Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
— Ephesians 1:2
I saw a meme on Facebook the other day that said, “If Paul saw the church in America today, we would be getting a letter.” The letters, or epistles, that Paul wrote provide an insight into the beliefs and controversies of early Christianity. The Pauline Epistles are the thirteen books of the New Testament attributed to Paul the Apostle, although most scholars believe that Paul only wrote seven of the thirteen epistles attributed to him. Paul wrote to the Christian communities in Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colossae, and Thessalonica. Paul also wrote to three of his followers: Timothy in Ephesus, Titus in Crete, and Philemon in Colossae.
I think Paul would be appalled if he saw Christianity in America today. He would probably be appalled at most Christians in the world who have taken so much of his words in the epistles and twisted them to suit their own desires to condemn others and subjugate them to conform to their version of Christianity. He would be dismayed at the hatefulness that emanates from churches in America. He would be disappointed in how fractured Christianity is in America with its seemingly endless variety of Protestant denominations. The early churches that Paul wrote to were not uniformly following the teachings of Christ. They had adapted to local prejudices and practices in opposition to the universality of love and acceptance that Jesus had preached.
Paul wanted uniformity and universality in the church. He sought to encourage Christians to follow the teachings of Jesus, not of men who found various ways to exclude others. Each of the early churches had their own problems. The best example of this is in the two epistles to Corinth, in which he addresses the various problems with the local church, who were following the desires of men instead of those of Jesus. In the name of Christ, they were actually turning their backs on the teachings of Christ for their own gain, much like Christians in America today.
Paul stressed unity and acceptance by Christians. Specifically, in 1 Corinthians 13, often known as the love chapter, Paul describes the characteristics of true love. He says that love is not selfish or self-centered; it is kind, humble, forgiving, courteous, not easily angered, respectful, trusting, positive and hopeful. Love also gives us spiritual resilience and patience so that it willingly “endures all things” to obey and serve God. Paul points out that envy and competition create division, as was the case in the Corinthian church. Love is the great unifier. If Paul were to see the state of Christianity in America today, instead of being a great unifier, he would see an uncharitable, greedy, power-hungry, hateful, and discriminatory group of people who work more to exclude than to include others.
The importance of Paul’s writings should be invaluable to Christianity. Paul also took the Gospel message to the Gentile (non-Jewish) world, leaving instructions and inspiration that continue to change lives today. Paul wanted Christianity to be open to all people and to advocate for peace and loving relationships with one another. Some of Paul’s letters are controversial because they are taken out of context and are used by many Christians in America to exclude, not include, people from Christianity. For example when Paul discusses the harmful practice of pederasty (in 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy) or pagan orgies (Romans), teachings that are used to condemn LGBTQ+ people when they do not even address LGBTQ+ communities.
So, yes, I do believe if Paul saw the church in America today, evangelical leaders in America would be getting a letter. Too much of Christianity has strayed from the teachings of Christ and is being used as a bludgeon to oppress the less fortunate and those perceived as different instead of uplifting them. It is used to divide people instead of unite them. Since I moved to New England, the heart of Puritan beliefs that are used to oppress others, I’ve always found it interesting that those same denominations (Puritans, Pilgrims, etc.) that were once used to exclude and punish those who were not conforming to the desires of religious leaders are the most welcoming of modern Christian denominations, and those who were more open and accepting (Baptists) have become the most exclusionary and repressive of the denominations in America.
Joe
The Closet Professor 
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:05 am
Joe
I cannot speak for the situation in the USA but here the Church of England seems to be bitterly divided between the extreme evangelicals (we call them the “happy clappies”), the middle of the road and the Anglo-Catholics who are only a step or two from Rome.
A gay friend with Evangelical feelings, was evicted from his local church as soon as they discovered his gay side. They were pretty ruthless and so unChristian. He later took Holy Orders and was lucky to find a supportive bishop and a parish up north.
It’s deeply ironical because it is generally believed that 40% of Anglican clergy are gay!
Years ago I joined an Alpha course expecting to be debating the likes of Thomas Aquinas and whether one can enter heaven by faith alone and without good works (‘sola fide’). Small hope. It was run by pretty extreme evangelicals. We were asked “what sort of Service would you like?” My response: “High Mass with music by Byrd or Palestrina” did not go down well:)
None (apart from the instructor) had ever heard of Aquinas let alone sola fide, let alone Byrd or Palestrina. They were even taught that adult baptism was a necessary prerequisite to get into heaven. After I retorted that such beliefs hundreds of years back would have led them onto a large pile of firewood in the town square I was asked to leave! It was no good arguing with the instructor. God help them.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:41 am
I think one of the biggest problems is that those who would like to see the kind of changes that will bring Christianity back to Christ’s teachings and its roots are being driven away by those who are unyielding in their approach to impose their perverse and hate filled morality onto others. Those who might be able to make a difference are being driven away and those of us left to defend the faith, hope, love, charity, and acceptance of Christ’s teachings are a minority and get drowned out by the intolerance and hate within too many churches today. The bullies are always the loudest, and it’s something that Christ warned us about, which is why he took on the Pharisees and others who were not following God’s word.
December 3rd, 2023 at 6:53 pm
Well said. I don’t go to church and haven’t in years but do my daily readings and prayers, Catholic and/or Episcopalian. I was baptized Catholic but consider myself Episcopalian, even though I haven’t officially joined the church.
One reason I don’t go to church, besides being naturally introverted, is I don’t care to be around many of those who go to church on Sundays but the rest of the week live their lives in opposition to Christ’s teachings. You can call yourself anything but unless you live according to what you claim to believe you’re a liar and deceiving others. I consider most evangelical and conservative “Christians” to be in actuality anti-Christs. They oppose the teachings of Jesus and are ok with hurting others who don’t follow their views or look like them.
There are many today who are spiritual but not attached to any particular religion. Deism is something that has always intrigued me, and is a belief that some of our Founding Fathers were part of.
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:25 pm
As you know, I also don’t go to church. I don’t believe it’s a necessity. There is power in being with others, and while most New England churches are far more liberal than those in the South, I just find it difficult to go to church anymore. Like you, I’m an introvert. Maybe if I had someone to attend church with, I might go, but I’ve always felt uncomfortable going by myself. This is one of the reasons I write my Sunday devotionals. It’s my way of still studying the Bible and meditating on what it truly means to follow Christ.
December 4th, 2023 at 7:01 am
Rob T is entirely correct. A classic example is Putin. He attends the Orthodox Services and when not there saying his prayers he is busy seeking better ways to wage war against the poor Ukrainians, to oppress many minorities and to plot the downfall of his political enemies. Falling out of high windows seems to have given way to blowing up planes in mid-air.