Suicides, Scandals, and Sex: Can the Church Handle Real Issues?

Earlier this week, Rick Warren, one of the most influential Evangelical Christian leaders alive today, received the worst news possible: His son was dead. By his own hands.

As the news broke to his disbelieving followers, the internet message boards became filled with condolences and empathetic prayers. Nobody wins with suicide. It's the curse that keeps on stealing. To make the unthinkable worse, the theistic elitists and atheistic sewer dwellers creeped out of their hellholes to cast accusations and damnations towards the Warren family. Classy.

As if the war for souls is going to be won over the corpse of an imbalanced boy.

Why is it so hard for the world, those saved and those secular, to understand the humanity of a tragedy?  The death of a prominent Christian leader's son is not a victory for atheism, nor is it evidence that Warren was not walking the straight and narrow...his son simply lost a battle with himself.

What spiritual warfare feels like.  

There is no guarantee as a Christian that by giving your life over to a faith or a calling, that God will pave your roads in gold, and make your existence easy.  Growing up with a minister for a father, I can attest that the opposite is more likely to be true.  Only those who've ever invested a life in a ministry can tell you that for all the glory of God being seen, there is also a nasty flip-side called "spiritual warfare" that takes its toll on bodies, minds, marriages, finances, friendships, children, etc.  I'm sure Mr. Warren had experienced differing levels of spiritual conflict before this week.  I'm not sure anyone should have to endure what he's experiencing right now. I hope he takes a long break. I hope he screams at God.  I hope he wails, and seeks answers from God, and surrounds himself with loved ones who will not judge.

But what do I know? I've never experienced pain on that scale.  I have no idea what he needs physically or spiritually; but I know he doesn't need Monday morning quarterbacks questioning his motives or gleefully pronouncing his failure.

But that's one of the problems with churches and Christianity today: dealing with issues like suicide that were once easier swept under the rug.

The second of my Christian Outlet Bookstore
appropriate Historical Romances.  

I was on the phone this week with a prominent Christian publishing company, and the representative on the other side was praising the first chapter of my novel.  "This is exactly what the book market, not just Christian publishing, needs right now..." After twenty minutes on the phone I felt she was ready to bypass the normal protocols and offer me a contract right then and there.

But then we got into the nitty-gritty. She started telling me about their editorial standards. That there are certain "taboo" subjects that no matter the writing quality, the ultimate outcome, the message;  if certain words or certain "acts" are mentioned, they reject the project immediately (or demand heavy edits).

I mentioned that one of the characters in my novel has "relations" with his long time girlfriend...a decision that nearly destroys both characters and is essential to the plot.

"Oh...that changes everything; yeah, they probably...no, they wouldn't publish it. No pre-marital sex is allowed in our books."

Really?  I mean, I know the importance of purity and the sanctity of intimacy, but isn't premarital sex nearly as rampant between believers as it is with non-believers?  Isn't there divorce and infidelity and sexual dysfunction and sexual addiction and drug addiction and mental instability and suicide and immorality and a myriad of other "problems" happening to Christians, all the while churches are  turning a blind eye towards these issues?

Because "ignoring" reality; ignoring the fallenness of this world; ignoring human nature and sin, and pretending that everything is hunky dory is obviously working so well for church numbers and believer's souls in this day and age.

 So RIP Matthew Warren.  Hopefully you find the peace that you didn't find in this world.  And to Rick Warren: we don't need any statements. Grieve in peace, and don't feel the need to respond to critics.

One of these days, Christians, desperate to speak relevancy to a hurting world, will reject the mass marketing system of watered down Christianese, and start to say something REAL to the world again.