I'm not sure I'll be the best blogger. I’m not sure I'll do it often. I do love to write down what's going on but I tend to remember things more by sight. I'm postive you'll be seeing many pictures along the way :). A thought I've wanted to develop and put into words is a perfect place to begin my first blog post.... I'll title it "Radical Signifiers".
When you think of a boy what do you think about? A girl? A nurse? A science professor? How about a Buddhist? Or a Muslim? A Hindu? A Jew? A Catholic? What about a Christian?
In my mind a boy has short hair and can wear basketball shorts every day of his life if he'd like. A girl- swings in her tire swing with long piggy tails and her best sun dress. A nurse- walks through her day in scrubs, white tennis shoes and a stethoscope around her neck. A farmer- has on blue jean overalls and a big floppy sun hat which shields him while working in the heat of the day. A science professor- chooses to wear a white lab coat over his perfectly ironed out button up shirt; round-eyed glasses also constitute his wardrobe- Bill Nye Sty. Maybe these are just clique markings of specific people groups- but I’d like to call them “signifiers”.
Today I met an Arab man named Yaser at Starbucks. He was smart. Someone who could command friendly attention from everyone around him. He was older and seemed to be knowledgeable in the area of world religions as well as Old Testament bible facts. Both areas, I confess, I need to be work on! So getting into a deep conversation with him was a bit intimidating. With that... of course, I was challenged. We talked about the Torah and the Koran as well as the Bible.
The whole time we were discussing the bible and religions my reoccurring idea of “what is a Christian’s radical signifier?” pushed through my thoughts. What sets us apart and shows others without a doubt that we are believers in the one true Creator God? What is our signifier?
A Buddhist monk, in some sects of Buddhism, wears a colorful robe, no shoes and has a shaved head. He takes a vow of poverty and abstains from all earthly desires- sex, money, friends and fads. Instead he radically devotes himself to meditation and prayer among the temples where fellow Buddhist followers gather to have the esteemed monk pray to multiple gods on their behalf.
A radical Muslim woman wears her solid black burqa concealing every inch of her body except for the small window around her dark eyes. This keeps the woman inferior to the male most specifically showing her respect for her husband. Only in private does she reveal her long beautiful hair, girlish figure and flawless bronze skin.
A Hindu can be spotted by the red dot strategically placed in the center of their forehead located just beneath their hair line or placed inbetween the eybrows; this is known as tika. It is a mark worn on a daily basis showing that the individual has been to their Hindu temple to worship and recieved blessing. This decoration, paste made of red powder, rice and yoghurt, is sought out as a beautiful and radical privilege that ranges in all different sizes.
A radical orthodox Jewish man follows the Torah- aka: the first five books of the Old Testament- aka: the Law of Moses. He wears a yarmulke, or kippa, on the back center of his head during time spent in the synagogue, at prayer or during study, when engaging in rituals and even when eating. The yarmulke sets him apart like nothing else.
A radical Catholic family can be seen carrying, in awe, the statue of the Virgin Mary into their home on a Sunday after mass. There they pray, to Mary, asking for her to enter into the Lord’s throne room on their behalf. Candles, incense and holy water are also used in catholic churches and cathedrals as part of their worship.
Christians! What do we do to be radical and show others that we are a follower of Christ? What sets us apart from every other human that makes their way through life without purpose and without belief in any God? Is it the cross necklace that hangs from our neck or our key chain? Is it the bible verses we have beautifully painted on large canvas with perfectly scripted block letters to display in our homes? I’d say no. I’d say defining what it looks like to be a Christian on the outside can be hard. We don’t have regulations on what we eat or what we have to wear. We don’t paint our bodies or bow down to gods. We don’t even have specific times we have to pray or study the bible. But we do have the bible and we do have to obey what it says. Though our radical signifier can’t quite be pinpointed by sight, as many other world religions can, ours can be pinpointed by the state of the heart.
Some verses I have been found today show me how we can be radical for Christ:
Philippians 1:20-22 “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know!”
James 2:14-18 “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead… Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”
Galatians 5:22-25 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”
My last thought and challenge when thinking about signifiers of Christ followers is humility. When I think of someone being humble I picture an individual who isn’t worried with people pleasing but instead serving. What comes to mind according to that definition is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was radical. Jesus Christ is the center of Christianity. So in order for us to wear a radical signifier we must be like that of Jesus Christ:
Phillipians 2:7 “rather, He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant being made in human likeness”
Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
-LauraLBrown
