Once and Twice-born Christians

William James distinguishes one-born from twice-born believers. The latter are those who had been through “dark nights of the soul” and had their faith threshed to within an inch of its life. Harold Kushner, the death of whose son nearly cost him his faith, described that latter, the twice-born, this way.

“Instead of seeing a world flooded with sunshine, as the once-born always do, they see a world where the sun struggles to come out after the storm but always manages to reappear. Theirs is a less cheerful, less confident, more realistic outlook. God is no longer the parent who keeps them safe and dry; He is the power that enables them to keep going in a stormy and dangerous world. And like the bone that breaks and heals stronger at the broken place, like the string that is stronger where it broke and was knotted, it is a stronger faith than it was before, because it has learned it can survive the loss of faith.”

That, friends, is a description of spiritual maturity, faith in full flower. Church should be incubators of such faith. Leading and supporting the once-born into facing such crucibles (which we all face at some point[s]) with honesty and reflection. And support and comfort those who are twice-born to “keep on keeping on” with their wounded but hard-won faith.

Growing churches are often ‘Glowing” churches, predominately once-born believers which do not encourage the journey to twice-born by and large. In our officially optimistic culture, that’s what many expect from their church. Uplift, inspiration, tips for better living from sermons, thoughts for the day from the Bible. And that’s what we too often give them.

Maturing churches are perhaps more “wintery” in perspective and practice a lá Kushner’s description. These are churches that “share in God’s sufferings in the world” (Bonhoeffer). With him they practice a theology of the cross. They see life from the perspective of the poor and suffering. And, in the words of Pope Francis, are "bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security."

American Christianity is too much a group of once-born believers than a community of the twice-born. We need to become more twice-born. That is all.