dEhiN's Blog

What do you do when you have two groups of people whom you care about, and who sit on the opposite sides of an issue? What about when they strongly believe that those who don’t believe as them are wrong (to put it mildly) or heretical (to put it strongly)?

I am speaking of an issue I’ve noticed in the Church – the body of Christ – over what I would consider our approach to faith. Specifically I am talking about a view that I would term an active approach to faith, and a view that I would term a passive approach to faith. The active approach goes by terms such as “Word-Faith”, “Name-it-and-claim-it”, and (seems to me) to be found in more the Charismatic movement. The passive approach is, in many aspects, the exact opposite of the active approach.

I am frustrated, hurt, saddened, and confused by this ‘faith divide’. For those of you who have experienced both sides of this divide, perhaps you’ve been like me, or still are like me. Now, I’m not confused by which approach to my own personal faith I should take – that is between God and I, and I’ve prayed many a time over it. I’m confused by how to bridge the gap, create reconciliation even, between these two seemingly opposing groups. I’m frustrated and saddened that this divide exists, not so much because we have different approaches to our faith, but because we are labeling those who take another approach, heretics. I’m hurt by the interactions I’ve had with those who don’t agree with me on faith issues.

I’m going to stop now, not because I want to, but more because I’m falling asleep and can barely write these sentences with correct grammar! But as God leads me, I would like to write some more on this topic, and perhaps even get into my own views and convictions.

PS. If you know what I’m referring to as the ‘faith divide’, feel free to share your own thoughts via the comments below.

DH