The Heresy of Quiet Times

quiet_time“Jesus happens in quiet times.” Growing up, I remember a minister consistently using this line to guilt us into regular “quiet times.” We were told that these daily times of personal prayer and Bible study were what made us Christians.

We were not alone. Throughout the Christian faith, there exists this strange idea that quiet times are the base line of Christian practice.

This is heresy.

When Jesus declared that he would be incarnate in the least of these, we were shown what the base line of Christianity is … speaking up.

While I am by no means opposed to personal prayer or Bible study, I am opposed placing a supremacy on quiet times. In a world where people are regularly being oppressed and marginalized to death, we need less quiet times and more loud times of prophetic resistance.

“Jesus happens in loud times.”

Amen.

This post originally appeared on Jeff’s blog, revjeffhood.com

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Hood-JeffThe Rev. Dr. JEFF HOOD is a Baptist pastor, theologian and activist living and working in Texas. A graduate of Auburn University, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Emory University’s Candler School of Theology, University of Alabama and Creighton University, Dr. Hood recently concluded a Doctorate of Ministry in Queer Theology at Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. Dr. Hood was ordained at a church within the Southern Baptist Convention. Presently, Dr. Hood serves as Minister of Social Justice for Hope for Peace and Justice, the social justice ministry of a collection of churches.

The author of five books, Dr. Hood also serves in the governing leadership of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, Fellowship of Reconciliation USA, Pastors for Texas Children and Hope for Peace and Justice. In 2013, Dr. Hood was awarded PFLAG Fort Worth’s Equality Award for Activism. In addition to being a husband and father of five children, Dr. Hood also maintains a close friendship with Texas Death Row prisoner Will Speer. With deep soul, Dr. Hood is a radical mystic and prophetic voice to a closed society. You may follow Jeff on his blog, revjeffhood.com
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