Credible Witness

There was an article in this morning’s Kansas City Star by Associated Press writer Gillian Flaccus on the purchase of the Crystal Cathedral by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. One supporter of Robert Schuller reportedly initiated a $30B lawsuit to block the sale because a transfer to the Catholics “permanently desecrated, defamed, polluted and cursed” the church. Oh, my. Let me make a couple of comparisons of things found within the article that refute the charges in this lawsuit.

The previous name was the Crystal Cathedral, a reference to an “architectural marvel.” The new name is Christ Cathedral, a reference to the Savior. The mission of Robert Schuller and the Crystal Cathedral was to proclaim the “power of possibility thinking.” The rector of Christ Cathedral said that their desire is “that we are a real credible witness to Christ in the world through our work here.”

I’m beginning to see what is transpiring in Garden Grove as a real-time allegory of the journey many of us are on. Maybe this renewal is what Jesus meant when he said “upon this Rock I will build my church and the gates of entrepreneurial individualism will not prevail against it” (Even Newer Revised American Version). Rather than “polluted and cursed,” the change of name and mission qualifies as a re-alignment with the gospel. May we all serve as a credible witness to the God who is making all things new.