Crossless Christianity?

Last updated on: August 18, 2011 at 7:28 pm by Roger E. Olson

Crossless Christianity? 2011-08-18T19:28:54-05:00 Roger E. Olson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I’ve only been on this earth less than six full decades, but I have noticed a very obvious trend among American Christians. It isn’t Horton’s “Christless Christianity” so much as “crossless Christianity.” The vast majority of even mega-churches touched by New Thought talk about “Christ.” What’s increasingly absent is preaching, teaching and singing about the death of Jesus Christ–especially his bloody, sacrificial death on a Roman cross that offends our sophisticated sensibilities.

When was the last time you heard a good sermon (or any sermon) solely about the cross–especially one that actually used terms like “blood” and “agony” and “sacrifice” and “wrath?” (Don’t worry, dear followers, I still regard the main motive of the cross as God’s love, but we neglect wrath at our peril and the peril of the holistic gospel.)

Am I sounding like a fundamentalist? Well, they aren’t wrong about everything!

I should say right now that my pastor is teaching a series on the atonement on Wednesday evenings. That’s wonderful. But I would like to sing about the cross on Sunday mornings, too. And to hear powerful preaching about the blood of Jesus. I grew up with those and they are still part and parcel of my evangelical faith.

Some years ago the college where I taught built a beautiful new auditorium for chapels and concerts. There is a large blank space on the outside and some folks suggested it would be a good place to display a cross as a sign of our evangelical commitment. It never happened.

Mark Noll and David Bebbington identify four hallmarks of evangelicalism: biblicism, conversionism, crucicentrism and activism (missions and social transformation). Of those four, I’d say the one most threatened is crucicentrism.

Some years ago I organized an “old time hymn sing” at the college where I taught. Most of the music in chapels was “contemporary” (praise and worship songs). There was obviously a pent up demand for singing familiar (and singable) hymns and gospel songs, so I organized a once-monthly event and recruited colleagues to play instruments. Two of my dear colleagues who I love and respect refused to play their instruments to hymns and songs that include lyrics about the “blood.”

Why this trend over the past 50 years away from preaching and singing about the cross of Jesus? Why do we no longer sing “What can wash away my sin (nothing but the blood of Jesus)?” or “There is a fountain filled with blood” or “At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light”? Or at least similar hymns and songs about the cross?

I know, yes, evangelical churches do still occasionally sing songs (including some contemporary choruses) about the cross, but I notice that my ears really perk up whenever that happens because it’s so rare. I’m not picking on my church; I visit a lot of churches and it’s a trend across the board in evangelicalism.

What can explain this? Given the centrality of the cross and atonement in the New Testament and in evangelical tradition, the only explanation I can think of is accommodation to culture. We know talk about “the blood” is offensive to many people and maybe it is to us as well. It doesn’t fit very well with our shiny new sanctuaries and all the shiny new cars in the parking lots. We’re educated and upwardly mobile now. We’re affluent and sophisticated. The imagery of the cross just doesn’t sit very well with us.

Another possible reason for the dearth of language about the cross (especially blood, wrath of God, etc.) is that churches that consider themselves moderate and non-fundamentalist don’t want to do anything that smacks of fundamentalism. But I ask why give the rich New Testament and historical evangelical emphasis on the cross over to the fundamentalists? We are so often ruled by what we’re against or afraid of. We need to overcome that.

I would go so far as to say that crossless Christianity is not real Christianity. Or at least it is seriously defective, accommodated, negotiated, shallow Christianity. (Of course, most evangelical churches are not quite totally “crossless” yet, but my fear is they may be on that path.)

How I long for a good, meaty, offensive sermon on the blood of Jesus, the wrath of God against sin and wickedness, the cruelty of the cross and the blessing of the atonement. And how I long to sing songs about the cross, the blood, the atonement. Those sermons and songs were NOT (I apologize for shouting) just a fad or part of a sectarian movement; they were expressions of THE central truth of Christianity (alongside of and sandwiched between the incarnation and resurrection–two themes that get much more attention in evangelicalism than the cross!).

Uncategorized

Previous Post

February 3, 2011

About the atonement

Next Post

February 8, 2011 On a completely different note (about men's and women's health)

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Against Liberal Theology Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Four beasts rose from the sea—one like a lion with eagle's wings, one like a bear, one like a leopard, and a fourth terrifying beast. What did these represent?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Four kingdoms Four kings Four judgments Four ages