Holy Irreverence

The value of irreverence

When we think about virtues, irreverence is very unlikely to come to mind. Yet, it's not only a fundamental ingredient of spiritual reformation but one of Christ's favourite weapons against false sacredness.

Irreverence can be defined as a disregard for the authority and character of a superior or, more broadly, as a lack of respect for people or things that are considered as sacred or generally taken seriously. It is its ability to challenge the established and challenge the status quo that, quoting Mark Twain, makes it "the champion of liberty and its only sure defence." It is in fact an indication of the erosion of liberties when the fool (comedians!) cannot be suffered gladly (sound familiar?)

But irreverence is also to be appreciated and even encouraged in contexts where curiosity, creativity and ingenuity are crucial values. Mathematician and philosopher Jacob Bronowski expected his students to "bring a certain ragamuffin, barefoot irreverence to their studies." As he points out, "they are not here to worship what is known, but to question it." For this reason, irreverence never sat well within religious contexts, the two sitting at opposite ends of the pew! Yet, irreverence is necessary to keep religious practice faithful to what is truly sacred – and spiritually alive.

Hezekiah's irreverence

Possibly one of the best examples of this principle at work is found in the person of King Hezekiah. Known for his radical approach to spiritual reform among an utterly backslidden Israel, this young king not only destroyed the pagan worship of the Canaanite gods Baal and Asherah in both urban and rural areas (something that his predecessors invariably failed to do), but even destroyed the Nehushtan – the bronze serpent crafted by Moses under God's instruction to avert a plague of poisonous snakes back in the days of Israel's exodus (cf. Numbers 21:4-9):

"[Hezekiah] did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done. He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan). He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses. And the Lord was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered." (2Kings 18:3-7)

His decision was significant as it highlights the necessity in our spiritual life to make a distinction between what is truly sacred and what only looks like it. For, whereas the Nehushtan was a God-ordained means to preserve Israel and avert its curse, it ended up becoming an item of worship – effectively robbing God of something that belongs to him alone. In his "irreverence" against this once purpose-filled and powerful symbol of the coming Christ, Hezekiah reminded Israel who their object of worship should be – the God of the Nehushtan, not the Nehushtan of God!

Jesus' irreverence

There are other examples in the Bible of individuals that, in their zeal for what is truly sacred, ended up arming themselves with irreverence. The most surprising of them was undoubtedly Jesus. Throughout his earthly ministry, he often (and intentionally) acted in total disregard for what was considered as sacred by the surrounding Jewish culture and, especially, its religious leaders. He would eat with non-Jews, touch the sick, heal on the Sabbath, converse with loose women and even whip merchants out of the temple grounds! All this while exposing the religious leaders' hypocrisy in total disregard for their social status and perceived righteousness. What I love about Jesus is the fact that, whereas he respected the law (of God), he was very comfortable breaking the rules (of man) – a distinction that, unfortunately, many Christians and Christian leaders fail to appreciate, let alone replicate.

Irreverence and the Church

For in religious contexts, it is very easy for means of service to be elevated to a "sacred" status without being truly sacred – to the point of opposing what they should rather be serving. From something as trivial as a "communion table" or piano that nobody dares to touch to aspects of our liturgy that nobody is allowed to change or even question, from dress code to music style, the list is endless - including entire ministries, structures, mindsets and even doctrines!

How often have I seen people mislabelled and condemned because they did not look "appropriate" or Churches down the road demonised simply because of a diversity misconstrued as unfaithfulness? How often has kingdom advancement suffered because we have valued methods over message, structure over strategy, and religion over relevance? How often have we expected others to rise to our perceived level of spirituality when grace operates in the exact opposite direction – stepping down to those who can't step up! How often have we stood in God's way as he sought to discard items that had become an obstacle to his purposes but we were too emotionally attached to? And all in the name of realities that we (genuinely but wrongly nonetheless) perceive as sacred.

Irreverent leaders

If we want our Churches to rediscover what is truly sacred and be aligned to true God-given plumb lines, there must be a rediscovery of holy irreverence. We need men and women that will intentionally wear camel's hair and leather belts where silk and fine linen are expected, that will disregard status where pride has taken roots, that will shake that which has become immutable and touch that which has become untouchable. We need leaders that have learnt the art of breaking rules while keeping God's law. The Church today more than ever needs leaders that will pick fights like Samson but in the reforming Hezekiah.

The cost of irreverence

However, this comes at a grave and often personal cost. For irreverence challenges the given and shakes what is often perceived as foundational – realities that carry (mistakenly) much of one's spiritual identity. And we all know what happens when one's sense of identity is threatened! 

The ministry of irreverence isn't for everyone – but it surely brings much hope to those who, for all their lives, never fitted the mould, people often misrepresented as "rebels" sitting at the back of the classroom challenging the tyranny of the given.