Miracles, Christmas and God: a conversation

Nicola Kristof: Merry Christmas! This is my favorite time of year, but I’m skeptical that Jesus was born to a virgin woman. Do we have to believe in miracles to celebrate the Christmas story?

Moore: For those who believe that Jesus rose from the dead, believing in Mary’s virginity is not unimaginable.

Kristoff: Today most Christians do not believe that the Earth was created 6,000 years ago or that Eve was created from Adam’s rib, so why cling to the idea of ​​the virgin birth which, after all, is only mentioned in two gospels and not in Mark, which was probably written first?

Moore: If we stripped the Bible of its wonders, miracles, and mysteries, we would be left with a religion, but it would not be Christianity or Judaism. The miraculous is essential. But any place is a good place to start: whatever draws us into the story. God uses all kinds of aspects to draw us into the center of him.

Kristoff: About 500 years ago Catholics and Protestants were killing each other, partly due to a dispute over belief in transubstantiation versus consubstantiation. Today almost no one knows what the difference is. Does this mean we should worry less about doctrine and define the Christian faith more in terms of what people do rather than what they believe?

Moore: Our behavior is the result of our beliefs. God’s love is not given only in words but also in deeds. For example, it is not possible to live the Gospel while ignoring the poor. The Sermon on the Mount is inscribed in the foundations of the Gospel. Chapter 13 of First Corinthians says that we can be gifted and sacrificial speakers, but if we do not have love, our service is nothing but noise to God. Today we face a profound failure in discipleship. Our testimony has been distorted.

Kristoff: As in the case of the Southern Baptist Convention and its sexual abuse scandals?

Moore: You have to understand that that was my world. From my perspective, it was overflowing with idolatry, misogyny and racism in public. There comes a time when you say, “No, I can’t relate to this anymore.”

Kristof: Has this shaken your faith?

Moore: My trust in institutions, yes. Rather, it sparked a frightening season of introspection and regret. It happened too late for my faith in Christ Himself to waver.

Kristof: Jesus was extraordinarily open about gender. The only person in the Gospels who wins him in an argument is an unnamed woman mentioned in Mark 7.24-30 and, in more detail, in Matthew 15.21-28; She is a combative woman who asks for help and fights back until she changes Jesus’ mind. So why has the Church been patriarchal and sexist?

Moore: Christ insisted on including women. In Luke’s gospel there are women in his group of itinerant followers. Jesus took Mary of Bethany to theology class. Jesus chose women to be the first witnesses of his resurrection. Why do we rebuild a wall that Christ broke down? Some of these guys have the attitude of, “If you give women an inch, they’ll take a mile.” Well, you know what? It’s not your thumb.

Kristof: When you and I were young in the ’60s and ’70s, two of the most prominent evangelicals were Martin Luther King Jr. and Jimmy Carter. And now white evangelicals overwhelmingly support Donald Trump. What happened?

Moore: The marriage between the Republican Party and the Evangelical Church. As believers in Christ, we cannot surrender to a political party or politicians. We must let ourselves be guided by the spirit, we must be free people who cannot be bought.

Kristof: How should we think about the intersection of religion and morality? One of the most repugnant things I saw was the opposition of prominent evangelicals like Senator Jesse Helms to funding the AIDS crisis because they thought homosexuals would die. Yet when I visit prisons, when I travel to the poorest places in the world, I disproportionately see people of faith – often conservative people of faith – actually doing the Lord’s work, risking their lives to help others. I don’t understand how, but Pat Robertson and these heroic missionaries read the same Gospel.

Moore: I often tell people of faith who are demoralized and unsure if they want to remain part of Christianity: don’t use social media to get an idea of ​​what the Church is like! We’ve already lost our minds there. Let’s go to the streets where we do good. Go where there is a crisis, to homes for women and children who are victims of abuse. That’s where your faith will be rebuilt.

Kristof: You used the term “Jesus follower.” Do you think the term “Christian” has accumulated so much negative charge that we should change it?

Moore: The word “Christian” is good and wonderful. But what I saw in politics made me change the way I referred to myself and the community of believers. What has become “pro-Christian” in politics often does not reflect what is Christ-like.

Kristof: What don’t liberals understand about evangelicals?

Moore: Breaking down stereotypes starts with meeting people who don’t think like you. An example: my older brother was in the world of theatre, where he learned about and adopted Buddhism, renouncing Christianity because he considered it retrograde and full of hatred. He was my dear older brother, one of the wittiest and most talented people I have ever met. In an effort not to damage family relationships, talking about religion was forbidden. It didn’t work for both of us. He made us treat him with cordiality but not with familiarity. About ten years ago we decided to lift the ban and talk about everything, even our beliefs, agreeing to respect our differences.

Kristof: And did you manage to convince your brother?

Moore: He died suddenly 10 months ago. My best friend. We were nails and dirt. The closest brothers. I miss every second of it. I can’t say that neither of us convinced the other, but we recovered the relationship, we had fun. And he no longer seemed to think Jesus was an idiot.

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