By Kevin Barron
Have you ever gone to Mass in a mental hospital? I had that privilege while I was a student at Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky. Students there served an internship for one semester in an organization outside a church. I chose serving with a chaplain at Eastern State Hospital, along with another student from Texas. We drove there once a week and spent most of the day there. The chaplain trained us, we participated in staff meetings, and we interacted with the residents.
It was an interesting experience! One part of the experience was visiting chapel services provided by various ministers. One regular visitor was a Roman Catholic priest who provided Mass for all who wanted to participate. I visited Mass there when I could.
Can church take place in such a setting? Can one worship God in such an environment? Certainly. It was a joy to experience God in a way I was not used to, and the priest even stayed around after Mass to answer any questions I had.
Over the years, I have worshiped in a variety of Christian churches. The majority of those churches have been part of the Methodistic tradition in which I was raised and is still home for me.
I have also attended services of one kind or another in many other denominations, and I have gained inspiration and grown closer to God as a result of those services. As a child, this was not the case.
The church in which I was raised tended to be suspicious of other churches. Those limitations were not helpful on my spiritual journey, a fact I realized as I drew from the riches of other traditions.
During my journeys here and there, I believe God has given me a better grasp on the things that matter. Don’t get me wrong, I believe in the positions and doctrines that are important to the Methodist tradition.
They are valuable to me. However, they are not essential to my Christian faith.
I have the same position when it comes to the positions and doctrines that are not central to the Christian understanding of other traditions. Those distinctions may be important, just like mine are, but they are not essential, which is a nice way of saying they are not necessary. So what is necessary for Christians?
A good way of summing up what is necessary is found in the Apostles’ Creed. The creed, in the form we have, is more than 1500 years old, and is recited on a regular basis in many churches.
There is a wealth of doctrine in every phrase of the Creed, and if you are not in a church that uses it, I encourage you to look it up, read it, and meditate on it. I will highlight two teachings from the Creed.
One is the Trinity. In various sections, the Creed thunders, “I believe in God the Father Almighty... Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord... (and) the Holy Spirit.” It is clearly a Trinitarian document! The doctrine of the Trinity is a Biblical teaching, and it is just as important today as it was then.
There are many false doctrines infecting religion, and many are a result of confusion abut the Trinity. God is three persons, yet one nature. Not the easiest thing to understand, but essential.
Another necessary teaching is the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God - His only Son, as the Creed says. Almost two thirds of the Apostles’ Creed talks about Jesus Christ. It demands belief in the virgin birth, in his Crucifixion, Resurrection and Ascension. There is not a lot of wiggle room in the Creed when it comes to Jesus.
How can anyone claim to be a Christian if they do not believe in Jesus Christ? Sadly, there are people who try to do exactly that, but they are doomed to failure.
We’re not sure who first said it, but here is a good saying to remember: “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things love.” We must give each other space on those non-essentials, and we must even love those who get the essentials wrong. After all, Jesus died for all and loves all, and he is our example.
Kevin Barron is the pastor of Perryville and Crossroads United Methodist churches. He can be reached by phone at 573-547-5200 or via email at kdbarron@gmail.com.
