Crowding out

“Classically, there are three ways in which humans try to find transcendence--religious meaning--apart from God as revealed through the cross of Jesus: through the ecstasy of alcohol and drugs, through the ecstasy of recreational sex, through the ecstasy of crowds. Church leaders frequently warn against the drugs and the sex, but at least, in America, almost never against the crowds.”

Eugene H. Peterson, "The Pastor: A Memoir"

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Dear Alex,

Why would a sharp guy like Pastor Pete, as the neighborhood kids used to call Eugene Peterson, say this sort of stuff - or fluff? Transcendence is a big word but he relates it to us as "religious meaning", our search for inherent worth and purpose in the brevity of our seasons on Earth.

His big caution against following the crowds is weird because crowds can be helpful. Creatures like to move and mingle in masses for solidarity and comfort. Now I don't usually like writing in clichés but we have heard of good things about crowds:

  There's safety in numbers.
  It takes a village to raise a child.
  Birds of the same feathers flock together.
  Great minds think alike.

We know crowds can be chaos in ecstasy. So folks drop off loads of cash to go on retreats and resorts, boat cruises and beach walks away from crowds.

But I don't think Pastor Pete is just talking about crowds in this context. I think he's asking us to think more than the rat race or the keeping-up-with-the-Joneses look to fit in. It’s about the crowds of the heart in our heart of worship.

We have too much stuff and fluff. Our religious meaning is about being religious in shopping, eating, vacationing, sleeping, watching, getting. None of these verbs alone may sound bad. I do it too. But if I were to take a good look at myself, I see I am worshipping crowds of stuff, puffs and tufts of fluff that will eventually single me out to a corner of bile vomit.

The million-dollar question my kid has recently asked tiptoes towards Pastor Pete's caveat against following the crowds:

What can I do to not follow the crowds?

I shall be thinking of the same question too for the rest of my life.

Yours, Kate

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Dear Kate,

When people come together there's meaning, there's business going on and we mean our business whatever it is.

Whatever it is.

Say if you go to a bridal shower you would try not to question it.  It is a showering of some sort done to a bride of some kind, and if you are not the one getting showered then you know you are someone showering.  There are precedents to follow, historical lessons to learn from, and within the strict confines of normative expectation and societal demand, there is freedom and joy to be found, a lot of it, frequently surprisingly varied, at once personal and universal.

That the showering is done against the backdrop of relational brokenness permeating every pore of our knowing and unknowing about ourselves and the whole Creation shall not be brought to the fore.  Yet make no mistake the concern is addressed resoundingly: the showering is an act of exorcism, a reversed thunder to shout back at our damned state of (human) being.

If I am to carry with me my own burden of relational brokenness I shall still play along.  I shall still dress up and believe true love will finally win the day and we are all destined for the winning.  My breaking of my own relationships doesn't give me the right to sound alarm about others' shouting back.  To shout in solidarity is to tell evil and hopelessness we mean business, that we are standing together in the name of love.  My man is bad but yours will treat you right, and we are here to celebrate you finding and having the right man, for life, for ever.  You, the goddess of love, makes our collective dream come true, and here we shower ourselves with the vicarious pleasure of crowning Love, your king.

The showering was done to me once and I think I owe the world a favor to suspend my disbelief.  At least for an afternoon.

Yours, Alex