There once was a madman who lit a lantern in the bright morning sun. He ran to the marketplace and shouted, “I’m looking for God!” They laughed at the man and scoffed, “Is he lost? Is he hiding? Has he gone on vacation?” The madman whirled on them and said, “I’ll tell you where he is! We’ve killed him, you and I.”
This is a condensed and slightly altered version of Friedrich Nietzsche’s “Parable of the Madman” from his book The Gay Science. And I understand completely if you think a reference Nietzsche is an odd way to begin the penitential season of Lent. After all, Nietzsche was an atheist.
And yet, I think it’s the perfect place to start. That’s because the most basic thing that so many of us need to repent is our unacknowledged atheism. This is going to take some explanation. So, let’s look first at what we mean by sin, then we’ll take up the idea of repentance.
Many of us think of sin as breaking the moral law. And strictly, this is correct. Murder, adultery, theft, and the like are sinful actions. We should refrain from such behavior, feel remorse if we do such things, and amend our behavior in the future.
But there is something deeper to consider, something that may not express itself in immoral acts as such. I find something that Simone Weil wrote in Waiting for God helpful here. She said, “Sin is not a distance, it is a turning of our gaze in the wrong direction.”
Sin is essentially the soul’s misdirected attention. We are making the wrong thing the focal point of our lives. To put that another way, we sin when we devote our lives to a false god. The result of a misdirected soul may not be immoral behavior. But idol worship will inevitably result in a misspent life.
Here’s where Nietzsche’s parable stings for so many of us. Even if you go to church, follow the ten commandments, and recite the creed, you might just still be an atheist. “You have killed God,” or replaced God with something less, without even realizing it. As Richard Rohr says, “Religion is one of the safest places to hide from God.”
The philosopher John Gray argues that our secular age has witnessed the emergence of several kinds of atheism. (Seven Types of Atheism) Only some of them are anti-religious. In fact, I’ve observed that some of them can live very comfortably in a church’s pews. You can devote yourself to a politic identity, social causes, or beauty, for instance.
The author Derek Thompson calls the most potent of these atheisms workism. Here’s how he defines it: “It is the belief that work is not only necessary to economic production, but also the centerpiece of one’s identity and life’s purpose.” Getting ahead is what motivates us, and our achievements are what make us somebody.
Hard work can be a virtue. But workism is about more than industriousness. It measures human value on the basis of our productivity and efficiency. Under its influence, we begin to assess our own worth and the value of our neighbors by their material success. Wealth becomes a status symbol, poverty a stigma.
It would be impossible to live in our culture and to have escaped entirely the influence of workism. The very core of the American Dream is that hard work will lead to a better life. Where we go wrong is that assumption that our worth is a result of our work, that respect is earned by success.
Jesus calls us to repent of more than a few sinful behaviors. He urges us to change our life-defining focus. Here’s how he put it: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” (Mark 1:15; emphasis added)
The Good News is that we are already the beloved. Like any news, it reports what has already happened. We don’t have to make ourselves worth loving. Jesus came to convince that we are already loved. As Weil puts it, “We cannot take a step toward the heavens. God crosses the universe and comes to us.”
When Jesus calls us to repent, he’s telling us that another kind of life is already available. A life animated by love. In that life, his unrelenting love for us defines who we are. It makes each of us infinitely valuable and worthy of respect. What we need is a change of focus.
At the The Woodlands Podcast I’m offering a series entitled “Wisdom of the Psalms.” The written post is available to all subscribers. Paid subscribers can listen to the audio. If you’re not already a paid subscriber, check it out with the 7-day free trial. Subscription not in your budget? Email me and I’ll comp you some free episodes. As always, proceeds from paid subscriptions are used for alms.
If you’re looking for a study for Lent (or just need an injection of hope), check out my book Looking for God in Messy Places: A Book about Hope. You can grab a copy by clicking here.
My book A Resurrection Shaped Life is also well-suited for Lenten Study, for book groups, or for personal reflection. Learn more by clicking here.
I struggle when we love the church more than Jesus. When the institutional church prioritizes its own interests above the teachings of Jesus Christ, it can lead to negative consequences. This can manifest in ways such as prioritizing traditions and rituals over genuine compassion and love for others, focusing on power and control rather than humility and service, and becoming overly concerned with rules and regulations at the expense of mercy and grace. When the institution becomes more important than the core principles of Christ's teachings, it can alienate people who are seeking spiritual guidance and support. The institutional church should aim to embody the love, compassion, and inclusivity that Jesus Christ exemplified, rather than getting caught up in self-serving agendas.
This is a revelation! It is something that I know, but also need to be reminded of on a daily basis! I think this is where the concept of grace is such a countercultural antidote to our workism.
Also, thanks for sharing your books - just purchased Looking for God in Messy Places on audible (I have a long commute). Looking forward to having your words accompany me this next week.