Functional Atheism and a Mindset of Scarcity

In his book, Let Your Life Speak, Parker Palmer describes functional atheists as people who claim they believe in God but function in their lives as atheists. “It’s the godless belief that the ultimate responsibility for everything rests with us.”

We may talk of our trust and faith in God, but we may doubt God will show up in time and wonder if we need to be the ones to make things happen. This results in a Christian witness and lifestyle that lacks spiritual integrity on a core level.

Jacob Wrestling with the Angel by Eugene Delacroix

Functional atheism is not a new phenomenon. Sarah felt she had to take over for God and secure her lineage by giving Hagar to Abraham. Moses struck the rock instead of following God’s direction for securing water. Martha tried to inform Jesus on how he should handle Mary.

Functional Atheism is glaring in Jacob throughout his entire life (Genesis 25:19–34:27). God has promised him blessing and prosperity, but he insists on attaining it. He uses deception and manipulation for the desired outcomes in Esau and Laban. This struggle against God reaches its climax at the Jabbok River, where he wrestles with what might have been God himself. The fight seems to end in a stalemate, until Jacob still insists on control. He demands a blessing, but gets a dislocated hip instead.

Followers of Jesus and the churches that they form want big things and face huge challenges, but in reality have limited control over them. God is in control of it all. We are in control of ourselves. We control our responses to crises, conflicts and temptations. We decide whether or not to fulfill the vows made at our baptisms. We choose to place our lives in useful submission to God.

The truth is is, there is only one that can be God and it isn’t us.

About Corey Sharpe

Where do we get our beliefs? Three theological perspectives have significantly shaped my Christian identity: Evangelicalism, the early Methodist tradition and liberation theology. From my coming to faith in a Baptist church and throughout my education in a Baptist school and college, I was nurtured by convictions that emphasized a spiritual rebirth, a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the centrality of the Bible. Even when I disagree with certain aspects of evangelicalism, it has deeply influenced my sense of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. My seminary studies spawned my interest in early Methodism, particularly its approach to spiritual formation. Its leaders were convinced that only a foundation of doctrine and discipline would lead to a meaningful transformation of the heart and mind. In other words, having the mind of Christ enables me to be more like Christ. Life in a suburban culture obscures the increasing gap between the poor and rich, as well as the Bible’s close identification with the poor. My doctoral work in socio-cultural context exposed me to liberation theology, which helps me see redemptive history as a history of oppressed groups, written from the perspective of the powerless, about a God who is actively involved with the poor in their struggles. I am now the pastor at Mount Zion United Methodist Church in St Mary’s County, Maryland. Together my wife and I have 4 children.

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