In or Out

Århus Café Church has been growing steadily since our beginnings 6-7 years ago. People I meet often ask me how the church is going, and I tell them my version of the story: things are going GREAT; we’ve just had our first baptism, we finally have an employed ‘pastor’ who I’m sure will be the perfect match, people are committed, and attendance is still growing. But then comes another question: how many of these people are “from the outside”? And I usually cringe at the question. For even though it is asked by supporters and critics alike, it unsubtly reveals an understanding that if we don’t attract the really lost (the heathens, if you will), then what is the point? This is missing the point.

Of course we want to grow as a church and help people everywhere to meet Jesus and experience his love. People who have never done so deserve the chance. And we do, in fact, work with a target group, as most (smaller, at least) churches should. I’m not talking about proselytizing, either – that was the way of a now bygone era.

The point is that defining Christians, or any people, as “in or out” is flawed, at best, or downright rude. Whether you have a previous Christian connection is not necessarily the deciding factor in your journey with Jesus right now. Sowing the seeds and harvesting was never reserved for the same person or church. People are meeting God in Århus Café Church. They may have Christian parents, or they may not. We don’t ask. We just try to be a force of good in this city and lead people to become followers of Christ.

Doing church should not be about counting sheep – even less about discerning between black and white sheep.

A Rather Diminished Joy of Flying

Starring:

• Norwegian Air Shuttle
• Dubrovnik Airline
• An old MD-80
• Oslo Airport
• Avinor (Norwegian Air Traffic Control and operator of OSL)

It is yesterday evening the 22nd. I’m on Norwegian flight DY928 from Oslo (OSL) to Copenhagen (CPH), scheduled to leave at 1750 hours. The weather has been splendid all day in Norway, so I’m looking forward to the view (free seating secures me 3A) on the 1 hour hop down to Denmark. Usually a simple trip, but not today.

After the sound of “boarding complete” we wait for the plane to leave the gate, but in vain. Instead the crew begin discussing something fervently, and after a while ask for a certain person on the PA system. He’s not there, and after yet a while they embark on roll call not unlike those in elementary school. This does not satisfy them either, so they tell us there is one person too many on the plane and they need to see everybody’s ID again and cross-check with the passenger manifest. Free seating sure paid off here.

Neither plane nor crew is actually from Norwegian, but from Dubrovnik Airline of Croatia. They are smiling, but not very professional.

Finally, at around 6:30 they find the problem – there was no terrorist or stowaway on board. A computer error had given them a completely wrong manifest. The crew is quick to point out that the fault lies at Oslo Airport, not at Norwegian or Dubrovnik. Fair enough.

At this point, we have been in the plane (no air-con) at the gate for an hour and everybody is getting impatient. But alas, Air Traffic Control cannot give us a time slot for take-off for yet another hour. Now the thing you should know about Oslo Airport is that it’s not exactly the busiest place on earth. While time slot delays are quite common at, say, Heathrow, they shouldn’t occur here.

We finally take off, shortly before 8 p.m., more than two hours late. It is not until the captain’s address at cruising altitude we get the real explanation for the delay: lack of staff at Air Traffic Control (Avinor).

This is hardly the first time Avinor have caused trouble, and fairly often there have been reports of disruptions in air traffic over Norway. It is beyond me that one of the richest democracies in world can have such shabby aviation infrastructure. Someone needs to get their priorities straight.

An hour later we land at CPH, and after visiting Starbucks and Burger King I catch the last train for Århus, arriving at my home at 1:30 a.m. Still quicker than the ferry would have been, but not quite as fun as hoped for.

What Did Jesus Do?

In the 90’s, the phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” (WWJD) became a popular sentiment among Christians, expressing the desire to live a life in accord to God’s will. A noble cause indeed.

But when it comes to theology, asking the same question has led to different results in different matters. Consider these examples:

Seventh-day Adventists teach that Jesus keeping Saturday as Sabbath is a powerful indicator that Christians today should also honour the holy day of rest (Mark 2:27). Most other Christians counter that the Sabbath was a Jewish institution and Jesus was adhering to his tradition, not setting a specific example.

On the other hand, Seventh-Day Adventists promote a vegetarian diet and total abstinence from alcohol on other grounds. The fact that Jesus did not only partake in these himself, but also provided for others (Fish: John 21:9-12; Lamb: Luke 22,12-15; Wine: John 2:1-10) seems to matter little.

So who is right? I am no theologian, but think perhaps asking “what did Jesus do” is a flawed way of making conclusions. I am a Seventh-day Adventist, and personally I share the former teaching but not necessarily the latter.

The Wedding Season is Over

Romance is abundant in summer. At least for other people. As has come to be standard procedure, I have experienced several weddings the past few months.

The main features this year were Maria + Mads (pictures) and Line + Niels (pictures). Congratulations to the happy couples.

Additionally, I have been paid to play for the reception at two instances, plus at church for yet another. Worthwhile endeavors, indeed.

But although it has been fun (and somewhat profitable), it is also with a sigh of relief that I can now declare the wedding season of 2007 over. It’s back to normal now.