Kissing Christianity goodbye?

Joshua Harris and the "good news" of hell

Christianity Today's podcast series The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill is the story of the Seattle church that, well, quickly rose and then suddenly fell due to the temperament and ethical failures of its unconventional but charismatic pastor Mark Driscoll. 

The bonus episode "I Kissed Christianity Goodbye" covers the story of Joshua Harris, a former pastor with little connection to Driscoll, but who was a fellow leader in the same movement for a strict, patriarchal form of Christianity. Harris gained notoriety while very young by authoring the best-selling I Kissed Dating Goodbye.

When his mentors faced endless scandals, and after he heard from people who were hurt by his books, Harris re-evaluated his own beliefs and resigned from the pastorate. After a few years he renounced Christianity itself, or at least the form he once believed and taught. 

In the episode, host Mike Cosper, a Christian, interviews Harris. Around the 36:36 mark, Cosper suggests Harris had been teaching a lot more Law than Gospel. At 39:18 Harris says:

"I still do struggle with even the, what you describe as the Gospel over and against Law, there's still a part of me that's says, 'It's still good news that if you don't receive you go to hell forever. If that is at the very core of the message, does that justify the kind of manipulative controlling abusive behavior?'" 

Cosper replies that the podcast's purpose is to say, "It absolutely doesn't" and then shifts the conversation to the problems of evangelical celebrity culture.

But Harris may have just explained why he walked away from Christianity: the doctrine of "going to hell forever." That preaching it, and persuading others to believe it, was the underlying "manipulative, controlling, abusive behavior."

When Cosper says, "It absolutely doesn't," and moves on to the next topic, I wonder if he believes that it is indeed possible to preach eternal punishment without scarring one's relationship with God and with others, or if his own brand of Christianity doesn't believe in that conception of hell.

Many Christians don't believe in eternal punishment, although more conservative denominations have doctrines about it. There are disagreements over definitions in the original Biblical languages, including figures of speech and metaphorical meanings. (Disclosure, my own faith community, Unity, is separate from traditional Christianity and has no particular doctrines. But I've heard it said from Unity teachers that hell is a state of mind.)

Beyond hell, however, everything in the Bible is debatable in terms of translation accuracy and underlying intent or meaning. How often have I heard something like, "You must take this literally, but you don't have to take that literally." Or, "that requires historical context to understand, but this is universal." 

Even if a Biblical passage's meaning is clear to nearly all scholars and teachers, but it insults your very conscience, it's fair to question why the Bible should have authority over your life at all.

It's right for people like Harris to "throw out the baby with the bathwater" if that's indeed what he's done. If your faith took you places you had no intention of going, then making a clean break, creating distance, and starting one's spiritual journey over with a fresh set of eyes may be the healthiest thing to do.     

James Leroy Wilson writes from Nebraska. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter. If you enjoy his articles, subscribe and support. You may contact James for your writing, editing, and research needs: jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com. Permission to reprint is granted with attribution.

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