My favorite movie of all time is The Shawshank Redemption with Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. This classic prison film tells the story of Andy Dufresne, a banker falsely convicted of the double murder of his wife and her lover.
A profound film on many levels, The Shawshank Redemption addresses important topics including the priority of friendship and the power of hope. And it ends with a fantastic prison escape.
“He’s just institutionalized.”
In one memorable scene, an elderly inmate named Brooks (who managed the prison library) was due for parole after spending 50 years at Shawshank. The idea of leaving the safety of prison life was so overwhelming that Brooks created a dramatic scene in order to stay behind bars. He approached a fellow inmate (and friend) named Heywood and put a knife to his throat.
Martin Thielen
Brooks explained his surprising action by saying, “It’s the only way they’ll let me stay.” »
After the incident was resolved without harm, Heywood vehemently complained to his friends about Brooks’ threatening actions. “Red”, a fellow inmate and major character in the film, defended Brooks’ behavior by explaining that it had become “institutionalized”. Heywood, still upset over the stabbing incident, exclaimed, “I institutionalized my ass!”
But Red brushed aside Heywood’s indignation. He said: “This man has been here for 50 years, Heywood. Fifty years! He’s an important man here. He is an educated man. Outside, he’s nothing! Just a worn out crook with arthritis in both hands. He couldn’t even get a library card if he applied for one. Do you see what I’m saying?
Another inmate named Floyd said, “Red, I think you guys are talking like idiots. »
Red replied, “Believe what you want. But these walls are funny. First you hate them, then you get used to them. Enough time passes you get then you depend on them.
Over the centuries, most Christian believers, like Brooks in The Shawshank Redemption, have become institutionalized. We have become dependent on the stability of institutional religion, including familiar doctrines, beliefs, structures, liturgies, and traditions. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. For those who find meaning in traditional religion, being “institutionalized” can be a comfort and a blessing.
When being institutionalized is no longer useful
But for a growing number of modern believers, the old, familiar institutional dynamics are crumbling. The doctrines are no longer relevant. Beliefs are no longer credible. Traditions no longer have meaning. The liturgy is no longer useful. Rigid structures are no longer acceptable.
What is a Christian to do when centuries-old institutionalism no longer holds? What happens to Jesus’ followers when they consider, like Brooks, leaving the institutionalized religion of their past and facing a changing world without the familiar structures that once grounded them? This can actually be disorienting.
“A growing number of restless believers are seeking new wineskins of Christian expression. »
I’m not saying it’s time to throw away all vestiges of institutional Christianity. As we’ve already mentioned, for many people the old wineskins still work. But a growing number of restless believers are seeking new wineskins of Christian expression. They want fewer institutions and more flexibility. Less certainty and more ambiguity. Less arrogance and more humility. Less doctrine and more connection. Less exclusion and more inclusion. Less attention to beliefs and more attention to compassion. Less time meeting in churches and more time serving in the community.
In short, many 21st century believers are seeking a post-institutionalized (or at least less institutionalized) version of Christianity.
What’s old is new again
Fortunately, the Christian faith has experience with this type of minimalist institutionalism. You have to go back very far in the history of the Church to find it. But it’s there. I am referring to the essentially pre-institutional faith that existed during the first two centuries of the Jesus movement. In reality, what was old (the first two centuries) has become new again (the 21st century). And this ancient, pre-institutionalized way of following Jesus could serve as a useful model for those seeking a post-institutionalized version of Christianity.
The only Christianity the world today has ever known is institutionalized Christianity. But it wasn’t always like that. In their provocative book, After Jesus Before Christianity, Erin Vearncombe, Brandon Scott, and Hal Taussig argue that during the first 200 years of the Jesus movement, institutional Christianity did not exist.
“In the first two centuries, what we think of as ‘Christianity’ did not exist.”
In the first two centuries CE we see nothing resembling contemporary “Christianity” or, for that matter, “Christianity” as it was in the later ancient world, in the Middle Ages or through the history of humanity. During the first two centuries, what we call “Christianity” did not exist.
For example, in the first 200 years after Jesus – and before institutional Christianity became the norm – there were:
- No defined doctrinal beliefs
- No defined structure or organization
- No defined order for Church leadership
- No authoritative Christian writings
- No defined traditions, liturgies or sacraments
- No defined Christology
- No defined name for the movement
According to After Jesus Before Christianity, the first Jesus movement was open, fluid, non-centralized and diverse. There was no established theological orthodoxy, no “New Testament,” no formal clergy, and no established ecclesiastical structure. In short, it was not yet institutionalized.
It could be affirmed that After Jesus Before Christianity exaggerates his case. And to some extent, that’s probably true. Some of the authors’ findings, while fascinating, are based on brief and obscure ancient documents. But the central thesis of the book is correct. The first two centuries of the Jesus movement were considerably less institutionalized than Christianity today. And, for better or worse, that is what many followers of Jesus are seeking today.
Although Jesus’ first movement was extremely fluid, common denominators could be found between the different groups. For example, the following four characteristics were found in virtually every community of Jesus:
- An affinity for Jesus of Nazareth
- Regular common meals
- Close, lasting friendships
- Emphasis on correct practice rather than correct belief
“Fourth Stage” Christianity
In many ways, these early years of the Jesus movement closely resemble Brian McLaren’s description (see Faith after doubt) of “stage four” faith. According to McLaren, the fourth stage faith is post-doctrinal. It is not about religious beliefs but about living a life of love. This expression of faith minimizes doctrines, embraces paradox, exudes humility, welcomes diversity, cares for the common good, and seeks to live “a faith that expresses itself in love.”
Fourth-stage religious communities must be “big in action, big in love, small in belief, and small in bureaucracy.”
According to McLaren, stage four religious communities must be “big in action, big in love, small in belief, and small in bureaucracy.”
This type of fluid, informal fourth-stage religious expression described by McLaren is similar to many dynamics seen during the first 200 years of the Church’s pre-institutional history. However, as already pointed out, this fluidity will not appeal to everyone. Many people, like Brooks in The Shawshank Redemption, will prefer to remain “institutionalized”. And it’s a perfectly viable option for many (if not most) Christians.
But for the growing number of believers seeking a less institutionalized version of Christianity, the first two centuries of the Jesus movement offer historical precedent, encouragement and promise. This time also offers a multitude of unanswered questions and an uncertain future. In short, it is an extremely ambiguous approach to the Christian faith.
It will be interesting to see what happens to this movement in the years to come. Will it, like Jesus’ first movement, eventually become institutionalized and lose its edge? Will it disappear? Will it gain traction and become a lasting and viable expression of modern Christianity? It is too early to predict precisely.
As a retired pastor who spent decades of his life fully institutionalized in organized religion, but who is fascinated by a less institutionalized expression of faith, I can’t wait to find out.
Martin Thielenformer editor-in-chief of Proclaim magazine and retired United Methodist minister, is the creator and author of www.DoubtersParish.com.
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My Long Farewell to Traditional Religion (and What’s Left) | Opinion of Martin Thielen
These Christians leave the Church behind, but not their faith | Analysis by Mallory Challis
Why some retired clergy are losing their faith and leaving the church | Analysis by Martin Thielen
