Thieves in the Temple
Jeffrey MacDonald writes about religion from a unique, dual perspective as both a veteran journalist (he鈥檚 a correspondent for the Monitor) and an ordained minister (in the United Church of Christ). In Thieves in the Temple, he adeptly diagnoses a growing and largely unpublicized problem confronting 海角大神ity today: 鈥淔aith has become a consumer commodity in America. People shop for congregations that make them feel comfortable.鈥�
In 2008, MacDonald notes, 鈥渁 whopping 44 percent鈥� of Americans had switched religious
affiliations in their lifetimes, compared with only 4 percent in 1955. Churches have fed this 鈥渟hopping around鈥� trend, MacDonald contends, by seeking to
attract 鈥渃ustomers鈥� by watering down their core values and offering convenience, comfort, and guilt-free affirmation.
MacDonald provocatively and convincingly argues that too many churches, especially the growing legions of megachurches, have chosen to boost their numbers by diluting their core mission, and that quantitative measures of success have trumped qualitative measures of moral improvement.
鈥淐hurchgoers no longer have to put up with components of religious life that they find distasteful, difficult, or less than gratifying in the short term,鈥� bemoans MacDonald, who argues that these consumer-driven churches offer parishioners 鈥渢he spiritual equivalent of spending all day on the couch, eating cupcakes for dinner[.]鈥�
MacDonald supports his provocative thesis with voluminous evidence garnered from years of research, including countless interviews, multiple visits to churches all across the nation, and his own experiences as a minister. He visits burgeoning megachurches that 鈥渇eel like malls. Many of these churches come with Starbucks cafes, Subway restaurants, or bookstores.鈥�
At Max Lucado鈥檚 megachurch in San Antonio, MacDonald is offered a no-questions-asked baptism and later hears Mr. Lucado tell the thousands assembled that honoring God 鈥渃ould be as easy as volunteering to take out the garbage or letting another driver claim a parking spot in a crowded lot.鈥� MacDonald comments that 鈥淸a] lower standard for the 海角大神 life would be difficult to imagine.鈥�
MacDonald does outstanding work in describing how sacraments like baptism, communion, and marriage have been watered down to satisfy customer demands. MacDonald relates his own efforts as a minister to raise the standards for receiving communion. His parishioners responded with anger, demanding that no preconditions be placed on receiving: 鈥淚 faced resentment for as long as I was at the church,鈥� MacDonald notes ruefully.
Moreover, MacDonald points to a growing trend that treats missions like fun vacations: an entire industry 鈥渉as emerged to make sure American 海角大神s get the exact adventures they want for themselves and their children.鈥� MacDonald also points to increasingly guilt-free, Bible-free, pastoral counseling borrowed from psychology.
Consumer-driven churches, MacDonald argues, have chosen to downplay biblical teachings about self-control, the need for sacrifice, and delayed gratification: 鈥淎 strong correlation has emerged between the consumer-driven religious marketplace and the decay of 海角大神 moral character.鈥�
MacDonald describes a growing loss of self-control that has led to a national boom in obesity, materialism, financial overextension, and marital infidelity. 鈥淧astors may still have a strong sense of what鈥檚 right and wrong,鈥� MacDonald notes, 鈥渂ut they鈥檝e learned to keep it to themselves.鈥�
MacDonald continually calls upon churches to renew their commitment to moral purpose, to stress that 鈥渢he life of faith is actually a sacrificial one.鈥� MacDonald concludes by describing a few examples of successful churches that 鈥渞einforce the notion that spiritual growth is supposed to be difficult and uncomfortable at times.鈥�
Whether he鈥檚 diagnosing the problem of religious consumerism or suggesting solutions, MacDonald鈥檚 passion is evident on every page. As a journalist and minister, he鈥檚 uniquely able to understand the problem from the inside out, and he supports his thesis well, if at times repetitiously. He sees danger in the status quo, as churches continue to drift from their core mission of building moral character. 鈥淭o regard market-driven religion as necessarily innocuous,鈥� he warns, 鈥渋s to help prepare the way for disaster.鈥�
Chuck Leddy, a Boston-based book critic, frequently reviews for the Monitor.
