The Universe Speaks to Oprah
Lately I have been hearing a lot of talk about Christians boycotting Oprah because of some of the people, products and things she endorses along with some of the spiritual language she is using. To be honest I haven’t really paid much attention to this, but I happened to tune in a couple of weeks ago because she featured Marcus Buckingham, one of my favorite authors.
In that episode Oprah made several comments to how “the universe speaks to us” or how “the universe guides you”. The language was a little odd and a felt forced.
Tonight I spent some time searching the internet and some message boards and found myself more upset with other Christians than with Oprah. I was troubled by the hateful, angry, judgmental attitude I perceived from a lot of Christians. We act hurt and appalled that a non-Christian is not sharing the Gospel.
No, I don’t agree with most of what Oprah endorses and we don’t share the same views on Christ or our faith, however as far as I know she doesn’t claim to be a Christ-follower so why would I expect her to do anything differently?
I recently finished reading the book UnChristian and this issue with Oprah got me thinking about how we as Christ-followers should respond. Here are a couple of quotes from the book that have me thinking:
- Christians are primarily perceived for what they stand against. We have become famous for what we oppose, rather than who we are for.
- Outsiders (non-christians) believe we are more interested in proving we are right than that God is right. They say Christians are more focused on condemning people than helping people become more like Jesus.
- When it comes to our interaction with outsiders, we have to realize that our relationships, our interactions with people, comprise the picture of Jesus that people retain.
- To rebuild our lives and restore our nation, we have to recover love and concern for others.
I encourage you to read this book. It will challenge you to rethink how you are interacting and communicating with people who don’t share our faith in Christ. In so many ways our judgmental reactions have alienated us from building relationship and earning influence by which we can display the love and grace of Christ.
No, I don’t support Oprah. I don’t watch the show. Oprah, however, has an amazing amount of influence in our world. Yes, I believe that we should be concerned that the message of the Gospel is lost and possibly even directly opposed by Oprah, so here is my question for you…
How do we as Christ-followers show the love of Christ in this situation? How do we make sure we are known for what we are for rather than for what we are against?
Boy, Jenni, you’re stepping on my toes with this and you are so right! I read an article by John Fischer some time back that stated it well. He said rather than seeing people as wrong, we need to see them as lost. He said, “when someone is lost, the other’s job is to find that person, and believe me, someone coming to my rescue is a much more welcome sight than someone coming as my judge.”
Now, if I can only remember that……
I read UnChristian, and you are right, it stirred so many thoughts and emotions in me. Sometimes I even had to ask the Lord why I found myself getting upset (defensive?) For me, too often I have thought I needed to defend God. Ha! As if He needed defending, and by me?! To strike out against someone who I thought was offending God, was the exact opposite of what God Himself does! I think I have resolved to let God do God’s work, and to only do what He calls me to do. He’s much better at it. My part is to let go of my will, surrender to His Spirit, His perfect love, and let Him love through me.
Just another thought: it’s amazing when a quote like “the universe speaks to us” or how “the universe guides you” is so similar to the truth of scripture, but a tad twisted. All creation speaks of God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. Hmmm.
Thanks for making me think this morning, Jenni.
wow.
this is really something to think about.
i think speaking and DOING more that speaks to what we are FOR, rather than sitting around pointing fingers.
i think that would make a difference.
Oprah has a voice because she is DOING something. she is FOR social reform. she is FOR charity. she is FOR the welfare of others. she speaks more about what she supports than what she doesn’t support.
she walks a fine line, of course, with that.
but the world listens to her.
and sometimes i can’t blame them. she has “answers” (as confounded as they might seem) and she cares.
Unfortunately it has taken us a long time to realize that “outsiders” as UnChristian calls them, really don’t have the same standards as we do, and there really is NO reason why they would. I thought about this the other day when congratulating a friend of mine on his upcoming baby…the one he and his girlfriend are having as they consider whether to live together or not. It is a joyous time in his life…how would he have felt if I had said “You can’t have a baby…you are not married!” with raised eyebrows.
In this area, as in so many, we need to let kindness and love dictate.
Jenni – this was very timely for me. Yesterday, I was engaged in an e-mail battle with someone over them forwarding an e-mail containing false information about one of the presidentail candidates. I replied to the e-mail saying the information stated in the e-mail was untrue and relayed the truth of the situation. I received a scathing reply informing me that the e-mailer was going to “spread anything I can, true or not”. This person is a Christian. I tried to remind of the fact that there is a commandment about spreading false witness, and that Jesus called us to love and pray for our enemies; not knowingly spread lies about them. I did not support the person being lied about, but in fairness felt that the truth should be shared as well. The e-mailer let me know they were not interested in the truth – only conveying the message they wanted to convey. It really saddened me.
In recent months, I have found myself thinking about Oprah’s beliefs, and even Rosie O’Donnell and wondering what I could do. The only thing we can do is pray. Like Kay said, it’s up to God to do His work…I can only pray for the person (Oprah, Rosie, the e-mailer) and try to be light to them. Then I have to let the Lord take it from there.
I think about the verse in Romans that reminds me that it’s God’s kindness, not his judgement, that leads me to repentance. It’s the way He loves and accepts me that makes me want to know Him and please Him. Why, then, should I be expecting anything BUT me being kind and loving to cause a watching world to look to Him for life change?
just awesome! I have been thinking about this so much lately. If we tell the world all of the beautiful freedom we experience in Christ instead of every book or program we are boycotting, I’m sure we could make a huge difference. I’m linking this today. This message is too important for Christians to ignore. Great job…just great!
Great discussion everyone. Thanks for your input!
Thanks for reminding me that I need to read unChristian, Jenni! I have some friends in my online mom’s group who have gotten completely sucked in to the Oprah/Tolle stuff and it just kills me. They are good people who I think have good intentions and do some great things, but they want “the answer” to be anything BUT Jesus. Most of these friends view spirituality as a sort of a la carte line, where it’s fine to just pick and choose what they like from different beliefs/religions and discard the rest if it doesn’t suit them.
If I’m honest, there are days when I don’t want to participate in the group anymore because even when I do share my faith, it’s just another nice idea to them. I have to constantly remind myself that without Christ and revelation from the Holy Spirit, we are spiritually dead. I cannot expect these friends to understand because their spiritual eyes have not yet been opened.
I also have to remind myself that in my case, I know that I am probably the only Christian friend they have in their sphere of influence. My job is to show love and pray that God will reveal Himself to them. That, in conjunction with truly living out my faith, is probably the most effective course of action.
I haven’t read the book yet, but now I want to. I have seen this so much, especially, in the North, that I have to admit, it angers me. But I see that in my anger of watching Christians being so judgmental, I have found myself judging them! There’s a fine line. So…the answer, at least for me, is to watch myself and my thoughts, respond with love and concern, in an attempt to show Christ’s love to everyone I meet. Actions speak louder than words sometimes. Good blog Jenni!
Since there was a link to my blog post about this, and since you seem to be down on at least part of what I wrote about, I felt compelled to answer.
First, you need to do a little more research. Oprah may not claim to be a Christian, but she is claiming to have the authority and truth about what Christ was teaching. In that, she is false and claiming what she does, is indeed heresy. As I said in my blog, she can teach and say what she wants, but I have a problem with her using Christian terminology.
Christ stood against the “religious” leaders of his day, and the Apostle Paul told us to put on Spiritual armor and “Stand” agains the trickery of the devil. If Oprah’s new age philosophy packaged in Christian terminology isn’t the trickery of the devil, I’m not sure what is.
Please don’t misunderstand. I do not disagree that as Christians, we need to show the love of God more truthfully. Romans commands that our love be without hypocrisy. A lesson many in modern religion could learn. But as we demonstrate God’s love, we need to be aware of God’s holiness. God does not tolerate sin, and neither should we. That does not mean we are cruel or intolerant of people by any means, but that we don’t shy away from calling sin what it really is. Not on an individual, person by person basis, but in a general sense.
I believe it was Martin Luther who first said that all that was necessary for evil to prevail was for good men (and women) to do nothing. You ask what we should do to show the world what we are for? At least one way is to show what we are against. While I will agree that Christianity had not done this properly for several centuries, in that we have attacked people rather than sin, but that does not mean we should throw out the baby with the bathwater. In the same way that physical darkness cannot exist or be defined without light, the position of Christianity cannot be defined without stating what we are against.
One final thought. While I agree 100% that Christians should be much more seasoned with love than we generally are, that is not the Scriptural method to restore our nation. In order to restore our nation to a Godly nation, we must focus on ourselves. We must huble ourselves, turn from our sin, and seek God’s face. Or rather, to state it better to get my point across, I must humble myself, turn from my sin, and seek God’s face. The focus of Christianity has been on “fixing” others for far too long, and now we need to turn that focus inward. We need to fix ourselves, personally and individually. Only then can we expect a healing of our nation. Any while that does include a true Godly love for others, that is not the only point at issue.
CC
I say boycott and put the magazine in the trash where it belongs. I wrote O magazine months ago for a refund. I have yet to see a dime. AND it routinely comes monthly. Routinely, it goes unopened in the trash.
I suggest you go to http://www.boycott-oprah.com for more information on this subject.
Thanks,
Boycotting Oprah for not having Palin on her show when you think she should? What a bunch of bull! With all of the good work REAL Christians could be involved in to make a REAL difference in people’s lives I find in absolutely incredible that a person who calls themselves a Christian would be spend time organizing a boycott of a TV show… Have all the hungry children been fed. Have the homeless found shelter and have all of the unborn been protected? Until the more urgent situations have been addressed I don’t think I will be paying much attention to a TV show or a boycott of one…. Even as Christians I believe sometimes WE are the one’s that get lost from time to time. Let’s all get our road map called the Bible and find our directions…
I am always amazed, speaking as a Jew, how Christians assume they are the only ones that can spread the Gospel. The Gospel doesn’t belong to Christians only. In fact, many Christians misunderstand the Gospel to mean something only about personal behaviors. Remember, I am more concern about the great things of the law, justice love and mercy. Love the poor, feed the poor- even if you must use the government to do it. Love the outcast- and that means everyone. I’m tired of Christians misusing scripture to avoid loving those created differently from them.
Jimmy, we are not advocating boycotting a TV show, we are exercising our right to not support a super-suite of products known as Oprah. Many of us believe she no longer has (or never had) her consumers interests in mind. That is all.
Talking about hungry children, Oprah has many all around her in the great city of Chicago, but decides to send funds over to Africa instead of devoting her time to one place to actually make a difference and not just feel good about herself. She can do what she wants and so can we. Good Christians and Jews should not only stray from bad behavior, but speak out against it.
http://boycott-oprah.com
-You
I’m a former Oprah fan who has finally decided I like myself too much too watch her show anymore. What was I thinking? Ya know, she has every right to endorse a political candidate and I actually respect her for this. However, the way she handled herself in my view was unprofessional and deceptive.
In addition, I personally take issue with the values she is promoting on the show. I have watched shows in which she seems to encourage couples to live together prior to marriage and even having children prior to marriage. I find it disturbing that she would do this when her fans come from largely Judeo-Christian beliefs. Besides, we know sociologically that this way of living is not ideal for women or families.
In addition, she presented the Tolle book as if it were “The Truth” and refers to Obama as “The One.”
She has made a name for herself and is entitled to her opinion. But with power comes responsibility. IMHO, she should temper her words and provide people with varying points of view on the show and show respect to them. In addition, she should honor the wishes of her fan base.
With reference to the hateful church both her and Obama were attending….well that is another concern. Personally, I think Oprah stopped attending mostly for business reasons. She knew that many would find it upsetting that she attended such a discriminatory church. I find it interesting that Barack didn’t figure this out. I also think Oprah stopped attending because she didn’t want to tithe. Barack Obama (BO) is obviously arragant or immature, for going to this hateful church and assuming it was okay with folks. I think he lives in his own world. Then he pretends like he was not aware of the message often being preached there. Ironically, Oprah heard this message after a couple of years, but BO didn’t hear during the twenty years he was there. However, just like politics as usual…BO lies to our faces about it and says that he never heard it being preached there, in fact, never heard it in twenty years. I find this impossible to believe and insulting that he would try to pass it off as the truth.
The entire ordeal is desperate, deceptive, biased and at times creepy. I’ve turned off Oprah and tuned out her candidate. I think she has increased racial tension, has questionable values and we can do much better with our time.
So…I too am boycotting the Oprah show, her magazine, radio, etc.
i think you ladies need to get a job, and if you have a job get another one!!! you have too much time on your hands. happy mamma…. you “think” Oprah didn’t want to tithe, how can you say something like that when you have no idea why she stopped going….. Have all of you forgotten that a relationship with God is a personal one…..the most intimate relationship you’ll ever have…for goodness sakes 15 Christians could read the same passage and you’ll get 15 different opinions on what it means, and they’ll argue about it!!!! Judging others is what keeps the lost from seeking out the Lord. You people call yourselves Christians and then proceed to judge everyone and think only your opinion is the right one. Oprah donated over 50 million dollars last year, to ALL kinds of charities, not just Africa…. WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE…..I STOPPED GOING TO CHURCH BECAUSE OF YOU JUDGEMENTAL BRATS THAT THINK YOU KNOW EVERYTHING. Church after church all i seen was women talking about other women and gossiping, drinking behind close doors and having adulteress relationships then go to church on Sunday waving your righteous flag claiming to be perfect….. My journey is walked side by side with Jesus Christ because He is the only one not being fake!!!!!! Judge yourselves, that should keep you too busy to watch any T.V., especially Oprah…………… Sharon
Julie P said: “I have to constantly remind myself that without Christ and revelation from the Holy Spirit, we are spiritually dead.”
And why exactly would “we” be spiritualy dead?
It amazes me that so many Christians seem to forget a whole other world that existed and flourish spiritually before any of the events described in the bible. Or have you forgotten that Asia exists? Did you know that Jesus was a scholar in the east? It was common for scholar from Greece, Egypt, and the other middle eastern kingdoms at the time to travel and exchange knowledge with eastern scholars.
But all that is besides the point.
God/jesus/the universe… why does it matter what we call it?
Also, did you ever consider that a woman as successful and influencial as Oprah doesn’t get there without help. So if some entity is helping Oprah speak to the world and give millions to Charity… perhaps this “entity” is quite happy with her message.
A suggestion… let’s say, just for a month, you dropped the religious bits about who, where, how and why. And just showed joy and love to all you encounter. Don’t give it a name or reason. Do it as an experiment. After a month you can go back to the names if you want. But dedicate yourself totally to the experiment. No jesus, no god, no bible. Only joy and love. (think about it… you always say god is love right??).
There is no trick. I sincerely doubt Jesus will mind if you think about expressing love instead of thinking about him for a month. Nor do I think showing love is “the devil’s ploy to get you to forget Jesus”
Seriously, the world is bigger and more diverse than you can imagine. Take the time to explore all the expressions of divinity.
HELLO?
I recommend that you DO NOT deify this Universe UNLESS you first seek to truly understand (and accept the consequences of) what you are deifying.
Do you really think that the laws of evolution that guide this tainted shroud are God’s laws? Wake up and smell the blood, this universe has death as an inherent mechanism!
God clearly states that death was NOT part of HIS plan in HIS WORD (aka The Bible) and through the prophets, apostles and His Christ Jesus (His Living Prophet and most perfect manifestation in a temple of human flesh). If you can get your mind around that (which I doubt any of are able to) you may find salvation. If you truly want salvation pray in the name of JESUS for it and you shall receive it.
End our slavery to death by worshiping LIFE (YHWH/JESUS).
Here’s a question:
If God is Life and Love (as Creator and Sustainer) and He manifests perfectly in a man in whom there is found no fault (and thus no sin/separation from God) can that man be put to death?
Answer – He couldn’t be and wasn’t and lives today as He did then. Get to know His name as He will return to judge all of our stupidity = Jesus His Son proved who He was and Who God IS and will be forever, AMEN.
You are wrong Mrs Jenni.God is not tolerant with deceivers.Why there is plagues in the last days?.St Paul:We preach Christ crucified and the conscious christ.Reference to the book the coin of the temple ISBN 1425905773 page 56 it is better for Oprah to REPENT or it would be better for her if a millstone were hung around her neck,and she were thrown into the see,
dayofwrath
correction for the last comment:throen into the sea.
dayofwrath
correction of last comment:thrown into the sea.Sorry for my poor english.I am not from your country.
dayofwrath