What If God ~ A Community Journal
Unity Vs. Uniformity
What’s the difference and why does it matter?
Our Manifesto
Hello there Friend.
This may seem too familiar a salutation… but I would like to think that we all can be friends here. We, here at the What If God Publication are so grateful to all of you writers and readers who dwell here with your ongoing presence and insight.
Keep up the great work! It is our desire to continue to foster participation in sharing about our Lord!
PUB D.T.R.
Today, we’re going to do a little publication D.T.R. (Define the relationship) exegesis.
We can probably all agree that the world is a crazy place. Filled with light & darkness, good & bad, and all the existential opposites in between. Here, while we agree that this is an important part of reality, we also don’t want to miss the beauty and wonder and curiosity that exists in the grey. Or blues, or green and all of the other reflections of light in between the black and white areas.
Our Promises
SO - here’s our thesis:
We aim to create a space that values individuality, and respect for each person’s unique perspective. We encourage our writers and readers alike to come with open ears, hearts and hands as we get to take part in the small, shared portions of the journey that Jesus has our fellow believers on. We want to seek to understand, ponder, and appreciate diverse Christian practices and experiences with wonder and curiosity. We desire to highlight the richness of the Christian faith across denominations and traditions. We long to emulate a shared foundation in grace & truth that unites us as disciples of Jesus.
Our Foundation
We DO abide by the written word of God as it was laid out in the canon of Scripture by His disciples and hold the tenets of the Nicene Creed, and the Apostle’s Creed to be where we find our Biblical foundation.
That said, we also recognize the infinite creativity and capability of a God who loves to talk to His kids, and does so in splendorous and unique ways.
This means that we will hold to the truths, as laid out in the creeds quite closely and tightly, because this is the important distinction of our faith — that sets it apart from other organized religions and it matters to us.
Envision these, if you will, as something akin to closed-handed truths…
Notice that we did not say close-fisted, and we did so on purpose.
Fists are often icons of conflict and discord. Of struggle and disagreements, fighting and disunity. That is not what we are after, and neither do we believe that our Heavenly Father calls us to such a stance.
Our Example
This is the prayer that Jesus prayed on the night He was betrayed… by one of His followers and close friends, in order to fulfill part of His purpose for coming to earth, in the will of His Father, that all men might be saved through Him.
John 17:20–23
20 “I am praying not only for these disciples, but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one — as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
22 “I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!
So, we want to strive toward unity in the faith in which we profess in Jesus Christ our Lord.
At the same time, we realize that there are other aspects of different Christian faith denominations that bring much merit into the Kingdom of God.
Therefore, we want to foster a place that also knows how to handle smaller elements of the truths we feel we’ve received personally in our faith walks with open hands. If you visualize and open hand, it is one that can hold many more things than a closed one. It allows things to sit within, to settle into place, but also is not closed off to new things. It is also a hand that allows others to experience what is being held. It can catch and let go, and sit with, and release whenever necessary.
Our Posture
This is the kind of attitude we hope to encourage amongst people who practice their Christianity in ways that are unfamiliar to us… recognizing that just because something is unfamiliar does not immediately make it unsafe.
Perhaps, another example could be that of a tree. Each one of its leaves and branches, while intact, remain a part of the whole. Yet, each one grows in its own way. Each leaf takes on a particular shape, and while they may look similar to the ones next to it, they all change colors in the fall.
Each one has its own hue and exhibits the shades of its story differently than its neighbor. One may be golden, another crimson, another scarlet, one a deep caramel, and still another a purpley/mauve… Does this make any of them any less a part of the tree than when they first began their journey as a uniform green?
I shall leave you to answer that after highlighting something our Lord had to say in a similar vein… (or vine… as it were)
The Vine and the Branches
John 15:1–5“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
To read the rest of the passage, you can click here.
Our Approach
So, friends — all this to say that we don’t believe that any mere mortal has cornered the market on exclusive God knowledge or insight, or even spiritual practice.
Jesus was pretty dang clear that He wants us to Remain in HIM. Not in our sequestered groups, or personality circles we find comfortable, or policy proponents we agree with… First and foremost is Jesus. Everything. And folks — that really means everything else is secondary. Also — Jesus did a great job at emphasizing who does the pruning on this vine of His… and sho’ nuff — it ain’t us.
So, we believe that there is room for more than one way of thinking and even doing… in this Christian walk. There’s just not wiggle room for the WHO we follow…
John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
So that, on our different journeys, when we bump into another believer, no matter their denominative affiliation, we have the empathy and ability to say — “Going this Way? Me too! Let’s walk awhile together.”
Because, we desire to foster a place here where people from multiple veins of Christendom can bleed together here and find commonality.
A place of mutual respect, edification, and exhortation that spurs us onward toward the hope we have in Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 10:24–25
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
If you don’t like that, or take issue with such an approach, you are absolutely always welcome to see yourself out. We will continue to keep the door open for you in the event you ever want to return. Sometimes we just need a little time and distance in order to gain a different perspective, and we get that.
If you do like it though, we encourage you to follow some of your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. To comment, highlight, and applaud their work too, including articles published in this publication. Everyone needs a little encouragement sometimes — let’s be people that give it generously. It would be nice to see Christians throw kindness around like confetti :)
The mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. Luke 6:45
May our hearts be filled by the love of Jesus.
Our Request
All these things considered, we have an addition to our initial submission guidelines, which you can read HERE.
We hope that it may be received with grace and an intentional remembrance that human-ing and people-ing can be a challenge sometimes. We openly acknowledge that not all denominations of Christianity are precisely aligned.
As such, we would like to ask this of you:
Whenever you desire to share about a particular saint, practice, experience, memory, prayer, poem, liturgy, writing, (outside of direct Biblical quotations — in which we would appreciate you include the reference)…. and their influence in your personal faith journey… We would appreciate if you would put forward the information as follows, using a format similar in kind to the examples listed below.
“I personally have experienced…”
“I believe that this is how God spoke…”
“This has helped me personally to see God in…”
“In my faith practice/ tradition…”
“It is my belief that…”
And so on, and so forth. That way, we create authenticity and personal relatability in what we share — while also making it clear that our stories are often descriptive, and not necessarily prescriptive.
Thank you so much for hanging in there if you made it this far.
To Reiterate:
Our focus and goal here is that we want to be able to include different aspects of each denomination of the Christian faith — and for people to have freedom to share areas that enrich their walk with Jesus — while also not adopting a dogmatic stance, or falling into the snare of putting forth content that is a proponent of “Do this to be a better Christian,” type stuff…
We refrain from a one-size-fits all mentality in regards to denominational preference. We promise to not always agree with everything everyone else thinks, says, extolls, or does. We promise to retain our rights to our own perspectives, experiences, and expertise. We promise to come to this place with an open mind and heart and to seek out connections rooted in grace and truth.
1 Corinthians 2:2
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Here at What If God, we delight in hearing your Spirit-inspired thoughts. We also delight in the supernatural uniqueness of our God and the vast array of things and ways He chooses to use to communicate His character and goodness. Welcome dear heart. Write on.
Your thoughts?
