The Falcon   |   Volume 81, Issue 26

Published 6/02/10   |   Log In

Despite controversial teachings, Mars Hill vital to Seattle Pacific

Church impacts, changes people's lives

By CHRISTO LUTE, Opinions Writer

Published: May 19, 2010

Mars Hill takes a lot of beating at SPU. Many of us, myself included, are often quick to judge, quick to ignore and quick to insult. This ranges from direct attacks on pastor Mark Driscoll to a hatred for the reformed church (which Mars Hill is not a part of anyway; even Mars Hill is influenced by doctrines). None of these attacks are helpful in discussing the reasons why we feel threatened, disturbed or angered by Mars Hill.

The walls we build between ourselves and Mars Hillians do not help to open up conversations about our disagreements and differences. Moreover, it blinds us to some of the shared bonds we have as Christian community members and to some of the things that Mars Hill is doing for Seattle.

Before I proceed, let's be clear on something. I do not currently attend Mars Hill because I disagree with its views on gender roles, interpretation of Scripture and focus on specific models of atonement. I find them damaging, limited and limiting, respectively. But these may not be problems for others. Still, my life has been changed dramatically by Mars Hill and I have witnessed it do wonders for people involved in its community.

When I was a freshman at SPU, I was not a Christian. Not until much research, questioning and seeing the passion that Driscoll holds for Jesus was I convinced that God is present in Christianity. I credit Mars Hill with being the reason that I converted. It offered me a place to learn about the Bible and God in a fairly uncommitted and anonymous environment. This was precisely the place I needed at that stage in my budding faith.

Flash forward a year later and during the first Sunday of Winter Quarter, I had stopped attending Mars Hill. I found myself more and more frustrated with the focus on specific roles for men and women, and felt as if I could not attend a church that concentrated more on a pastor's words than on acts of worship. On that same Sunday, I witnessed the baptism of a woman who had been in dire straits until she began attending Mars Hill. For her, the spirit led her there and kept her. For me, the spirit moved me elsewhere. Yet, it was clear to me that something good was taking place at Mars Hill.

A few days ago, I spoke with junior Ashley Dyer, an art history major whose life was turned around by Mars Hill. In the midst of what she described as a "dangerous depression," she started attending the church because it offered "something different than other churches. Up until then, I had learned rules of obedience in church, but never a real relationship with Jesus," she said. Mars Hill offered something that had been missing in her life and profoundly changed the way she looked at faith.

"Mark (Driscoll) was saying things I didn't want to hear," she said. "I felt convicted to change."

A discussion with senior Aaron Kellogg about Mars Hill's community groups also illustrated how such a mega-church can manage community on a smaller level.

"My community group is mostly SPU guys," Kellogg said. "It allows me to share and dig deeper into the word of God."

Mars Hill is a mega-church in one of the least churched cities in the United States. Yes, it has its issues, but good things are happening there. Sit down and talk with someone who attends, and I guarantee that you will find someone seeking a stronger relationship with God.

The world is not black and white, neatly divided into those who are right and those who are wrong. It is muddled and mixed. But when we lose sight or ignore the good that is arising out of Mars Hill's ministry, we have asserted our rightness and their wrongness. Ultimately, this means we have failed to love our neighbors and most often have fallen into judgment. This, I think, is far worse than our discomfort over any theological failing Mars Hill may have.

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