David Fitch joins the Betwixt Podcast to talk about the dangers of ideology when uprooted from practice.
We find ourselves in a precarious and liminal time. And many of us grieve our angry culture that seems obsessed with antagonism. In his book the Church of Us vs Them, Fitch contends that the Church has been swept up in this Us-vs-them mentality that has turned us into an ‘enemy-making machine.
“Has the Church become an “enemy-making machine”? David Fitch joins the Betwixt Podcast to explore the Church of Us vs Them and how to find freedom from a faith that divides.”
This episode explores how we got here and how we can free ourselves from a faith that feeds on division. And because this episode is about handling antagonisms, I take the opportunity to throw Fitch a few hand grenade questions! So stay tuned and see how he handles them!
“When we extract belief out everyday practice in our lives, it turns into a banner–an ideological cause that we rally people around. And we lose sight of how God is transforming our lives as a witness of the kingdom before the world. – David Fitch”
Dr. David Fitch is the B. R. Lindner Chair of Evangelical Theology at Northern Seminary in Chicago. He is also the founding pastor of Life on the Vine Christian Community–a missional church in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago. You may know Fitch as a leading voice in conversations about culture and missiology. You can follow him on twitter and listen to his podcast Theology on Mission.
This Podcast relies on shares & reviews from listeners like you!
Subscribe/Rate/Review Betwixt on iTunes!
Special thanks to these musicians for making their works available for this podcast:
Kai Engle: Wake Up, Universe in Hands; Audiobinger: Winter is Coming; Ryvoli: Roots
Missio Alliance Comment Policy
The Missio Alliance Writing Collectives exist as a ministry of writing to resource theological practitioners for mission. From our Leading Voices to our regular Writing Team and those invited to publish with us as Community Voices, we are creating a space for thoughtful engagement of critical issues and questions facing the North American Church in God’s mission. This sort of thoughtful engagement is something that we seek to engender not only in our publishing, but in conversations that unfold as a result in the comment section of our articles.
Unfortunately, because of the relational distance introduced by online communication, “thoughtful engagement” and “comment sections” seldom go hand in hand. At the same time, censorship of comments by those who disagree with points made by authors, whose anger or limited perspective taints their words, or who simply feel the need to express their own opinion on a topic without any meaningful engagement with the article or comment in question can mask an important window into the true state of Christian discourse. As such, Missio Alliance sets forth the following suggestions for those who wish to engage in conversation around our writing:
1. Seek to understand the author’s intent.
If you disagree with something the an author said, consider framing your response as, “I hear you as saying _________. Am I understanding you correctly? If so, here’s why I disagree. _____________.
2. Seek to make your own voice heard.
We deeply desire and value the voice and perspective of our readers. However you may react to an article we publish or a fellow commenter, we encourage you to set forth that reaction is the most constructive way possible. Use your voice and perspective to move conversation forward rather than shut it down.
3. Share your story.
One of our favorite tenants is that “an enemy is someone whose story we haven’t heard.” Very often disagreements and rants are the result of people talking past rather than to one another. Everyone’s perspective is intimately bound up with their own stories – their contexts and experiences. We encourage you to couch your comments in whatever aspect of your own story might help others understand where you are coming from.
In view of those suggestions for shaping conversation on our site and in an effort to curate a hospitable space of open conversation, Missio Alliance may delete comments and/or ban users who show no regard for constructive engagement, especially those whose comments are easily construed as trolling, threatening, or abusive.