The Chief End of Man

Every time we children at home decided to do something new, my mother always pulled out her black dust-kissed Bible and quoted a milliard of verses explaining why we should or shouldn’t do this or that. One of those things involved this one day when I wanted to uproot a mango tree behind our kitchen because that was a cool spot for my new house. I was 12 and very excited about building my first house. My mom then quoted verses from Genesis to somewhere I can’t remember explaining why destroying nature annoys God. “God put us here to take care of the environment not to destroy it,” she continued.

Two years ago I went back to my small village in Africa and my mom put a basket of ripe mangoes before me. She picked out one of the juiciest and said “eat from the fruits of your intended destruction.” I didn’t know what she meant until she explained how 20 years ago I had intentions of destroying the same mango tree that gave birth to the juice I was about to enjoy. Of course I was quick to repent because I was not prepared for another reading through the book of Genesis defending the cause for mango trees. My mom and I had had enough battles when I was growing up. I was a very inquisitive kid who did not take things for granted. For example I remember one day turning the pages of my mom’s veteran’s Bible to find a verse that could prove to her that raising pigs was better than cows. I couldn’t find one. And as soon as I put down the Bible she found five to defend her cause and outlawed piggery from that day on. I still hope that one day I will find a verse or two to prove her wrong; if not for a good old conversation with my 65 year-old mom, may be just for fun.

But is this what it is all about? Finding a verse or two to defend what we believe? Yet that is what I see in Christianity today. Religion in the 21st century is taking an interesting turn. From radical fundamentalism to authentic conversations, the spectrum in-between is interesting to watch. I have heard Christians debate such hot topics as gay marriages, abortion, environmental stewardship, global warming, among other chill-down-the-spine topics. Of course you can tell that I am lost in the sea of bubbling Bobs. What is left of the Bible? Where do we start to debate issues that all of us are divided about? Who is right? Who is wrong?

I believe that we Christians are moving away from the fabric of religion into useless bubbling that is hindering our effectiveness. Is the chief end of man debating endless issues that do not contribute to the basics of our religion? Issues are going to keep coming up. And if Christians are devoting their talents and time to debating emerging mosaics of worldly concepts, what is going to be left of the gospel of love? You see I believe that we are working so hard to defend the cause of God as if God is some helpless fellow who can’t defend himself. We can’t go on fighting to defend the glory of God and loose sight of his love for us and for all mankind. I see this as chasing after the wind. The world will continue to be worldly. That’s why it’s called “the world.”

Unlike the Westminster catechist which emphasizes fighting for the glory of God, I believe that our role is to love God and to show the world how much he loves all and wants us to come under the wings of his unfailing love. We Christians should be riding on the wings of love, not opinions, holy wars, and endless theological battlegrounds. We are loosing it and the world is laughing.