief is widely debated but usually insists upon the promotion of the Christian faith. This can take a variety of forms. Some Evangelical Christians may actively express their faith as a source of truth and positivity. Some may invite people to learn about Jesus with them, while others might campaign for nuclear disarmament or against Sunday trading. The Evangelical Alliance itself is over 150 years old and has many members churches in every town and city in the country. Both the EA and the stance of evangelism are well-grounded, broad in outlook and firmly established within our society. But the Alliance’s new statement protesting the potential ban on conversion therapy brings a nuance with it that goes beyond the aforementioned values.
I grew up in a town parish church that changed its outlook during my teenage years. It had been a fairly middle of the road establishment with a membership of local families. To the surprise of my parents and their peers the church shifted dramatically during the nineties, becoming an advocate of a Pentecostal movement known as the Toronto Blessing. This movement promoted a revival of Christianity based on prayer meetings and charismatic worship services. It was a bombastic approach to church that regularly encouraged people to seek healing through prayer and built a class of Christians that wanted to know (subconsciously or otherwise) if you shared this understanding of the work of God. The rhetorical questions from the pulpit and endless open prayer sessions asked if we accepted the Holy Spirit and if we were being transformed by it. The prayer sessions were often lengthy because of the wait for a response. In hindsight the only acceptable response was an emotional outpouring of some sort. There was a lot of waiting.
My Mum and Dad quietly responded by joining with lots of their friends to ask the church leadership for a different and more traditional church service in addition to these new gatherings. I remained part of the charismatic grouping with lots of my friends, drawn in as a 14 year old to play the bass guitar in the band. We saw this gathering and the hubbub around it slowly mellow. There were many good people within that group who read the Bible, prayed, sang songs and made a positive impact in the world. The traditional values of the Evangelical Alliance were mirrored there. Their beliefs were based upon an understanding that prayer was a device through which God would listen to appeals, and with God’s own wisdom would respond. There was also an understanding that time spent in prayer benefitted the one praying. It was seen to be meditative, contemplative and revelatory. God would reveal greater truths to you through it. I lasted another few years before I moved and joined a wonderful Methodist Church, but I’m telling you this because I don’t lack an understanding of evangelism and evangelical faith. I still value some of it while moving away from some other parts. In addition, I disagree with the assertion that the scriptural definitions of marriage and sexuality must be the absolute way in which Christians understand sex and relationships. But the writers of the Evangelical Alliance’s statement know this. That disagreement is long standing and well defined. The EA holds that sex is for marriage and marriage is only for people of the opposite sex. These arguments are well established and firmly held by the group. These are protected stances because of the passages in the New Testament that reinforce this view. Many people disagree on both the use of The Bible and whether The Bible is as conclusive as the Evangelical Alliance maintains, but I can see justification for holding these views.
However, this latest concern appears to take this argument to a new level, which I believe is untenable. There is clearly a misunderstanding on the part of the writer regarding what coercion is. It says that the EA will continue to “oppose abusive practices”, but new policies “will threaten the everyday practices of churches, church leaders, and Christians across the UK” seemingly unaware that prayer meetings, intense church services or hour-long sermons have the potential to be both abusive and coercive. I recall many gatherings (both local and national) that I attended as a teenager which were threaded with dogmatic and aggressive words about a number of issues, particularly sex and sexuality. The letter to the Prime Minister seems to draw an assumed line to separate already illegal practices (citing corrective rape) and the kind of persuasion that seems to be considered fair game by the writer. There is concern from the EA that (in the words of their tweet) “any policies to end conversion practice must focus on abusive and coercive activities and not put Christians at risk of arrest for preaching, pastoring or praying with someone”. It is clearly written from a position of privilege – there is an assumption that a recipient of these practices would not feel attacked because of their sexuality, when the opposite is likely to be true. The weaponization of praying, pastoring and preaching is a direct affront to the true values of those God-given tools.
Preaching is by nature the work of an individual. We know that the speaker appeals to some shared ideas but also endeavours to stretch the understanding of those listening. We can disagree with the conclusions reached, but some of the most effective preaching encourages us to think further. The concepts expressed in faith and religion allow a lifetime of talking; effective preaching won’t try to say everything, instead shining new light on scripture and theology. It also should encourage conversations and questions, not stifle them.
Jesus spoke about himself as being like a shepherd. The concept of pastoring in the New Testament builds on this idea. The letter called 1 Peter talks a lot about how to best honour the way of pastoring taught by Jesus. 1 Peter 5:2 tells the reader not to “lord it over those in your charge” and to “clothe yourself in humility in your dealings with one another”. As a pastor, these words encourage an attitude of listening to your Christian family. If the work you believe to be supportive actually causes damage, change is needed.
In the words of Soren Kierkegaard, “the function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays”. However, many of us can attest to exposure to prayers much like those of Rod and Todd Flanders in The Simpsons. When Lisa babysits for them, we see the Flanders’ boys praying with one eye open; “… and please make Lisa tell us a bedtime story… about robots named Rod and Todd”. If we believe in the power of prayer, we must allow opportunity for the people in prayer to be engaged with God, and not only with the vociferous prayer leader.
The Evangelical Alliance has made a statement that shows no trust for prayer, no willingness for preaching to be critiqued and a model of pastoring that looks more like restraint than support. The law in the United Kingdom allows for robust discussion and alternative views, but another step towards the cessation of bullying and abusive practices should be something that is welcomed by all who believe in goodness, love and hope. In their desire for an outcome that suits their current stance, the Evangelical Alliance statement is not positive or supportive, but defensive and manipulative. I understand the belief in Scriptural infallibility, but I cannot abide the willingness to wear down those with whom you disagree. This letter forsakes the true values of prayer, pastoring and preaching for a stance based on fear, closedmindedness and judgement. Much like the technological advances in football, the heart of the matter has been forgotten for the sake of fringe issues. Instead of supporting this statement, I hope that all members of the Evangelical Alliance remind each other of the very heart of the gospel. Let all of Jesus’ followers cling to what is good and life-affirming. In the words of the letter called 1 John “let us love one another, because love is from God”.
Thanks for writing this Jon. I read the statement from EA when it came out and found it disturbing. I think you articulated it well.
The main stream denominations have a role to play in this to. In knowing and being prepared to question some of the preaching and practice in pulpits and festivals that they support.
Brilliant piece thank you Jon. I am so glad there are people like you standing up in this way and truly supporting ‘gospel’ values.