The failure of Celebrity Christianity
From a video by Thinq Media
When Rich Villodas became a pastor of a church, the fact he was not allocated one of the 50 parking spaces at the church of 1500 people revealed a deeper issue in him. It revealed a seed of celebrity that was lodged already in his heart before he had language for it. Deep down inside he thought he deserved a parking spot.
The problem lies in celebrity-ism and Christianity.
Christian celebrity-ism is failure with regard to our witness before Jesus because it's trapped in the lie that mass appeal equals maturity, equals integrity, that charisma equals character. Celebrity-ism creates a culture in which self proclaimed influencers assume the role of spiritual mothers and fathers.
Celebrity-ism is deceptive and incompatible with Christian faith because it locates authority and the number of followers and blue checks next to our names. And so celebrity-ism is not found in the crowds but in the soul and in the environments that reinforce it. It's a sickness of the soul, and a disease of the system.
In the wilderness, the devil tempts Jesus to build a ministry that would be based on a kind of celebrity-ism. The evil one has Jesus trying to live from a different centre, a centre not rooted in beloved-ness but in breadmaking. A centre not rooted in self-giving love but in spectacular showmanship. A centre not rooted in service but in power.
The story shows us that the celebrity-ism that we are tempted with is one that's marked by entitlement, marked by performance, marked by power. This is the core of celebrity-ism. Entitlement is found in the expectation that I deserve to be heard. Performance Is oriented around the fact that my sense of self is predicated on the attention and affirmation of the crowd. This notion of power is expressed in the incessant need to advance my personal agenda and this is a sickness of the soul. Entitlement, performance and power.
But celebrity-ism is not just the sickness of the soul. It's a disease of the system because celebrity-ism is reinforced by particular environments. Celebrities don't form on their own, behind every celebrity pastor is an adoring congregation that both loves and supports the celebrity atmosphere. The development of a celebrity culture also doesn't happen overnight. It begins when a pastor has a driving ambition for fame. But it can't take root unless the congregation supports that ambition.
Unfortunately, many people want their pastor to be a spiritual hero or celebrity at some level. They not only want it but they expect it and find themselves believing it about their pastor. Celebrity-ism is not monopolised by mega-churches in big names. All kinds of leaders in small churches and medium-sized churches act like they're part of the royal family.
If celebrity-ism is to be resisted, it requires us to ask ourselves four significant questions:
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Am I wrestling honestly with the entitlement I carry?
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Am I submitting myself to authority willingly joyfully and transparently?
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Am I regularly proximate to people I'm not gaining any social capital from?
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Am I living from the centre of God's affirming love? Or are you rapaciously seeking affirmation?
Watch the 10 minute talk here.
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From a video by Thinq Media, 14/05/2024