Hugging is a familial activity, not an ecclesiastical one. Families are not churches. In my lecture I put it graphically: “We should not hug in church and we should not preach in the bed!” I was satisfied that I had discovered a solid Reformed rationale for my opposition to ecclesiastical hugging.(HT: Sean Michael Lucas)
Recently, though, I have been re-thinking my views about hugging. For one thing, I have become a public hugger of sorts, and I sense an obligation to bring my theology in line with my practice. But the issue goes deeper. In a lecture on Kuyper that I gave a few months ago at Princeton Seminary, I talked about the ways in which the church might actually have to take on some familial functions in our present situation. Kuyper was presupposing a society in the 19th century Netherlands where family units were fairly stable. Today families are in trouble. Some children regularly move back and forth between different family configurations. Many men and women function as single parents. “Dysfunctional” has become a common adjective applied to family life.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Hugging in Church
Richard Mouw has written a thoughtful essay on the interesting topic of hugging in church. He writes:
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4 comments:
It's so nice for me to have found this blog of yours, it's so interesting. I sure hope and wish that you take courage enough to pay me a visit in my PALAVROSSAVRVS REX!, and plus get some surprise. My blog is also so cool! Don't think for a minute that my invitation is spam and I'm a spammer. I'm only searching for a public that may like or love what I write.
Feel free off course to comment as you wish and remember: don't take it wrong, don't think that this visitation I make is a matter of more audiences for my own blogg. No. It's a matter of making universal, realy universal, all this question of bloggs, all the essential causes that bring us all together by visiting and loving one another.
You must not feel obliged to come and visit me. An invitation is not an intimation. Also know that if you click on one of my ads I'm promised to earn a couple of cents for that: I would feel happy and rewarded (because I realy need it!!!) if you did click it, but once again you're totaly free to do what ever you want. I, for instance, choose immediatly to click on one of your ads, in case you have them. To do so or not, that's the whole beauty of it all, however, blogocitizens must unite also by clicking-helping eachother when we know cybermegacorporations profit from our own selfishness regarding to that simple click.
About this I must say, by my own experience, that no one realy cares (maybe a few) about this apeal I make, still I believe in my Work and Dreams and thus I'll keep on apealing and searching so strong is my will.
I think it's to UNITE MANKIND that we became bloggers! Don't see language as an obstacle but as a challenge (though you can use the translater BabelFish at the bottom of my page!) and think for a minute if I and the rest of the world are not expecting something like a broad cumplicity. Remenber that pictures talk also. Open your heart and come along!!!!!
Uh ... OK.
Anyway, Z, what do you think about "cuddling" in church? As in Jana Myers, Stein, Abby N and Slimes!! Oh man, there's a blast from the past!
whatever happened to greeting with a holy kiss? (lol)
The fact that someone actually said "we should not hug in church" and others found it valid enough to repeat is possibly the most stupid spiritual commentary that i have ever heard. You are right, there is far too much brotherly love going on in church, and it should be stopped immediatly. That is why people are flooding in the doors. They will know we are Christians by our right opinions? no. i didn't think so. look, i understand that he has said that he reconsidered is stance, but that fact that it was ever even considered makes any further commentary nul and void. if he were standing before me, i would give him a hug right now. and not even one of those three pats on the back "i'm not gay" hugs.
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