Christ across America:

50 States, 50 Post-Modern Miracles

Every religion rides the tides of change. Swells of culture, intellect, and technology forever buffet the faithful. Even when this stirs greater freedom, the first reaction is fear. Defenders of doctrine rise up with indignation, demanding holy wars. The history of Christendom is rife with infamous examples.

Consider the Reformation. In 1520, less than three years after Martin Luther posted his 95 theses, Pope Leo X wrote his papal bull entitled Exsurge Domine (Arise, O Lord).With righteous fire he refuted the heretic, invoking the aid of Christ, then Peter, then Paul, finally crying out, “Let all the holy Church of God arise, and with the blessed apostles intercede with almighty God to purge the errors of his sheep, to banish all heresies from the lands of the faithful!” 

But no oppression could stem the tide. Blessed change continued until it humbled ecclesiastical power, coined scripture in the vernacular, and raised a grace-filled vision of equality among all believers.

Freedom of religion is a good thing, don’t you agree?

Look at our own era. 21^st century America is still the most influential “Christian” nation on earth, yet tsunamic waves of change are sweeping over us. This is more than an unmooring from mainline Protestant thought. Theologians and sociologists go beyond calling our era postmodern; it is post-Christian. Here are the central tenets forming the sea-change of this new “reformation.”

Obviously, this is not the mainstream, creedal faith that survived for 2,000 years in Christendom, whether Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Protestant. The repercussions are predictable. Defenders of doctrine are calling for confessional purity. They say we are adrift in a postmodern sea without a rudder. The hull won’t hold; leaks are springing!

R. Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, puts it this way. “The most basic contours of American culture have been radically altered. The…Judeo-Christian consensus of the last millennium has given way to a post-modern, post-Christian, post-Western cultural crisis which threatens the very heart of our culture. Clearly, there is a new narrative, a post-Christian narrative that is animating large portions of this society.”

Is this really post-Christian, or instead, Christianity with a new face? Will the Christian faith survive in the midst of this new deluge?

It is the purpose of this website to answer that question with a resounding “yes!” Despite the poison of materialism, America is still a deeply spiritual nation. The search for truth continues in the hearts and minds of countless people. And given our Christian backdrop, many will encounter the same question Jesus asked his disciples midway through his ministry: Who do you say that I am? Though they may answer this question in unorthodox ways, a beautiful thing occurs. A first-century Jewish carpenter and his teachings still inform the hearts and minds of Americans. 2,000 years later, his influence is as profound and varied as ever.

          Welcome to Christ across America! Through the following postings, you will hear an oral history of faith in America today. You will hear how Jesus of Nazareth still speaks to people from many walks of life.

          Why do I use the term “miracle” in this site’s subtitle? It goes back to something Jesus said, recorded in John, chapter six. Crowds were flocking around him, hoping he would reenact his miracle of feeding the five thousand. They wanted to partake of the free bread! But he said to them:

          “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you….”

          Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”

          Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him who he has sent.”

First and foremost, we are simply called to believe. This is the ultimate “work” of a human life, and it is certainly a miracle. Why? Because in the face of greed, war, genocide, starvation, addiction, depression, grief, and death, to believe in God at all is light in the darkness. To believe further—that this God sent a particular messenger, his own Son, to show us the light—is even more miraculous.

Welcome to Christ across America!