When I was a student at Shorter College in the late 90's, I first heard about a conference for college students in Texas called "Passion". There were CD's of new and inspiring worship songs coming out of the conference, as well as sermons from compelling speakers. Every local college worship service seemed determined to capture some of the energy that was coming out of this new movement, which, at that time, according to the vision and leadership of Louie Giglio, was to culminate in an event called "OneDay"--a solemn assembly/worship festival to be held in a field near Memphis.
I remember attending OneDay and being riveted and moved by the worship and sermons I heard there. I also remember a good friend of mine reading a bizarre passage out of Amos 5 that day. "I hate I despise your solemn assemblies." And neither of us could figure out what that could possibly mean in the context of a movement that looked and felt like genuine revival.
Earlier this week, the latest iteration of the Passion movement, Passion 2012, finished here in Atlanta. As part of our work as CBF Field Personnel, we host mission teams and groups through
Lydia's House. This last week over 70 college students from Arkansas slept on air mattresses and ate Pop-Tarts in a drafty old church, all to experience a conference that in many ways is identical to what I experienced during my college years. As I stacked up mattresses while cleaning up what is normally our children's area, I stumbled across a program some forgetful collegiate left behind. As I looked through the worship guide, every page screamed a common theme--"Freedom"--more specifically, freedom for those enslaved around the world. Children, women, those in sweatshops, those in brothels. People who were bought and sold every day. In bold, all caps (shouting for the internet generation) was the slogan "DO SOMETHING NOW."
I remembered back to OneDay and the days after, when I first discovered that the Amos passage was God venting some holy anger because while there were solemn assemblies the orphan, widow, alien and oppressed were dying in the streets.
This week, CNN featured Passion, primarily because the event raised over $3 million (yes, from college students!) to combat human trafficking and end slavery around the world, including a $100,000 donation to the host city ot Atlanta, an international hub for human trafficking. Upon hearing this news, I couldn't help but feel that Passion as a movement is evolving in very much the same way as the life of faith.
The early years of Passion focused on the verse Isaiah 26:8 Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws,we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts." The implication was that if worship of the name of God were to take root around the world, then conversion, discipleship--peace, even, would follow. That inward, solo deo Gloria focus, when turned outward in public worship became a powerful force that created a kind of ecstatic worship experience. The worship component is still very much in tact at Passion, but the outcome is quite different. Raising funds to combat human trafficking and "end slavery in our time" is, to me, an external focus--a shift from inward devotion to concrete action. For many Christians, this shift is familiar, as we often move from inward devotion and worship to action and service.
As my wife and I were talking about this evolution, within the Passion movement and within the life of faith, she asked "I wonder what would have happened had it not had that inner focus?" As a social worker, she knows all too well that a commitment to change and justice rarely provide endurance for the task. "Without the sense of purpose and filling up" she said "you'll never make it to actually doing anything about it."
And that gets to the Church. In many ways, the Passion movement as irrevocably altered the course of the American evangelical Church. Yes, there were praise and worship choruses and bands that pre-date the Passion movement (remember Shout to the Lord?) but the movement made it mainstream. My first Christian CD was the wunderkind of Contemporary Christian Music, Steven Curtis Chapman. Today's generation knows only his heir, Chris Tomlin--perhaps the nations most successful worship leader and a key figure in the Passion movement. Most of the contemporary worship movement has been pushed forward by some aspect of the Passion movement, resulting in mega-churches trying to recreate the feeling of a Passion conference every Sunday.
Back in our car, driving on the interstate, my wife said "I wonder if the churches will evolve". For whatever one's opinion may or may not be of the Passion movement, the irrepressible enthusiasm of youth has nowhere else so clearly been capitalized to a singular end. As the Passion movement evolves, it appears that end has moved from internal to external--from self, to neighbor. Perhaps the most persistent question for the Church--particularly those who wished to capture the same zeitgeist--is will they follow course?
Can you imagine congregations spending as much money providing community and support services to single parents and the unemployed as they do on sound systems, musicians and projectors?
What would happen if a church went to online giving and put their budget line for church envelopes into a micro-loan for someone starting a small business?
...or switched church fixtures to greener options and used the energy savings to provide weather stripping and compact flourescent lights to seniors?
...or launched a capital building campaign--for a free community health clinic?
The move from inward to outward is the way of Jesus--a way which can be moving and inspiring when it occurs en masse. The question is, will the Church follow?
