‘Coreology’ helps Christians stay on the straight and narrow
The election season may be nearly over, but the final days before — and the first days after — Nov. 5 have the potential to be the most contentious, as we’ve seen before.
How do Christians stand for our faith without falling into the political fray?
Josh Ross. “Coreology: Six Principles for Navigating an Election Season Without Losing Our Witness.” Independently published. 2024. 129 pages. $13.99.
To answer that question, Josh Ross’ “Coreology” offers “Six Principles for Navigating an Election Season Without Losing Our Witness.”
Ross, minister for the Sycamore View Church of Christ in Memphis, Tenn., likens his book to rumble strips on the shoulder of the highway, gently but firmly reminding us to get back on track when we begin to drift off the path.
Importantly, he doesn’t advocate for Christians to isolate ourselves from politics and culture, to not care about important issues of our day — but rather to engage with them in a way that reflects Jesus.
To help Christians grappling with politics return to their core, he offers these mantras:
1: “I will daily confess that Jesus is the Lord of my life and nothing else is.”
“Sometimes it seems the way we talk reflects our politics and/or ideologies, more than our Savior and King,” Ross writes.
2: “I will create and honor regular spiritual practices that remind me of my devotion to Jesus.”
“You can’t give God a 3-minute devotional time in the morning, yet soak in cable news and podcasts for hours a day and think you can live a life devoted to Christ,” Ross says.
Related: Listen to Josh Ross’ interview on Episode 79 of The Christian Chronicle Podcast, recorded in front of a live audience in Memphis.
3: “I will resist allowing any media outlet to become the primary way I think about culture and the world.”
Media have a tendency to give us a black-and-white view of the world, and “when we give in to this kind of (binary) system, it makes unity, fellowship, and even evangelism extremely difficult,” Ross says.
4: “I will strive to become a peacemaker.”
“When you live in a world obsessed with winning, peacemaking doesn’t have a seat at the table,” Ross writes, while emphasizing that “peacemaking doesn’t mean you don’t have convictions.”
5: “I will practice hospitality as a way to learn, grow and invest in other people.”
“There is something about the dinner table, that opens up the heart to engage in meaningful dialogue,” Ross says. Meanwhile, “online comment sections are often where Christian-witness goes to die.”
6: “I will choose to regularly serve others.”
“Would pagan leaders, or non-Christians for that matter, observe the actions and behaviors of Christians and write, ‘That group of people love, serve, and care for others without limits,’” Ross wonders.
Josh Ross, minister for the Sycamore View Church of Christ in Memphis, Tenn., prays during chapel at York University.
The principles Ross lays out in “Coreology” are not specific to politics. They’re principles of everyday Christianity — which is kind of the point. Christians shouldn’t change who we are during an election season.
The challenge is to keep the political vitriol from dragging us off course and from hindering us in our mission of saving souls.
“It can take hours, weeks, months, maybe even years for people to trust the witness of a Jesus-follower, and that witness can be blown in a moment,” Ross writes.
Despite Ross’ (valid) criticism of some journalism and (joking) characterization of Alabama fans as “conceited and narcissistic,” this short book is worth a read for anyone who wants to ensure politics — or any other distractions of the day — aren’t pulling them away from Jesus.
CALVIN COCKRELL is the media editor for The Christian Chronicle and serves as the young adults minister for the North Tuscaloosa Church of Christ in Alabama. Reach him at [email protected].
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The post ‘Coreology’ helps Christians stay on the straight and narrow appeared first on The Christian Chronicle.
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