I few years ago, I helped a friend put up a small garage in his backyard. We dug a foundation, laid the blocks and framed in the structure. It took us a full weekend, but we basked in our accomplishment when we were done.
A couple of years later, he happened to tell me that a beautiful tree in his back yard was dying. The tree was a good 10 feet from the garage, but we inadvertently ripped up a chunk of roots when we dug the garage’s foundation, and it was now unable to flourish.
Being Radical
The lesson learned from that dying tree resembles what I’ve learned observing others pursue “being radical.” In the last few years, Evangelical Christianity has scored bestselling books under the titles Radical, Crazy Love and Weird. All three of these books make a valiant effort to lay down a course for maximizing faith in Christ.
The overall sentiment for combining radicalism and faith has been around for a while in modern evangelicalism, as reflected in sayings such as being “on fire” or living “sold out.” The most memorable phrase I’ve heard was at a young adult’s conference called “Planet Shakers,” which I couldn’t help but think would make a perfect title for the next Transformers movie.
Radical Needs a Renovation
Initially, when I see someone get “radical,” it exhibits with incredibly individualistic fanfare: “I need to make an impact for God.” In my opinion, the surging interest in “radical” is related closely to our inner anxiety to reach our greatest potential. Radical Christianity often leverages that fragile spot in us to be personally significant in the world, finding fuel from those questions repeating in the prison of our minds: How do I prove I have something essential to offer? How am I going to make something of myself? How can I matter?
Being radical gets all intertwined with that eager searching, waiting, to be finally and triumphantly acknowledged for our unique impact in the world. Sure, the verbiage on the tip of our tongue is to “glorify God,” but that often is masking our real urgency. We want to outrun the unsettling horror that “I just might be ordinary.” This anxiety usually stirs up random “radical” activity, but eventually fizzles out into obligation. Our current notions of radical need a serious renovation.
Radical Displacement
My most concerning observation is that the phenomena of radical often creates displacement. There is something aggressive about what it does to the character necessary for living an incarnational life. Radical often focuses on being sent, but is destructive to being present, really present. Radical can act like a backhoe that digs up the maturation of roots, avoiding the terror of staying put.
Our imaginations for fixing injustice fast forward us past inhabiting with people. We don’t have time for inconvenient availability and the complexity of vulnerability. Our heads are captive in spiritual cyberspace. Our furious trek to make an impact, champion a cause and do something for God become the perfect tornado that tears up our essential roots. Radical forms passionate people, but at an unsustainable cost.
