offending people nicely

Another great cartoon from Jon Birch today. Along with Dave Walker, Jon is one of my regular reads in blogland. Jon was really writing about satire, but the context of his site, and the Vicar-like tee-shirt he gave his cartoon character, took me off at another tanget as well... 

There is something inherently "offensive" about the gospel - however much you get to grips with the love and forgiveness and comfort of God, if you are engaging with what it means to live out the gospel, there is still the regular jab in the ribs. The gospel is many good things - exciting, challenging, comforting, fulfilling, forgiving, gracious, merciful... and much more - but one thing it will never be is comfortable, in the sense of being mentally settled down on a sofa never to move again.

As I commented to Jon, there is something about being a minister of the gospel (and this is true in the sense that every Christian is a minister, not just the "professional" thing) that means you should anticipate that you will end up offending people. The TV Vicar is nearly always "nice", to the point of being bland; even the Vicar of Dibley, while not bland, was still "nice" on the whole. A true engagement with faith should certainly make us kind, compassionate and forgiving, and I don't suggest we justify giving unnecessary offence through our own clutziness. But we should never feel obliged to be bland-nice. There's a pressure (perhaps especially on the professional minister?) to be "nice" to everyone, but it can lead you into woeful passive-aggressive behaviour, it's fake, and in any case it doesn't do justice to the fiery, vibrant, exciting character of the Kingdom of God. Goodness and Niceness are not the same thing at all.

Comments

[PamBG]

I completely agree with what you have said about the offensiveness of the Gospel and about the imperative to be 'nicy-nice' as a minister.

Unfortunately, I've also met both ministers and lay people who use the offensiveness of the gospel as an excuse to either be gratuitously offensive or to 'bible bash'.

I'd want to add the caveat that the gospel is offensive because 'good news for the poor' is bad news for the rich and 'good news for the weak' is bad news for those who wield power to their own benefit.

The genuine offensiveness of the gospel should not be an excuse for plain old-fashioned inconsideration or nastiness.

(I'm not assuming that you'd disagree, I sometimes have the impression that this needs to be said in so many words!)

[Tim]

I once read a comment by Walter Wangerin Jr.: 'The world is dying of terminal niceness!'

[Karin]

Agreed. the offensiveness of the gospel should not arise from insensitivity or a lack of respect but rather that God's way is not about looking after no.1 and never mind who suffers as a consequence.

[su]

sharp one Maggie, I can't watch the Vic of Dib, as I feel offended by the way ordinary people are portrayed. for a robust depicting of Priests try 'The God Father' trilogy, and 'Mystic River', both these thought provoking films deal with real evil (rather than mock humanity), and challenge our assumptions about people.