CHRISTIAN CANCEL CULTURE?

 

It was with a sad heart that I took in the recent revelations about Ravi Zacharias and his sexual sins.  Over the years, I had learned a great deal from Ravi, through his daily radio show, “Let My People Think,” and the various publications he had authored or coauthored.  Ravi’s insights, his knowledge and his wisdom in speaking against the wisdom of this age, had informed my own Christianity and my own walk with Christ.  And while a lot of his philosophical arguments were certainly over my head and beyond my grasp, I appreciated how he was able to speak at that level to students and academia throughout the world.  In my mind, he was a true defender of the faith, an apologist of the highest order.

Glimpses of potential moral overreaches by Ravi began to surface several years ago, when his oft-mentioned credentials began to be questioned.  Some researchers of his life, including atheist and secular opponents, discovered that Ravi’s academic degrees were overstated, and that his doctorate was not earned, but bestowed as a recognized honor.  His claims of teaching and leading seminars at various universities abroad were not supported as these institutions reported he had not been part of their faculty, as adjunct or as a guest lecturer.  And, I noticed, no long after these reports surfaced, Ravi’s daily radio show stopped referring to him as “Dr. Ravi Zacharias,” simply calling him, “Ravi Zacharias.”  A lapse of character and integrity in this highly respected and regarded individual, but one which had been acknowledged and corrected.

But following his death, multiple sources have confirmed Ravi had greater moral failings, in the form of sexual sin and even systematic sexual abuse.  The organization and legacy Ravi left behind is reeling, trying to deal with the aftermath of a charismatic leader who has proven to not be what he purported to be.  And, as can be seen in the screenshot above, Ravi’s publisher has taken the drastic step of stopping the publishing of any of Ravi’s books and manuscripts.  It appears that, in very short order, the name and ministry of Ravi Zacharias will cease to be mentioned any longer.

This bothers me, and I know I may be the lone voice in this regard.  We are living in an era here in the United States that has been dubbed, “Cancel Culture,” the systematic purging of any part of our history, society, or culture that is offensive to others.  Over the last several years, Cancel Culture has removed statues of historic leaders, renamed or reframed traditional holidays, and pushed sweeping changes in education to purge mention of anyone who may have had questionable issues in their past.  For the most part, Cancel Culture has been associated with the Black Lives Matter movement, but it is expanding now into other areas of our daily lives.

For instance, when country singer Morgan Wallen was recorded on video shouting a racial slur in the aftermath of a drunken argument, Cancel Culture immediately descended on him.  His songs were removed from radio stations, and his music label has placed him on indefinite suspension, all but guaranteeing a quick end to his emerging career.  In short order, I expect Morgan Wallen to disappear from the public eye forever, for one word spoken in anger.

 And while I certainly can’t condone what Wallen said, the move of Cancel Culture has left him with no avenues for restoration.  Although he has publicly apologized for his actions, his words fell on deaf ears, and no one is allowing him to repent and return to the fold of the corporate country music industry.  But I understand that.  That is our secular culture.  That is not the church.  Repentance and restoration are not part of who they are.  Just ask the Dixie Chicks or any of the others singers or groups that have fallen from the good graces of Nashville over the past decades.

 But what about Ravi?  What about the response from the Christian community to the revelations of Ravi as a flawed and sinful individual? 

 Ravi’s situation is unique.  I’ll agree with that.  Since he is deceased, there is no avenue for public apology, repentance, or restoration.  He and his ministry -- his words and his works -- will disappear in the annals of time, cancelled because of his sin.  But does sin in the life of a Christian leader negate what God has done through them?  Should we discount all of the ministry and the works of fallen Christian leaders because they have been revealed to be what we all are:  sinful humans?

 I don’t know the answer to that, but I did want to open the discussion.

 In the case of someone who has not passed, I believe there should be an avenue of restoration made available.  The Bible clearly teaches how discipline and correction of sinful actions should be handled in the church.  In Matthew 18:15-17, Jesus tells us what to do is someone sins against us, with the goal of leading that person to acceptance of their wrong, confession and repentance, and eventual restoration.  But if that person refuses to repent, even when the issue is brought up before one or two others or eventually the entire church community, then that person is to be treated as a pagan or tax collector, one outside the faith community.

 And we have seen the church do just that in several high-profile cases, including that of Ted Haggard, the rising pastor from Colorado whose sexual sins were made public.  After a time of counsel, confession, and repentance, Ted Haggard returned to ministry, albeit in a lesser capacity.  That is the biblical principle Jesus gives us here.

 But what about leaders like Zacharias who have passed away?  In this case, confession and repentance are not possible.  The sin remains like a dark blot on the works of their ministries and their legacies, both personally and professionally.  What is to be done in these cases?  Are the actions of the Christian Cancel Culture correct?  Should all of their words and their written works be erased because of the exposure of their sins?

 My heart says no.  All of us are sinners.  Even though washed in the blood of Jesus and living in the light of His grace and mercy, we all continue to sin.  We all continue to struggle with those things that hinder our walk with Christ.  But our sins don’t detract from what God is doing in us and through us.  If, after our death, the true depth of our sins is exposed and the struggles we faced with temptation come to light, should that discount anything we have done or said in our Christian lives?

 Perhaps the issue with Ravi is that we don’t know the state of his heart in terms of his sins, whether he struggled with them and sought repentance and restoration privately with the Lord or whether this was just a hidden part of his nature in which he was unrepentant and unwilling to change.

 But the question remains:  Should Ravi’s works and words be purged from our collective Christian consciousness because he was shown to be a sinner?

 I don’t think so, because I have personally been enriched in my own Christian life through his teachings, and I believe others can continue to be enriched, as well.  If we were to remove the teachings of everyone whose sins were exposed after their death, whose works would remain?  Even the Apostle Paul described himself as the “chief of sinners,” but none would argue that Paul’s words should be cancelled.  Certainly, other great historical leaders in the church struggled with sin, as well.

 While well-meaning, Cancel Culture threatens to remove all vestiges of admirable contributions by secular leaders because of actions or thoughts that are currently offensive.  Are we going to follow suit in the Christian community by ushering in a Christian Cancel Culture, as well?