Finally got round to starting this. Guess it will be different doing it on my own as opposed to a group so I thought I would keep a journal as the book suggests.
"In what ways is it risky or daring to be a Christian in your community today?"
I think we are coming to a crossroads, an inflexion point in society. At one time, the liberal agenda ruled the day, and Christians were seen as out of touch, inflexible and also intolerant for our beliefs, especially regarding the sexual mores of the day. To actually stand up for those beliefs in front of non-believers required 'courage' (an often over-used term these days when everyone is labelled a 'hero' all too easily), a willingness to swim against the current, to risk alienating friends. There were, and still are, lots of minefields.
Today, the tide has turned a little as the liberal arguments have in a way, reached a sort of natural conclusion - if everything is relative, and you are free to determine your own truths (including gender), then nothing is true and we are all on sinking sand (as the popular hymn "My Hope is built on nothing less" goes). I think more people are beginning to look for other answers, including turning to faith.
That is a welcome development of course, though one only needs to look at the state of the US and the right-wing evangelical movement to see the dangers where this swing goes too far. Sin is ever-present in us, and pride and hubris are always lurking in the shadows. So the risk today is more complicated.
We still risk being seen as intolerant by those who cling to the liberal agenda, or worse, deemed hateful by those in the 'woke' brigade (if only they understood the inherent contradictions of their stance), just by being faithful to our views. But there is another danger, of being consumed by the extreme right, who may be no less extreme in their views. We start to see others as the enemy, we start to see 'ghosts' everywhere - rainbows become a problem (as one petition in the Christian community showed a few years ago because the director of that year's NDP was gay, and rainbows were part of the theme.)
I think the question posed is somewhat loaded. Risk is more easily understood as I explained above. But 'daring'? This is where the dangers of pride and hubris comes in. It is all too easy to succumb to the temptation to be seen as being tough, tougher than our brothers and sisters in Christ who hold 'softer' views. It is no less a danger and temptation and here the 'battle' isn't against non-believers, but our fellow Christians.
The fundamental tenet is still to love everyone, and we need to reflect that love in our beliefs and attitudes to all.
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