'Spiritual But Not Religious'? Learning from the Case of C3 Exchange

These sheep aren't looking for a shepherd. Can an "inclusive spiritual community" really be built without universal truth? The cross atop the bell tower of this formerly Christian church in Spring Lake, Michigan has been removed, as has "Christ" from the congregation's name. The community has been rechristened "C3 Exchange," preferring to be identified as neither Christian nor church; rather, they seek to be an "inclusive spiritual community," promising to "honor all spiritual paths" and accept you "for who and where you are." 
 

P>SPRING LAKE, MI (Catholic Online) - Christ Community Church is no more.

The cross atop the bell tower of this formerly Christian church in Spring Lake, Michigan has been removed, as has "Christ" from the congregation's name. The community has been rechristened "C3 Exchange," preferring to be identified as neither Christian nor church; rather, they seek to be an "inclusive spiritual community," promising to "honor all spiritual paths" and accept you "for who and where you are." Whether your tradition is Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Islam, agnostic, atheist, or anything in between, C3 Exchange offers to free you from what its leaders view as the dogmatic baggage of traditional religion for a chance to grow in the safety of their big tent.

Whether this tent houses a genuine revival or a three ring circus remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the discrepancies between C3 Exchange's stated mission and its leaders' rhetoric raises fundamental questions about whether the goal is really possible at all.
 
How they got here

The congregation broke ties with the Reformed Church of America in 1996, after the local governing body censured then-pastor Richard Rhem for teaching that salvation is available to non-Christians. The community chose to secede and operate as an independent Christian church.

Their direction took a dramatic turn in 2004 when Rhem retired and was succeeded by Ian Lawton, a former Anglican priest with a deep concern for people not in the pews--and a marked disdain for hierarchy and structure. Lawton left his native Australia for the chance to lead an independent church free of ecclesiastical authority. Giddy that he no longer had a bishop to answer to, Lawton had a miter placed on his head during his installation, while assuring the assembly he was not merely poking fun at Catholics. "I find the Episcopal Church or Anglican Church just as hilarious as the Catholic Church," he quipped in his inaugural sermon. "In fact, I find all denominations equally hilarious in their structures and their hierarchies."
 
Christ Community Church soon experienced a dismantling of everything Lawton saw as a semblance of "church as usual." He longed to build a community for those without a sense of belonging in traditional congregations, where they can feel safe to be who they are apart from what Lawton describes as the oppressive trap of dogma.

He has moved the community from a "progressive Christian" label towards a "spiritual but not religious" identity, to avoid appearing what he calls "churchy" or "Christiany." This movement recently brought about the name change and the removal of the cross.
 
More questions than answers

It may look good on paper, but the devil is in the details, and the details of this plan invite a number of intriguing questions.

The first is whether C3 Exchange is truly dogma-free. For example, Lawton and his associate Bob Kleinheksel advocate access to abortion, embryonic stem cell research and gay marriage-and not merely as personal opinions. They preach it from the pulpit, and have put the Christ Community Church congregational stamp on campaigns for Michigan ballot initiatives to lend their support for these causes. In doing so they appear to be as dogmatic on these issues as the traditional churches they criticize from the other side of the fence.

Which raises another question: is C3 Exchange truly accepting of all beliefs and traditions, or only those elements which its leaders find palatable?

In his sermon of May 23, in which he formally announced plans to remove the cross, Lawton advised the community: "Don't look back, where the past lures you into ancient beliefs about not being good enough or needing a savior from outside of you." While embracing certain aspects of the Christian tradition, Lawton rejects its central tenet of the need for a savior--and he urges his community to reject it as well, contradicting the promise to "honor all spiritual paths."

Which raises the most crucial question the C3 Exchange community, and others like them, must address: can a spiritual community really be built without universal truth?

Consider this scenario: On a Sunday morning at C3 Exchange, homosexual couple John and Joe sit in a pew, truly believing (as do Lawton and Kleinheksel) that God approves of their genital interaction and blesses their union. Beside them sit Mr. and Mrs. Jones, a heterosexual married couple who truly believe (unlike Lawton and Kleinheksel) that because God infinitely loves John and Joe, he grieves the lifestyle that has taken them far from the divine image, and calls them to turn from their ways.

Both couples can't be right. In a community that claims to accept all beliefs, what happens now?

Will Mr. and Mrs. Jones be welcome at C3 Exchange, and will they be encouraged to openly express their belief about homosexual activity? Regardless of the answer, the thread that binds this model of community begins to unravel.

If the answer is no, then C3 Exchange is not the open, all-inclusive community it claims to be.

If the answer is yes, but the message from the pulpit will always be the acceptance of homosexual activity, then C3 Exchange is as rigidly dogmatic as the denominations its leaders criticize, and Mr. and Mrs. Jones may feel that their heart-felt beliefs are being oppressed.

If the answer is yes, and the leaders are open to dialogue on the issue and admit the possibility of changing their stance, then C3 Exchange is a place where fundamental truth can change, ruining its theological credibility.

Keeping up with the Joneses
 
In reality, Mr. and Mrs. Jones would most likely never come to C3 Exchange-nor does C3 Exchange really seem to be looking for them. They market to those who feel alienated elsewhere-and who believe what they believe. Their notion of truth appears to be a pot luck model, where everyone brings their own and can pick and choose to their individual taste, rather than a community sharing one truth and journeying together to learn the nutritional value regardless of the taste. The sole universal truth C3 Exchange professes is love-which Lawton calls the "glue" that holds them together. The cross will be replaced with a heart, which he believes to be a fuller symbol of love than a cross.

No greater love can one have than this-to lay down one's life for his friends, to love deeply enough to call sin a sin, urge others to turn from it, and sacrifice one's all to pay for the mess it causes.

Lift high the cross.

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James Penrice is a contributor to Catholic Online, and author of the newly released When Spirituality Isn't Enough: Understanding Our Physical Need For God In The Sacraments.

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