Rechristening Christian

They are also jerks, always think they’re right, judgmental, against everything, and stressful to be around. At least this seems to be popular opinion.

In a recent class I taught on Mormonism I wrote the label ‘Christian’ on a white board. I then asked students to think of what a typical person walking down the street would think of when they heard that word. I had a hard time keeping up with the derogatory terms that were suggested. The white board filled up quickly.

Since the class was on Mormonism, I then asked them to follow the same exercise with the word ‘Mormon’. The board was filled with sayings like ‘family-oriented’, ‘good people’, and ‘care for each other’.

It’s time that those of us who follow Jesus begin to ask ourselves how our most popular spiritual self-designation—“Christian”—has come to carry more negative connotations than most four letters words. What’s more, we need to ask ourselves if we are communicating well by using a term that is bloated with ill will. And perhaps controversially, we need to consider whether or not we need to begin using new terms in response to questions like “What religion are you?”

How Did We Get Here?

During the first three centuries of church history, ‘Christian’ had negative implications. Followers of Jesus were often a persecuted minority. If someone in the first or second century was asked what they thought of when they heard the term ‘Christian’, they may have responded with words such as ‘atheist’ (because they didn’t worship pagan gods), ‘cannibals’ (due to the communion ritual allegedly involving consumption of body and blood), or even ‘incestuous’ (don’t forget that talk of loving brothers and sisters).

For these followers of the Way, the term ‘Christian’ provoked questions. “Are you really atheists”? “Do you really eat the body and blood of the One you claim died and rose again?” In this era, ‘Christian’ resulted in dialog, debate, and discussion. Why is it that today it provokes division, dissension, and disputes?

It would be convenient to blame the current notoriety of the term ‘Christian’ on misunderstandings of popular culture, or some such reason. But this would only result in the temporary ease of our conscience. We need to start asking hard questions and giving honest answers in regard to why the term ‘Christian’ is so negative.

When we do this, I think we’ll discover answers such as:

Many associate ‘Christian’ with abuses of power.
Many associate ‘Christian’ with past hurts.
Many associate ‘Christian’ with politics.
Many associate ‘Christian’ with being judgmental, hypocrisy, and arrogance.

Renewing or Rediscovering?

I think that followers of Jesus have two main options when discerning the way forward. The first is to try and renew the understanding that people have of the word ‘Christian’. However, I think the possibility of changing the meaning of this word in popular culture is very unlikely, and would take decades even if successful.

I think a better way forward is to rediscover new ways of communicating our spiritual beliefs and practices. If we want to use language appropriately, it makes sense that we will not use words that will be misunderstood. So if someone asks me what religion I am, I’m not going to use a word that means something contrary to what I believe. Because of this, I’ve often stopped telling people that I’m a Christian. Don’t get me wrong, I still hold to the core beliefs and practices of the Christian faith. I simply desire to communicate this in a more productive manner.

New Terms

In this regard, it’s worth thinking through what replacement terms might be used. A favorite of the early church appears to have been the “Way” (Acts 9:2). Others, such as Bill Dahl, have come up with helpful labels, such as Questians. I often use the term “Jesus-follower”. Below I share some reasons why.

It centers on Jesus.
It implies action.
It raises questions rather than answers.
It encourages further understanding and exploration.
It points others to Someone beyond myself to look to.
It suggests a journey rather than a destination.
It requires a dynamic, rather than static, context.
It agrees that there is room, if not a need, for A New Kind of ~~Christian~~ Follower.
It doesn’t have historical baggage, and unlike a more popular term, is less likely to cause angst and heart burn.
It fulfills what Jesus himself asked of people time and time and time and time and—well you get the point—again.
It is a conversation starter rather than stopper.
It exhorts relationship, interaction, and partnership.

At the end of the day, you need to decide for yourself what you think is best—whether keeping ‘Christian’ or using some other term. But I’d like to leave you with a few questions to ponder.

Is your decision to use the word ‘Christian’ something that you feel is biblically mandated, or a personal preference?
Does the term ‘Christian’ communicate or mis-communicate your spiritual beliefs and practices?

If you were going to use another term to describe your spirituality, what would it be?

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