Author: matt b redmond

The Tyranny of Cool

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It was probably in 2003 or 32004 while I was doing youth ministry in Augusta, GA. that I first talked of “the tyranny of cool.” Off the cuff, I was probably thinking in terms of hyperbole. I wanted to use language  that would convey the destructive quest of seeking to be cool. Freedom was the goal. Being a teenager is hard and they needed to hear they don’t need to make it harder by worrying about how cool they are. Or how cool everyone else thinks they are.

They were teenagers.

But in the evangelical world in which I swim, the same is true for adults. Like adolescents pining for attention and jockeying for position, young adults, mostly men – many of them pastors – take their message of what is cool public.

The tyranny of cool shames those who would not consult the experts on how to dress cool. By looking down on them. Indeed, even we Christians find it easy to say there is no greek or hebrew but cannot articulate “there are no crocs or toms.”

The tyranny of cool is a totalitarian regime dictating the movements and thoughts of all who live under its thumb. The church should be a sanctuary for all who long for freedom. But it’s not always. It is far too often another outpost of the gospel of cool which trades the robe of Christ’s righteousness by which we are justified for the threadbare of what is acceptable.

Every tyrannical regime has a propaganda machine bent on pushing all who would resist its will into conforming. Novelty, humor, being above it all and high walls enforcing the boundaries of celebrity are weapons in this authoritarian militaristic government. They have wielded our digital world with brand-named ferocity.

For years I sought to smuggle teenagers out through painful means. (Often those daring enough would be picked off by enemy snipers.) But who will set the adults free? Who will free them? Pastors? But the pastors now are hemmed in…in the name of being relevant.

We can’t even claim our first parent’s sin. They wanted to be like God. We just wanna be cool.

Tuesday’s 10: Possible New Names for Blog

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I’ve gotta rename this blog. I need to. I want to. I just don’t know with what. But I have a few ideas. Feel free to vote on any of these following ten possible names:

1. Redmond’s Pub/Redmond’s Public House (Get it? Redmond? Irish name before “pub…”?)

2. Echoes and Stars (My favorite post yet.)

3. The Pint and Pipe (Too edgy?)

4. The Rock and The Hard Place (Never a comfortable place to be…)

5. An Ordinary Place (Too obvious?)

6. No Man’s Land (For those who do not fit.)

7. The Bluff (I live in Bluff Park.)

8. Bacon and Bits (Recommended by a friend.)

9. What You’re Already Thinking (Often a post seems to resonate with dozens who say this was the case.)

10. The Bates Motel (Using my middle name…I know, why would my parents use “Motel” for a middle name?)

"Has Mission Become Our Idol?" (Updated)

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Skye Jethani has written what I believe to be one of the most important articles I have read in a long time. He finishes Has Mission Become Our Idol? with these words…

If a pastor’s sense of worth is linked to the impact of his or her ministry, guess what believers under that pastor’s care are told is most important? And so a new generation of people who believe their value is linked to their accomplishments is birthed. If the cycle continues long enough an institutional memory is created in which the value of achievement for God is no longer questioned. Leaders may be burning out at a rate of 1,500 per month, young people may be riddled with anxiety, and divorce rates in the church may be rising and families falling apart, but no one stops. No one asks whether this is really what God intended the Christian life to be. No one asks, at least out loud, because that might slow things down. Remember, the work must go on. Impact, man!

I am almost cried from sheer joy to see these words. Why? Because I have been asking these questions and out loud. I have asked, “Why is Paul so silent on evangelism?” I have expressed some of these concerns in my criticism of the criticism of the American Dream. I have wondered about the word/idea of “missional” itself? And I have been asking for over a year, “Is there a God of the mundane?” And hopefully my book (coming soon?) will be louder yet.

Many of us are asking these kinds of questions but in our celebrity-pastor driven church-culture where missional is the justification for all other behavior, it is almost impossible to be heard above the din.

I am thankful Skye Jethani is able to ask such a question with the volume needed and a skill which transcends my own.

Update: Part two is now up in which he points out that…

…the prescribed solution I hear in many ministry settings is to transform people from consumer Christians into activist Christians.

Brilliant analysis.

Part of the Story

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My daughter was “reading” through our copy of The Jesus Storybook Bible stopping every so often and asking me a question. When she got to the end, she saw the words, “To be continued…” and was confused. She had seen the words in other books and knew it meant there were books where the story continued. Was there another Bible with more Bible stories? She told me she had hoped there were more Bible stories.

She was pretty disappointed when I told her the Bible was God’s story of all he has done to save us and there is only one Bible. But I then explained “To be continued…” means God is still writing his story of all he is doing.

“And you are part of this story.”

Her eyes lit up and a smile emerged from the confusion.

“Your growing belief and love for Jesus is part of the story that God will tell for all eternity…You know how we have talked about heaven and being with Jesus forever?…Well, there will be another book and your story of all God has done in you and through you will be in that book…You will be featured in that book.

“Really?! Coooool.”

It is cool.

Possible Changes for the Blog

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So, I’ve been thinking about making a few changes to the blog, I’d love to know what you all think about some of them. However, you need to know that any suggestions made may be just rejected outright. 😉

1. Name Change. A little pretentious? Especially for those who have no familiarity with the language.

2. Number of Posts. Instead of one post per day, I may actually start posting throughout the day. This means I may post more. Maybe. Tuesday’s Ten and Thursday’s Random Thoughts will remain. Settle down.

3. Politics. I’d like to have some civil talks about political and social issues. I may use Fridays for this. I know this may be controversial. But my hope would be to get people thinking. I was a political science major in college for a time and still love the subject. One way to approach this may be to approach it answer as to why I am a conservative. Just short posts on various issues.

4. My Book. I know I have not talked much about it lately. It is all still in the editorial process. But I am afraid. I’m afraid my blog will become a marketing platform for the book. I don’t want it to.

5. What’s Missing? Anything you would like to see me discuss? Any subject? Movement? Idea?

Thursday’s Random Thoughts

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1. In the past couple of weeks I’ve noticed something interesting. My blog is getting lots of hits from Germany and Russia. Though I am sure this is totally unrelated, I’m reading a book on communism and one on fascism.

2. Question: can you publicly rebuke someone for publicly rebuking a public statement?

3. My desire to write about bacon on Thursdays is pavlovian.

4. Looked at how much it cost to go see Adele in the ATL. Whoa.

5. My wife keeps getting better looking. Me? Not so much.

6. My son refuses to believe that Superman would not suck his thumb. Great, another lawyer. (Wink at my friend, Anita.)

7. “Missional” can be a helpful word as long as we don’t use it as a hammer against critics or a hedge against criticisms.

8. So, I’m actually thinking about buying a gun and learning to hunt. But it has to be a pretty gun.

9. When my wife forgets to buy bacon, it puts stress on our marriage. And our lunch.

10. Wait. Do you need a concealed carry permit if you get a belt with dual holsters and a couple of colt revolvers?

Responding to the Defense of Mark Driscoll’s Call to Ridicule Effeminate Men

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(Update: Driscoll responds to it all. Though there is no apology, he does admit it was “flippant” and thanks his critics for their wisdom.)

(Update 2: I’ve now read over this twice and I am still struck by the lack of apology here. No only that but as someone else pointed out, you should just apologize, not plug a new book you have coming out. When my son hits my other son, we make him actually say, “I’m sorry for hitting you.” We want to instill that habit of acknowledging the wrong and the hurt. This may be the crappiest apology ever.)
(Update 3: A friend pointed me to this list. 4, 6 and 7 are notable.)

(My first post on this issue is here.)

While I am not surprised there are some who would defend Mark Driscoll’s call on facebook to ridicule effeminate men. I am surprised by the way he is defended and the veritable silence from the big-time evangelical neo-calvinist bloggers…those in my tribe. The post, now gone, happened five days ago and neither Challies nor any of The Gospel Coalition blogs have addressed it. (Of course they have also not commented on the now public accusations against C.J. Mahaney and SGM.)

So the defenses keep coming and the more they come, the hollower they sound. The following are some of the defenses of Driscoll and his invitation for you and others, the world over, to ridicule men with feminine qualities.

1. “Mark was just trying to use humor to point out what we already know.” When I was in High School a friend of mine told me how frustrated he would get when people would say something unkind and then follow it up with “just kidding.” I’ve never forgotten it. It’s true, we use the “jk” to make up for the fact that we might have just said something hurtful, painful or cruel. Explain to me why this defense of his behavior works again? If I make fun of overweight people and it’s funny, do I get a pass? Similar to this is the “we need to lighten up” argument. How about this for answer – “No. I will not lighten up.” We, as pastors, should not be ridiculing a group a people. We should not be asking others to do it along with us. And we should be swift to want to fight for them with all the belief in grace we can muster.

2. “His critics already don’t like his theology and were just looking for a reason to pounce.” This may be true. But it is just as likely that the defenders share his theology and therefore will not listen or take seriously his critics because of their theology. This is a ridiculous defense. Shouldn’t we care what those who think differently think about our character? Yes, many of his critics hate our Complementarianism. Shouldn’t we adorn that conviction with kindness instead of what looks like bullying? Yes, you heard me right, I am a complementarian and yet still appalled by Driscoll’s callousness. Does our desire to be missional not spill over into how we treat others…say effeminate men?

3. “Calling him a ‘bully’ is overdone.”  At first I thought so. But I think Rachel Held Evans is right in saying this is bullying. Imagine this was not taking place on facebook but in another social arena…say a lunchroom or the locker room. Or the hallway at school. Who would be the one saying this kind of thing? Would it be the leader of Young Life? Possibly. But doubt it. More likely it’s the bully, insecure and wanting all those weaker than him to be the same. OK, so you think he is not being a bully, fine. What is a bully then? What does a bully do? What is it that makes a bully? What if your son was effeminate?

4. “Nobody’s Perfect.” This is the “mercy for me and mine and judgement for everyone else” defense. No one really thinks this is a good excuse in response to a pastor openly ridiculing and then inviting his fans and followers to do the same. It’s just a lame attempt to silence critics instead of actually engaging what he actually did and naming it. The nobody’s perfect defense silences the critics of leaders and preachers who are often (and rightly so) teaching so as to correct those who need correction. What if those in the pew all started saying, “Nobody is perfect” when being instructed. Actually the nobody is perfect defense should tell us something. When we do not feel the need to apologize after ridiculing others, we actually admit we do not believe this. The fact that nobody is perfect should make it easier to apologize and ask for forgiveness.

5. “Paul seemed to be concerned about it, shouldn’t we be concerned about the fact that men have feminine qualities?” Maybe. It’s debatable. But that is not why so many of us are repulsed. We are repulsed because this is the worst way to discuss any issue. There is no way a reasonable person could look at what he said and assume concern for effeminate men, worship leaders among them or the church at large.

6. “The criticism of Mark Driscoll is slanderous gossip.” So, let me get this straight. A high-profile pastor with over 112,000 followers on facebook invites those followers to ridicule effeminate worship leaders – and calling him to account for it is slander and gossip? Slander has to do with making false allegations in order to harm someone’s reputation. And once something is put on facebook and others are asked to comment, the critical comments are not gossip, even if they are now on blogs or news-sites.

7. The Silence.  Am I the only one who thinks it is weird that nothing is being said on all the huge christian blogs about this. Nothing in support. Nothing of rebuke. Just silence. Nothing on Challies. Nothing on TGC. Nothing from the T4G guys. Nothing from World magazine or Christianity Today. Maybe nothing should be said. Maybe something will be said at a later date. But, the silence is strange.

All of these defenses have the distinct aroma of fear around them. Are we afraid of calling to account those whom we before had put so much stock in? Is it because we will be let down if we admit to ourselves that we invested too much into the cult of personality? Is it because we put far too much faith in the celebrity pastors and not enough in the gospel itself? And if we let go of our ill-placed faith, we have too little left?

Tuesday’s 10: Favorite Foods

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Limiting my favorite foods to 10 would be stupid hard. So that is not what this is. These are 10 foods that would always be at the top.

1. Buffalo Wings. I discovered these babies back in the summer of 1991 while I was living in Buffalo for the summer. They cheap, hot and everywhere. I never not want them. I’m trying to think back over the years and remember if I’ve ever had some bad ones. Nope.

2. Shrimp. I have never eaten shrimp cooked in any fashion and thought it was not royally good. On my last vacation I had shrimp 7 different ways.

3. Bacon. Maybe this should be number 1. Sorry bacon, momentary lapse of reason.

4. Hot Dogs. I eat them all the time and have been eating them all the time since I was a kid. The ones I eat now are almost fat free. But I add stuff to help ’em out. See Number 3.

5. Pizza. I think people who do not like pizza are communists. Or fascists. Either way, they should be looked at sideways and you should worry about your belongings. The best pizza around me is Café Luigi in Riverchase.

6. Reuben Sandwich. A good Reuben is worth whatever it costs. One of my favorites is the Russell Street Reuben from McGurk’s in the STL.

7. Cheeseburger. Who doesn’t like these besides communists and fascists? Add bacon and it becomes an eschatological experience. Around these parts Mugshots has the best.

8. Bar-B-Que. Wait. maybe this should be number 1. You know how rice is a called a “staple” for Asians? Well, for the Redmonds, this is our staple. I grew up eating this all the time. Pork shoulder, Brisket, Ribs, Sausage, Chicken, Turkey, Bacon. You name it, I think if you smoke it and put some BBQ sauce on it, it’s dinner. Or lunch. Or breakfast for that matter. I also smoke my own.

9. Asian. Speaking of Asians. I love your food. At least the americanized form of it. Favorites? Pad Thai. Mongolian Beef. Lo Mein. Teriyaki Beef. Satay. Laab. Sushi. Fried Rice. Crab Rangoon. Egg Rolls. Spring Rolls.

10. Gyro. I can remember when I was in college and I realized not everyone grew up eating Greek food. I’m Irish…and Native American. But Birmingham is rife with Greek places. Some have white table cloths and some are dives that stay open all night. A Gyro Wrap from The Purple Onion is about as good as it gets. My body often craves shaved meat from a spinning pole.

Aren’t We the Ones Who Should Be for Fighting for Them?

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(Update: Driscoll responds to it all. Though there is no apology, he does admit it was “flippant” and thanks his critics for their wisdom.)

(Update 2: I’ve now read over this twice and I am still struck by the lack of apology here. No only that but as someone else pointed out, you should just apologize, not plug a new book you have coming out. When my son hits my other son, we make him actually say, “I’m sorry for hitting you.” We want to instill that habit of acknowledging the wrong and the hurt. This may be the crappiest apology ever.)

(Update 3: A friend pointed me to this list. 4, 6 and 7 are notable.)

A few days ago, Mark Driscoll posted the following to his facebook page:

Listen. I am politically and theologically more conservative than you. I’ve got more albums by the Clash and Springsteen than you and I’m a decent athlete. I’m married with three kids. And I do not recall ever being called effeminate. This is not “personal”. (Update: The reason I point these things out is so you will understand that this is not personal. Although just like Jared Wilson, I am not handy around the house. Also, my favorite novelist is Jane Austen, my favorite album of the year is Adele’s 21 and I do not own a gun…yet. But in Jr High I was more than a few times called ‘faggot’ with meaning. I’m not overly masculine. It’s a damned if you and damned if you don’t issue. If you say you are effeminate, you are taking it personally. If you say you are not, then you still get criticized for pointing out you are not.)

But when Mark Driscoll asked others on facebook to join in his ridicule of “effeminate anatomically male” men who lead worship in churches I was amazed.

How is this possible? How is it possible a pastor can do such a thing and none of his peers publicly call him to account for his actions but instead defend him?

What group of people would a pastor like Driscoll have to make fun of before we in the conservative theological tribe said, “enough”?

What have we become when this is acceptable to anyone within the church? This kind of behavior should be the most abhorrent of all among pastors. The thematic ethic of how we deal with others throughout the New Testament is love for one another. We are told they will know we are followers of Jesus because we love one another. This is not some conservative/liberal issue. This is simple kindness.

We have now gotten to the point where a pastor has to sleep with someone, steal something or kill someone to be publicly called to account. As long as his doctrine accords with our own we set up the pastoral version of what the police call the “blue wall.” We protect our own.

Is this what the celebrity pastor cult of personality has wrought? An untouchability when it comes to inciting young men the world over to attack effeminate men. 


Aren’t we the ones who should be for fighting for them? 

Thursday’s Random Thoughts

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1. Saw Super 8 last night. Great movie and not just because the space ship looks like the stage from U2 360.

2. Went to a restaurant last night where they were doing karaoke. I’m convinced karaoke is symbolic of all that is wrong with our culture.

3. The reason we have juries in this country is because facebook verdicts will never do.

4. So on Wednesday I read an article citing a lengthy study which saying there is no definite link between salt consumption and heart disease. I also read an article saying that China’s use of coal has cooled the earth. Next I’ll read there is no link between my roll-on deodorant and breast cancer.

5. I’d pay extra for a teenager-free movie theater.

6. On the entertainment spectrum of cultural value, karaoke is the polar opposite of Opera.

7. I think most people hold their position on various issues (theological, political, social, etc) based on emotions rather any study of the facts. Thus, our bumper sticker culture. Nobody stops and thinks.

8. Mercy for me and justice for everyone else.

9. I feel like I lose brain cells every time I have to watch the previews before a movie. A robot boxing movie? Really?

10. Smoked ribs for the first time on July 4th. Waiting for study telling me what I already know – ribs are good for me.