By Aidan O’Connor | Radio Broadcaster
Recently, the comedian Druski released a skit poking fun at Christian megachurches by exaggerating some of their qualities. He flew through the air as smoke surrounded him, joked about impregnating everyone with the “Word of God,” wore Christian Dior because he is, of course, a Christian and included other dramatizations of megachurches. It was clearly comical, but not completely inaccurate.
Reactions to this skit include a shockingly large number of Christians describing the video as offensive and distasteful. Seeing these reactions, I was reminded of how poorly the modern church takes criticism.
From the jump, it seems several Christians shield themselves or attack those who do anything critical. I believe this is such an issue because it stops us, as Christians, from seeing valid flaws and arguments we might not have seen before.
If you immediately turned off the skit as soon as you felt it was making fun of megachurches, you would have missed the point of the video. The skit itself wasn’t an attack on Christianity, but the bad actors within it who abuse their power.
The things that Druski talks about aren’t just pulled out of thin air, either. They are based on actual events. There was one moment in particular where you can see him blatantly referencing an incident that happened earlier this year with Pastor Marvin Sapp.
During one of Sapp’s sermons, he had his ushers block off the exits until $40,000 worth of donations were acquired. Druski calls back to this by blocking off the exit for the congregation in the skit, but this time for $4 million.
This isn’t the only parallel within the skit, but an example of how several points Druski made were missed and misperceived. Missing or neglecting the valid points Druski or other people make against the church are slippery slopes that Christians must get out of.
If we, as Christians, react poorly to any type of criticism, how are we going to improve as a church? Iron sharpens iron, and just because someone points out something contrary to how the church is operating, we should listen to what they have to say without condemnation.
Just like with Druski, we should listen to what he is trying to tell us and see what needs to be changed. It is our duty to not allow our fellow Christians to fall by the wayside and continue the path they are going down. If we hear criticism about pastors like Sapp, we must heed what is being said and hold people accountable for their actions.
Druski pointing these things out, albeit in a comedic way, is something we should welcome. Holding others accountable and having more tolerance for criticism is something that will not just help strengthen the church now but help it be the best it can be in the future.
