Last week, I wrote about the Sisters of Mary. As I wrote, I was continually thinking about Ann McNulty. So let me tell you about her.

You’d love Ann. When I met her back in 1981, she was 54 years old, never-married, and in fulltime Christian service. I met her one night in a downtown Huntington teen outreach center operated by Huntington University students. I was there to do an article. She was an adult sponsor that night.

Ann, slender with short-cropped graying hair, was running around in bluejeans having a great time. All around her, rock music blared deafeningly and unkempt teenagers loitered, smoked, and generally acted cool, hip, with-it, or whatever term they used back then. Ann looked out of place there, but yet, she seemed to be enjoying it more than anyone else.

I began talking to her.

“Isn’t this great!” Ann told me with genuine enthusiasm. “All these kids here!”

We talked a while.

“What church do you attend?” I eventually asked.

“Victory Noll,” she replied.

What? Isn’t Victory Noll–no, can’t be!

But it was true. Victory Noll was the local convent. So Ann was a–nun!?! Sister Ann. But–a nun wearing bluejeans!

Twice in the next few months, a couple singles from my church (both of them former missionaries) joined me in visiting Sister Ann at the convent. During those times, she demolished every stereotype we held about nuns. She was totally delightful. Humorous, lively, expressive, open-minded, and deeply committed to the Lord. We ate a meal at the convent and, like everyone else, washed our own dishes. We had some beautiful Christian fellowship as, steering clear of our differences in theology and worship, we shared our common desire to please God in all things and honor Him as Lord.

Sister Ann told us her story. She worked in secular jobs until age 27, all the time sensing God’s call on her life to become a nun. She couldn’t understand it.

“I love guys, kids, and homemaking,” she told a priest. “With those desires, how could God want me to become a nun!”

“It just means you’re normal,” he told her. “If you didn’t have those desires, we probably wouldn’t want you to become a nun.”

She continued struggling with the idea. Then her boyfriend proposed.

He was the type of man she had always wanted to marry, and she would have been very happy spending her life with him. But she couldn’t escape God’s call–which she increasingly felt was God’s call–and now she was forced to make a decision.

“No,” she told her boyfriend, “l have to take care of something else.”

Not long after that, Ann entered Victory Noll, the home base for her order. Since then, she had served two-year assignments in at least seven states, usually ministering to children (interestingly, one stint was in Tulare, Calif., where I graduated from high school). When she was back in Huntington, she helped care for some of the very elderly nuns living at Victory Noll; she expressed the joy she received caring for these women, who had devoted their own lifetime to ministering to others. Sister Ann had undoubtedly influenced countless people with her deep spiritual commitment and bubbly enthusiasm for life.

At the time, as a Christian single, I envied Sister Ann. She didn’t have to contend with people pressuring her to find a husband, get married, settle down, raise a family, etc. Twenty-seven years before, she had made a public vow to remain single so she could serve God unreservedly.

She didn’t wonder, every time she met a handsome guy, “Is this the one for me?” That had already been decided. He wasn’t. And she didn’t hear well-meaning people say, “I’ve got a friend I’d like you to meet,” or “There’s this new guy in my church. I think you’d really like him.” They knew her heart was already committed elsewhere.

In a way, I wish the Protestant community had a counterpart for nuns and monks. It would take a lot of pressure off Christian singles who are as committed to ministry as Sister Ann. For Catholics, a life of singleness and service is legitimate, valued, and honored. But evangelical Christians view singleness as a second-rate lifestyle, something to be abandoned as soon as “the right person,” or someone fairly close to it, comes along. In the evangelical mindset, marriage always overrules singleness.

I think of some single missionaries who have given their entire adult lives to serving Christ overseas. That is a high calling. And yet, I’m sure they have endured the shortsighted coaxings of other people to exchange it for marriage, to settle down and raise a family. To be altogether normal, average. When I see a single give up a very productive ministry in a parachurch organization or mission in order to get married, I don’t always view it as a good thing for God’s Kingdom.

I did it. I gave up ten years of ministry-filled singleness to get married. But that was the path God wanted me to take–I have no doubt about that. But it’s not everybody’s path. We Christians just think it is. And so, we have a lot of singles out there who are waiting for the right guy or gal to come along, so that they can “start” their life. And that always makes me sad.

I’m not a fan of Keith Olberman, but when I turned the TV on last night after returning from a Tin Caps baseball game, that’s what was on (a vestige of watching Morning Joe earlier in the day).

Olberman was interviewing a Muslim pastor (or whatever you call him) and an evangelical pastor, Steve Stone, from the Heartsong church in Memphis, Tenn.

When Stone heard that a new Memphis Islamic Center was locating next to them, he put a sign on the street that said, “Heartsong Church welcomes Memphis Islamic Center to the neighborhood.”

The video clip above shows the entire interview on Countdown. (If you’re reading this in Facebook, you’ll need to click on the “View Original Post” link to view the video.)

Heartsong even let the Muslim congregation meet in their building while the Islamic center was under construction.

Stone says, “This place doesn’t belong to us, it’s God’s place and we’re just sharing it.”

Over 100 Muslims would meet at Heartsong every night during Ramadan and put out floor mats to pray.

Stone said, “I understand the fear that people have about it, because if you don’t know somebody, the first thing you’re going to do is fear them….Our belief is let’s get to know these people and see who they are, and so far our experiences have been very positive.”

The interview on Countdown was superb, an example of what Christianity should be about. As Stone said, “The people across the street from us are Muslims, and Jesus taught us to love our neighbor, and they are our neighbors. We’re loving them, and they’re loving us back.”

This doesn’t mean Christians shouldn’t try to convert Muslims to the true faith. But Stone’s attitude will go a whole lot further than the Quran-burning fanaticism of Terry Jones in Florida.

I was also impressed with the words of the Memphis center’s leader, Dr. Bashar Shala. Olberman mentioned how people in Muslim nations may assume that if the government doesn’t prevent Terry Jones from buring the Quran, the government must be in favor of it.

Dr. Shala, who has lived in Memphis for 20 years, replied, “If you don’t live in freedom, it’s sometimes hard to fathom what freedom really means. That’s the problem of communicating with those who don’t have what we have.”

Well said. And, Heartsong and Pastor Stone, well lived.

With Glenn Beck increasingly talking about God and Christ, and using the same terminology that Christians use, it’s easy for Christians to assume, “He’s one of us. He believes the same things.” But he’s a Mormon. The Mormons are adept at using our terminology, but giving it different meaning.

Now, he’s using pretty specific terminology about salvation by faith in Christ alone, and he has presented the salvation message clearly on his show. Is he a born-again Christian living within the Mormon church? Is that even possible? Ed Decker writes, “Only after Beck announces that he is leaving the Mormon Church will I believe he is a Christian in a biblical sense.” This is all very puzzling.

The fact is, Mormons differ substantially with Christians on every major doctrine. There is no compatibility. Mormonism is an entirely different religion. You can’t be an evangelical Christian and a Mormon at the same time, anymore than you can simultaneously be a Buddhist and a Muslim.

Glenn Beck has an influential platform, and he declares himself as part of the Christian mainstream. He surrounds himself with persons with solid Christian credentials. Legions of Christians follow his program religiously. With Saturday’s rally at the Lincoln Memorial, and his new group to organize pastors, Beck has positioned himself as a leader of Conservative evangelicals. As I said, it’s very puzzling.

Richard Land, who directs public policy for the Southern Baptist Convention, and who doesn’t consider Beck a Christian, says he was stunned by the “Restoring Honor” rally.

“His shows sound like you’re listening to the Trinity Broadcasting Network, only it’s more orthodox and there’s no appeal for money…and today he sounded like Billy Graham.”

So it’s important to know, when he throws around Christian lingo, what he actually believes. When he talks about Christ or God or salvation, don’t apply your own understanding of that word. As long as he identifies himself as a Mormon, those words have a different meaning based in Mormon theology.

I researched Mormonism years ago, but had forgotten much of it. So I did a quick refresher study, wanting to be reminded of the fundamental beliefs of Mormonism. Listen to Glenn Beck all you want. Join his causes. Just be aware of what his religion is all about.

God. God was once a man named Elohim living on another planet, who became a god by following the laws of that planet’s god. He then came to earth with his wife, and they produced offspring–Jesus, Lucifer, and all the rest of humanity. God is not a spirit, but has a flesh-and-bones body. Mormons say, “As man is, God was. As God is, man shall become.”

God says in Isaiah 44:6, “I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.” Mormons don’t believe that.

Jesus. Jesus was merely the first child of God. Lucifer was the second child, and you and I are equally children of God (Jesus is our oldest sibling). Jesus is now a god.

Trinity. Rather than God in three persons, the Mormon trinity involves three separate persons–the god who rules our planet, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit (the only god who doesn’t have a body).

Bible. The Bible is accurate only as far as it is correctly translated. Mormons believe it has been corrupted over the years. It is basically trustworthy, but not infallible like the other Mormon holy documents: the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.

Book of Mormon. An angel directed Joseph Smith to some gold plates, which he translated. The Book of Mormon is more authoritative than the Bible. It contains a lot of really strange stuff.

The Church. The church is the Mormon church with its organizational structure and laws, not the universal body of believers. Mormons view themselves as the true church of Jesus Christ. After Christ’s death, the church fell into apostasy. When Joseph Smith came along in the 1800s, the true gospel hadn’t been preached for 1800 years. Thomas A’Kempis, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Wesley–all heretics.

Man. We exist as spirits in heaven until we are given human form as babies, at which point our memories of preexistence are wiped out. We all have the chance to become gods of our own planets.

Salvation. Mormons achieve perfection not through Christ’s atoning death on the cross, but by works–by following the tenants of the Mormon church.

Former Mormon prophet Spencer Kimball wrote, “One of the most fallacious doctrines originated by Satan and propounded by man is that man is saved alone by the grace of God; that belief in Jesus Christ alone is all that is needed for salvation.”

Christ’s sacrifice is not enough to cleanse us from our sins. Good works are necessary. Also: There is no salvation without accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet of God. (Brigham Young wrote that only polygamists would become gods.)

Baptism. It’s necessary for salvation. Your ancestors can be baptized by proxy, which is why Mormons are so big on genealogy research. (Christians believe baptism is an important ordinance, but not necessary for salvation.)

Heaven. Everyone will go to one of three levels of heaven. The Celestial Kingdom is for Mormons who become gods, the Terrestrial Kingdom is for moral people and lukewarm Mormons, and the Telestial Kingdom is for everyone else.

Hell. There is no eternal punishment. Hell is just a temporary place between death and resurrection. “Eternal damnation” refers to anything less than becoming a god.

Living Prophets. The head of the Mormon Church is a living prophet whose pronouncements carry more weight than scripture. Brigham Young believed his sermons were equal to Scripture. “I have never yet preached a sermon and sent it out to the children of men, that they may not call Scripture.”

David Barton tells Christians to ask, “What fruit do you see produced by Glenn?…Christians concerned about Glenn’s faith should judge the tree by its fruits, not its labels,”

That is a dangerous, dangerous attitude. It is not our works that make us Christians, but our faith in Christ. We can find good, moral people doing great work in every religion, including atheism. But their fruit doesn’t make them fellow Christians.

Ed Decker describes the problem this way:

Beck = Christian,
Beck = Mormon
Mormon = Christian

Just because you like what Glenn Beck declares regarding President Obama and the Founding Fathers and everything else, don’t assume that he is a brother in Christ.

Matthew 24:24–“For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.”

I think this video clip from Texas pastor Matt Chandler is right on. He talks about the “de-churched,” the growing phenomenon in the United States of young people who are abandoning the church. My church, Anchor, has often referred to itself as a church for the de-churched–people who once attended, but had a bad experience or became disillusioned or whatever. Lots of different reasons. But Chandler hits one valid angle.

(If you’re reading this on Facebook, you’ll need to click the link for “Read Original Post” to view the video clip on my blog.)

Chandler says, “They were sold, ‘Here’s how you put God into your debt.'”

I think that’s a great way to put it.

You behave yourself, follow the rules, do good things, attend church regularly–all the things a Christian should do. And in return, we promise, God won’t let anything bad happen to you. You’ll have a wonderful life. Everything will work out.” Because God is obligated to come through for you. It’s an evangelical, tone-down version of the Prosperity Gospel.

Then, when things don’t go according to their wishes, they bail out on the church. It’s not what they were promised. The Christian life isn’t supposed to be difficult. The church deceived them. Their investment turned sour.

Skye Jethani talks about this further on Christianity Today’s “Out of Ur” blog. He writes:

They believe that if they just follow God’s rules he will bless their lives. When things fail to work out as promised, they bail on the church….

It’s not that we are failing to preach the gospel, but that we are
failing to deconstruct the consumer filter through which people twist
and receive it. The result is a hybrid consumer gospel in which God
exists to serve me and accomplish my desires in exchange for my
obedience….

I think there are plenty of people willing to deny themselves and take up their cross. But we too often neither ask that of people, nor even present it as something they might consider doing. Instead, people just hear the false gospel of sugar and spice and everything nice. And when they encounter something that’s not nice, that’s difficult, their consumer mentality draws their attention elsewhere.