Thesis 20: Twisting Pentecost

Twisting Pentecost

You know the pentecost story: apostles gather, big wind arrives, holy spirit descends in tongues of fire, they begin speaking in foreign languages, many come to believe.

Our pastor recently explored the Acts pentecost story in his own biblio-focused (i.e. with zero cultural or contemporary application) way, but I was distracted by the languages the apostles were speaking, and what happened next. In short, the languages they spoke were heard and understood, helping swell the number of local believers.

Heard. And understood.

This isn’t happening anymore, in churches or elsewhere. While Church talks a big game of being inspired and led by the holy spirit, in fact very little spirit is experienced much less used to help further Christ’s good message. What we have instead is a mishmash of dark worship, peer-pressure acting, and leadership charlatanism.

Simply put, when church followers are seen speaking in “tongues,” getting slain by the spirit, and being “healed,” they’re merely putting on a show. The tongues they’re speaking are gibberish that are understood by no one (and no, the idiot standing next to them isn’t “interpreting” for the rest of the idiots), the slaying at best hysterical fainting, and the healing is a paid-for act.

How do I know? Because these things are merely performances for church followers, and no one else. If they were genuine, we’d see apostles meeting unbelievers where they are and the holy spirit would give them the tools to bring them to Christ. We would be hearing about and seeing genuine miracles of love and compassion all over the place, which isn’t happening. Instead, the only thing we see and hear are Church people performing for other church people and their leaders, and the frequent fall of greedy ministers.

We also know because time and again, faith “healers” are exposed for the frauds they are, linked directly to the money-hungry power-structures of faith bodies. And unfortunately, well-meaning sheep will play along and/or let themselves be guided by forces that have nothing to do with spreading the gospel.

I understand peer pressure: no one wants to be left behind or singled out as odd, and as we know peer pressure in churches is as real as it is anywhere else. You can’t fault children for giving in when all their friends are goading them to act. And I believe you can drive yourself to a mental state where your mind creates its own extasis, and that can look a lot like divine inspiration. If you do the thing, you might not be at fault.

But I do fault Church leaders, so many of whom are intimately aware that the messages and practices they encourage in their churches are unbiblical and, in many cases, tainted by the dark arts. If you encourage weak humans to let go of their control, something will step in to take control, and those those ecstatic experiences (everything from tongues and slaying to snake-charming and masturbatory assault rifle worship) can become vessels for darkness.

Could it be the actual Holy Spirit? I suppose so, although falling back on the “anything is possible with God” trope tends to excuse shitty theology and lazy faith. I don’t think we’re seeing Spirit, though. I think we’re seeing corruption, the most powerful dark art, at work. I no longer believe in the storybook Satan I was raised with, or even the white male angels that populate our minds, but I do believe that there are light and dark forces in the world.

And Church, unfortunately, is guilty of allowing its sheep to be led not by compassion and justice, but by the incestuous dark forces that exist merely to keep feeding itself.

Keywords: Thesis 20: Twisting Pentecost; Faith; Deconstruction; Religion; Christian; Christianity; Church; Sin; Corruption; Scandal; Bible; Abuse; God; Jesus; Stewardship