Uncle Luther's Porch

I admit, May 21 was a fun day of puns and mockery of the now-debunked Family Radio rapture. I made at least 5 rapture quips online, and by the end of the day, I think my wife was hoping I would be raptured just to stop the endless flow of cheesy puns.

On a serious note, I noticed on Twitter and Facebook that several people were not just mocking the rapture claim and the fringe group making the prediction, but mocking all Christians as well. I don’t blame them. We Christians have said and done some mighty cruel things in the past, and lately we’ve be downright cruel. Our words and actions have made a joke out of Christ, and while none of us could ever claim to be perfect, I think we do owe the non-Christian world an apology. Since most followers of Christ are so stuck in a Christian bubble that they aren’t aware there are people who don’t believe the same things as them, I’ll go ahead and make my apologies with no excuses or justifications.:

• I’m sorry we are often more concerned about converting you than being your friend. Our conversations often sound fake, because we’re just waiting for the next opportunity to steer a conversation towards changing your belief system. If we were truly your friend, we would listen and care about you as a person.
• I’m sorry we are so overly concerned with money and make it appear like all we want is for you to sign a check.
• I apologize for our unhealthy concern over what you do in your bedroom and who you do it with. It’s none of our business, unless you’re in the porn business and we’re paying for it.
• I’m sorry we’re always telling you what you’re doing wrong and focusing on what we hate about you instead of what we love about you.
• If you’re a woman and you’ve had an abortion in the past, I’m sorry that we have lived every day of our lives to make sure you regret that decision. I know it was a tough decision for you and while we may not agree on the choice you made, you are a child of God as well and you deserve my love and respect.
• If you are a homosexual, I’d like to apologize for the constant and endless insults and hatred. Maybe you were born that way, maybe you chose it. I haven’t walked a mile in your shoes, but I know this: You’re not filthy, you’re not a deviant. At least, no more than anyone else. The people who judge you and say that God hates you are filthy and they are deviant. They don’t represent Christ.
• I’m sorry for all the times we focus on the mite in your eye when we have a very obvious and undeniable plank in our own eyes.
• I’m sorry that we place our political views and causes above helping the poor and the oppressed.
• I’m sorry we go around demanding that you “humble yourself in the sight of the Lord” and claiming that God will humble you one day, and yet we are some of the most arrogant people on the face of the Earth.
• I apologize for not partying with you, and for looking upon you with scorn when you talk about what you did over the weekend.
• I’m sorry if I am uptight and make you feel like you can’t approach me or hang out with me.
• I’m sorry if you came to my church and we didn’t make you feel welcomed and I’m sorry if I saw you outside of church and made you feel unwelcomed.
• I’m sorry that I seem so eager to get a ticket to Heaven and so excited to watch you face punishment. If it truly isn’t about me, as I claim, I shouldn’t be happy when my friends aren’t.
• I’m sorry my actions have made you hate Jesus. He isn’t like us, I promise. We’re just very bad representatives of a very good God.