That's Practically Theology!

“Practical Theology.” Have you ever heard the term? In Seminaries and Divinity schools, it stands alongside biblical studies, church history, and “systematic theology” as one of the major areas of study. With academic emphases placed on learning the Bible (we need that Greek and Hebrew!), history, and the great theological doctrines of Christianity, practical theology has been a sort of unwanted stepchild, confined to the task of application so that the “normal people” of the church can understand the mysteries of God (which are really only learned through rigorous scholarship). After all, practices and methods aren’t “real” theology, are they? Theology is the stuff of belief and reason. After you’ve done your theological thinking, you can figure out what actions to do. In the 20th century, great thinkers like Seward Hiltner and Don Browning began changing the perception of practical theology, arguing that there are no theological theories without practice. The truth is that there is no “systematic theology” that is not shaped by our life experiences and religious practices. Still, many in the academy view practical theology with skepticism and derision. My systematic theology friends like to refer to the field as “practically theology.”

We see this bias toward orthodoxy (or “correct belief”) in our churches, as well, particularly in mainline Christian denominations such as Lutherans and Presbyterians. In fact, our churches that should be united in solidarity with the poor and showing love to a world in need are actually splintering over doctrinal issues. We disagree over how God saves people from their sins, so we split the church. We disagree over what actually happens in the Lord’s supper, so we split the church. We disagree over the interpretation of a certain Bible verse or the translation of the Lord’s Prayer, so we split the church. We focus so much on correct understanding of doctrine that we neglect the great commandment to love the neighbor and the simple yet difficult call of Jesus to “follow me.”

I think this is why so many pastors and theologians are skeptical of the benefits of outdoor ministries. What they see is “bad theology,” and that is the most dangerous thing they can imagine. What if our kids go to camp and are exposed to some “incorrect” biblical hermeneutic? What if they learn about a problematic eschatology or, worse yet, soteriology?! They don’t seem to realize that these kids do not know what those words mean, they don’t care, and most of them will never care. It’s not that theology is unimportant. Theology is very important. However, theology does not come from correct understanding of theological doctrines that we formulate into ethics and then put into practice in our lives. That is the academic track that 99.9% of our Christian young people will never journey. Theology comes from practice. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer says in his classic Discipleship, it comes from obedience to Christ’s command to “follow me.” We don’t fully understand what or who we’re following; that is part of the journey of discipleship.

The Christian camping model assumes that Christ is active in the world and looks for where the Holy Spirit is moving in and among the community of practice. There is a sort of “hyperawareness” at camp as participants notice the inbreaking of God in concrete, unexpected ways and the continued activity of Christ in the world, what practical theologian Ray Anderson terms “Christopraxis.” Life at camp is normed in a way that takes seriously the ongoing work of Christ’s ministry, as guides (or “counselors”) and campers learn together to identify God’s action in the world through the mundane and the extraordinary. For young people accustomed to compartmentalizing their experience of God at church as separate from their everyday lives, the camp experience offers a radical recentering of their lives as caught up in and dependent upon the activity of Christ. This is the work of theology. And it’s very “practical.”

As young people return from camp excited about a faith that matters and empowered to do something about it, they do not need a dose of “real” theology. They need accompaniment. They need opportunities to put their faith into action and have an impact on other people’s understandings of God and faith. This is messy work because it means that young people’s home communities must take them seriously as burgeoning theologians, and these communities must be prepared for the probability that their theological assumptions will be challenged and even changed.

The “fun and games” of camp turn out to be generative theological practices that take seriously the activity of Christ in the world through the power of the Holy Spirit. As practical theologians continue to make the case that their field is not mere application but rather the very foundation of theological understanding, they would do well to recognize Christian camping ministry as a place where the activity of practical theology is already underway. The church needs to understand this, too. Maybe this is part of what Bonhoeffer meant when he wrote about a “religionless Christianity” in his Nazi jail cell. The world does not need religious institutions arguing and divided over complex theological doctrines. The world needs Christian communities of love and action on behalf of others. The world needs communities of Christopraxis, communities modeled at Christian camps across the country and around the world.

The False Church and the Godforsaken

I have experienced Christian camp as a place of inclusion, of radical love and acceptance, especially for those navigating the wilderness of life. Wilderness is a funny term. It can connote that which is wild and free in God’s beautiful creation, so camp becomes a place of wilderness by virtue of its outdoor setting. More than this, however, camp is a place that accepts people who are traveling a personal wilderness, for those who thirst for something other than water, as if they are alone in a dry and weary land (Psalm 63). The Christian community, which I have seen in its most concrete form at camp, proclaims that nobody walks this wilderness alone. Even though every individual has personal experiences that no other can fully understand, Christian community involves accompaniment. It is this accompaniment that makes wilderness "blessed." Theologically speaking, this accompaniment is the work of Christ himself, who walks beside us through the concrete presence of the other. Christ, the crucified God who walked the road to Calvary and endured the ultimate Godforsakenness (Mark 15:34), is the only one who can truly accompany us through any wilderness. Our society (indeed, our churches) is running out of places where this happens concretely in Christian community. Those who are loved and redeemed by Christ are left to navigate the wilderness alone while their church community stands, not in the place of love and acceptance, but in self-righteous judgment. Where the church community stands in this place, the gospel is obscured and the religious institution is no longer the Church of Christ but rather a false church.

There are countless examples of churches that have ceased being the Church. They adorn their proclamation with scripture passages while they deny the great commandment to love the neighbor. They claim exclusive right over the gospel proclamation, thereby denying their participation in the communion of saints. A clear example is the Westboro Baptist Church, with their proclamation of hatred and exclusion. The problem with the example of Westboro is that it is so radical that it serves almost as a caricature of the anti-Christian claiming to possess the gospel. More often, the distortion of the gospel lies within a community that also proclaims fragments of gospel truth. Such is the case that prompted this post.

A young man completed suicide recently. The very mention of suicide kindles burning memories of wilderness experiences for many of us, and I broach the topic with personal anguish along with attempted sensitivity for those whose experiences run deeper than my own and whose pain I will never fully understand. The funeral was at a funeral home because the young man’s congregation refused to host the funeral of someone who completed suicide. I can think of no greater failure of the church than when a congregation denies a Christian funeral to one who has completed suicide. It is the ultimate failure of accompaniment. The purported reason for the denial of a funeral is the gravity of the sin involved, as if the act of suicide is somehow greater than other sins. Suicide is indeed the result of brokenness and sin, but how can anyone be so blind as to place this sin on the shoulders of the very one who was traveling the wilderness? The Church is the community called into the wilderness of this world to provide water to those who thirst and, in the absence of water, to accompany the traveler to whatever end (yes, this means that a church community must be willing to sacrifice itself for the sake of accompaniment). If someone dies in the wilderness, it is the Church alone that is guilty of this death. To compound this tragic failure with a denial of responsibility is reprehensible. To go even farther and deny the responsibility of accompanying a grieving family through their wilderness is a clear case of ceasing to be the church. The sin and brokenness belongs with the churches, with the very institution that would deny him a burial and thus declare him Godforsaken, a condition that aligns him closer to the crucified Christ than the self-righteous ones who would claim power over the gospel.

People are sounding alarm bells over the decline of Christianity in the United States. They cite the declining numbers of church membership and the rise of the “nones” (those claiming no religious affiliation). Maybe this has less to do with a denial of Christ and more to do with the denial of false churches, of those institutions claiming the name “Christian” while forsaking the fundamental values of the gospel. Christ is the one who accompanies people through their wilderness experiences, who walked the Godforsaken road to Calvary so that the Godforsaken might be redeemed. Those who would deny the wilderness travelers entry into their sanctuary would deny entry to Christ. Maybe we need more “nones.” Maybe we need more people who would look the false churches in the eye and recognize that Christ is found elsewhere: in the lost, sinful, broken world. I weep this day with those who have suffered the brokenness of suicide. Churches that have barred their doors to you have barred their doors to Christ.

Living in God's Time: Epiphany at Camp

Of all the seasons of the church year, Epiphany is probably the most overlooked. It lacks the anticipation of Advent, the cultural appeal of Christmas, the excitement of Easter, the contemplation of Lent, and the sheer length of Pentecost. It is undoubtedly for this reason that Epiphany is the one season excluded from the Lutheran Outdoor Ministry summer camp curriculum. Functionally, it fits just fine as a parenthetical to the Christmas season. This reflects the practice of our congregations, whose annual Christmas pageants almost always include the Magi presenting gifts to the child in the manger. It is simply easier to tell the story this way rather than explaining that the Magi actually came to visit Jesus months or years after his birth and the baby (toddler?) was no longer in a manger but living in a house (Matthew 2:11). Easier to understand though this approach may be, I think there is something unique to the Epiphany idea that is more than just a bridge from Christmas to Lent and has special significance for those who work in outdoor ministries.

Christmas is about celebrating the coming of God into the world as a human being. The incarnation, God taking on human flesh, is one of the most important concepts in Christian theology. It is the church’s way of proclaiming that the Crucified One is the Incarnate One. If Christmas is about God coming into the world as a human, then Epiphany is about the realization of this event. Whether we recognize it or not, God has come into the world. God loves and redeems humanity even if people do not see God lying in the manger or hanging on the cross. Epiphany is the making known, the shedding light on who it is lying in the manger, and this is incredibly important for our faith. Jesus’ disciples went to their deaths for the gospel message because Christ revealed to them who he was. So while the incarnation of Christmas is key to understanding salvation, the manifestations of Epiphany are key to understanding discipleship.

We tell congregation members and camp attendees that God loves us, became a human for us, and died on the cross for us, but actual belief in this crazy story takes place through encounters with God. When they tell their faith stories, people I speak with often describe this as the time when they “owned” their faith. They encountered God in some unique way, through some unique movement of the Holy Spirit, and they had an “epiphany.” Epiphany is a Greek word that means “appearance” or “manifestation.” In ancient times, it was often used to describe theophanies, or direct experiences of God. We use it in a similar way during our liturgical year. Epiphany is the season when we hear about Christ being made known in the world. The traditional Epiphany stories include the visit of the Magi (when sages from foreign nations recognized Jesus as the king), the baptism of Jesus (when the dove descended and the voice from heaven proclaimed Jesus the Son of God), and the changing of water to wine at Cana (Jesus’ first public miracle). Epiphany texts also include the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, when people first saw him as the great teacher and healer of the sick. In the Lutheran, Methodist, and other liturgical calendars, Epiphany concludes with the festival of Transfiguration, the ultimate moment of epiphany when Peter, James, and John saw Jesus in his divine glory on the mountaintop.

Maybe it is becoming clear why I consider Epiphany such an important concept at camp. People often describe camp as a “mountaintop experience.” For many campers, they encounter God in a new and unique way at camp. The experience of intentional community in God’s beautiful creation gives people space to consider their faith in a new way. It is not that Jesus shows up at camp and not other places. As the incarnation tells us, Jesus is there the whole time. However, camp participants often recognize this amazing truth for the first time. Peter, James, and John had been hanging out with Jesus for three years before the transfiguration, but what happened on the mountaintop forever changed their perspective on life. The camp experience has the power to do that because at camp, Christ is made known. That incredibly powerful experience does not happen to everyone who comes to camp, but we certainly create the space for the Spirit to play. This summer, keep an eye out for moments of Epiphany. They can lead to lives of discipleship.

For more on the LOM Curriculum on Christmas/Epiphany, see my webinar presentation at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjRwqSmf3yA.

Summer is Coming!

This post was first published at firstthird.org

As a new year dawns, the weather is frigid in the upper Midwest. Schools are cancelled in several states due to extreme cold, and the warnings say things like, “Skin will freeze within 5-10 minutes.” Seriously, my skin is going to freeze?! The trip to the mailbox reminds me of a Jack London story. Bundling up with five layers complete with ski goggles, I make the 75-foot trek through -55 degree wind chills, fearing that I am risking my life for a few credit card offers and an Eddie Bauer catalog. Fortune smiles upon me: the summer camp brochures have arrived! Nothing cuts through the frostbite so much as anticipation of camp. I may not be able to set foot outside for fear of losing fingers or nose, but the pictures of laughing children, campfires, green grass, and flowing streams infuse me with hope: summer is coming!

As we enter the season of the church year known as Epiphany, we reflect on the ways Christ is made known to the world. I talk a lot about Christ and write a lot about theology, but the academic rigor seldom translates into a revelatory event or process that I could describe as an epiphany. When I talk about my faith, I do not refer to my experiences in the classroom so much as my experiences at summer camp or on retreat. These experiences of “epiphany” are when Christ’s presence was made known to me through the power of the Holy Spirit in new and unexpected ways. I refer to them as Paul referred to his Damascus road experience (1 Cor. 15:8, Gal 1:15-17) and Peter to his experience on the mountaintop (2 Pet. 1:16-18). Research shows that I am not unique. Camp experiences provide significant and lasting positive life outcomes (1), and intentionally programmed group wilderness experiences are proven to be looked back on as “significant life events” decades later (2). Critics claim that camp builds an artificial and temporary “spiritual high” that quickly fades after the experience, but they are not looking at it in terms of Epiphany. Camp is not about a spiritual high but rather about making Christ known, about providing space for the Holy Spirit to move in new and often unexpected ways. The excitement and positive energy of camp may wear off, but the faith formation leads to lives of discipleship, and the faith experiences serve as markers that can help redirect young people as they navigate their spiritual journey.

For camp directors, the time of eager anticipation has begun. The brochures are out and camper registrations are coming in. In the meantime, potential summer staff members eager to serve God and minister with young people are joining the excitement. This summer, intentional Christian communities will form and transformational faith experiences will happen at camps across the country. Present and future leaders of Christ’s church will discover their specific callings as disciples devoted to new ministries that the rest of us have not even considered. Individuals suffering in difficult life circumstances will hear and experience for the first time in their lives that they are beloved children of God. Families will strengthen their bonds of love and fellowship as faith is passed across generations, from parents or grandparents to their children and from the young campers back to their parents.

In the midst of a bitter winter with no end in sight, now is the time to proclaim with confidence that the cold will not endure! Youth ministers and pastors, now is the time to sign your group up for a summer adventure experience at your local camp, or travel together to hike the mountains or canoe the backcountry. Parents, sign your children up for an outstanding faith-forming experience at one of our Christian camps AND register your entire family for family camp, which will be a cheaper, less stressful, and more positive experience than any other family vacation you can plan. Young adults and those young at heart, hundreds of camps are now looking for staff members like you, and the summer staff experience has the potential to be one of the most influential of your entire life (it certainly was for me)! Believe the good news: Summer is Coming!

Find Lutheran camps at lomnetwork.org.

Find Presbyterian camps at pccca.net.

Find ACA accredited camps at acacamps.org.

1) American Camp Association. “Directions: Youth Development Outcomes of the Camp Experience.” Martinville, IN: Author, 2005. http://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/images/research/directions.pdf

2) Brad Daniel. “The Life Significance of a Spiritually Oriented, Outward Bound-Type Wilderness Expedition.” Journal of Experiential Education 29 (2007): 286-389.