Mature Virtue

Christian versus Secular ‘Maturity’

This post is part of a syncroblog on “Maturity in the Light of our Faith.” I am not sure how that is any different than maturity in general. It seems that being mature would mean the same thing for Christians or otherwise. In general, I am not too good at being mature anyway (just ask my close friends or watch me play with my doggie), so perhaps anything I say after this word, should be taken with a grain of salt.

‘Christian Maturity’

But then there is this particularly Christian domain of ‘imitating Christ’ to consider. It seems something that non-christians are not too interested in, even most Christians, if hanging on a cross is any measure to use.

So, what makes a mature ‘Christian’ then? It seems that there might be several answers to this. This is probably just my childishness speaking. I am sure there is really only one best way to be and judge a mature Christian. What shall we say? Does the mature Christian look like Christ (or what we think he looked like (I’m not talking about physical looks here))? Does (s)he sound like Christ? Does (s)he act like Christ? Does (s)he love like Christ? Or is the mature Christian just someone who is adored as Christ was adored?

More Than Just Being Adored

From my experience, it seems that much of the church thinks that anyone adored as Christ must be mature. I think that this is often true, but not always. There are lots of examples of fame and true maturity which I think are almost universally agreed with today. For instance, the inimitable Mother Teresa for one. I don’t even need to supply the other side of this example do i?

If then to imitate Christ is the best measure, and it must be, then the mature Christians must be the ones who act like Christ, duh…

To Act or Not to Act

What did Christ do? He loved and provided for the forgotten. He opposed the oppressor. He even loved his enemies. He made ‘holy mischief’ (Thanks to Shane Claiborne for this phrase, love it) every chance he got. He touched the untouchables–repeatedly. He found beauty where no others did. He absorbed wounds and returned cuts with healing. He lived and died for someone other than himself. He fed the hungry, gave drink to those with thirst, and comfort to the weary. He even partied with his friends and made a good vintage.

To the extent that someone’s life resembles some of the things above, (s)he is mature in Christ.

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If you enjoyed this post you will also enjoy reading this post: On Obama, Jesus and the Matthew 25 Network

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Here is a list of bloggers who are taking part in this month’s synchroblog on the topic “Maturity in the Light of our Faith”:

Phil Wyman at Square No More with “Is Maturity Really What I Want?“
Lainie Petersen at Headspace with “Watching Daddy Die“
Kathy Escobar at The Carnival in My Head with “what’s inside the bunny?“
John Smulo at JohnSmulo.com
Erin Word at Decompressing Faith with “Long-Wearing Nail Polish and Other Stories“
Beth Patterson at The Virtual Teahouse with “the future is ours to see: crumbling like a mountain“
Bryan Riley at Charis Shalom with “Still Complaining?“
Alan Knox at The Assembling of the Church with “Maturity and Education“
KW Leslie at The Evening of Kent with “Putting spiritual infants in charge“
Bethany Stedman at Coffee Klatch with “Moving Towards True Being: The Long Process of Maturity“
Adam Gonnerman at Igneous Quill with “Old Enough to Follow Christ?“
Joe Miller at More Than Cake with “Intentional Relationships for Maturity“
Jonathan Brink at JonathanBrink.com with “I Won’t Sin“
Susan Barnes at A Booklook with “Growing Up“
Tracy Simmons at The Best Parts with “Knowing Him Who is From the Beginning“
Joseph Speranzella at A Tic in the Mind’s Eye with “Spiritual Maturity And The Examination of Conscience“
Sally Coleman at Eternal Echoes with “vulnerable maturity“
Liz Dyer at Grace Rules with “What I Wish The Church Knew About Spiritual Maturity“
Cobus van Wyngaard at My Contemplations with “post-enlightenment Christians in an unenlightened South Africa“
Steve Hayes at Khanya with “Adult Content“
Ryan Peter at Ryan Peter Blogs and Stuff with “The Foundation For Ministry and Leading“
Kai Schraml at Kaiblogy with “Mature Virtue“
Nic Paton at Sound and Silence with “Inclusion and maturity“
Lew Ayotte at The Pursuit with “Maturity and Preaching“

Tags: Ethics, imitation of Christ, maturity, Theology