When I was growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, television evangelists were blossoming. I would see Billy Graham, Oral Roberts, Kathryn Kuhlman, Ernest Angley, and many more on the television. The only one given any credibility in our home was Billy Graham. He was Baptist and we were Baptist so that settled it.
Yet it went deeper. It also involved a credibility of Graham’s ministry and his personhood. He was even an evangelist we actual met—me at 13 years old.
With that background, I was glad to see Katelyn Beaty—who once worked for an organization Graham helped start, Christianity Today—give Graham a good overview.
On page 32 she writes, “Graham still came across as authentic and approachable. His charisma was undeniable, but he seemed down-to-earth. Graham was not about the glitz, and he did not seek out or flaunt a lavish lifestyle.”
Nothing is inherently wrong with a pro-Jesus person having a persona, a platform, and making profits. It is the excesses. It is the motives.
It is the focus on the success of the celebrity and their own organization versus a focus on the people needing the unconditional love of Jesus. It is the focus inauthentically on the celebrity and the success of the organization they build around them rather than the significance of the Good News for the people who are the focus of the ministry?
The genuine non-celebrity approach must be done in such a way that everyone is honored as a person created in the image of God to live and to love. Both the people who work for the ministry and the people with whom they are ministering.
It is with these understandings that I lift up some really great things in this book.
Beaty defines “celebrity as “social power without proximity—the chance to influence without knowing or being known by those you are influencing.” (100)
The book points out Christian ministries and leaders that fit the definition. Also, Christians not in church or parachurch ministry who claim a Christian stance but do it in such a way they also embody the excesses of celebrity gone wrong.
My personal interest was on the church and parachurch ministries and their leaders. Several somewhat random aspects of the book spoke to me.
First, about an elder board, Beaty suggests “an elder board can give the appearance of accountability while in practice rubberstamping a leader’s agenda.” (58) Yes, I have seen this.
Some lead pastors claim a theological rationale or a biblical support for an elder board. But their practice shows they use it to get what they want without having to offer transparency to the congregation.
I have also seen elder boards become controlling of the pastor which results in abuses. It becomes the celebrity of the elders where they are drunk on their own power.
Second, on the work and economic abuse of staff that shows itself in low wages and a demand for time commitment from them. Beaty clearly states this in saying, “often, the people working around the clock to keep the ministry running are underpaid, which breaks the biblical command to pay workers fair wages (Jer.22:13; Deut. 24:15).” (80)
I have first-hand knowledge of staff from one of the churches cited in the book whose children were on state government sponsored health insurance because the staff salaries were so low. The church did not provide insurance. They used a legal yet unethical work-around of employment laws. The parents could not afford marketplace insurance for their family.
Third, nondisclosure agreements are antithetical to transparency. On page 84 Beaty indicates transparency is the key to accountability. NDA’s break trust with the congregation, and with the character and nature of the Good News of Jesus.
Finally, I love this statement of needed self-awareness on page 127: “The pastors who become healthy—who can move beyond a persona, get in touch with their true self, and lead from integrity and humility—are the ones who expect they might have these tendencies and want to address them.”
Yes, buy the book. Read it. Examine your own celebrity tendencies.
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Such a Needed Conversation!
This wonderful book validating my own thoughts and feelings from the past few years as I’ve worked on writing my own book. There is a big push to be awesome and out there on social media, but Jesus said crazy sounding things all the time that made the crowds leave. I struggled to reconcile the two views.Katelyn spoke directly to my heart, exposing our obsession with celebrity and “being known for being known.” She encouraged me to be faithful and willing to be obscure.If—like me—you are trying to break into the publishing industry, read this book. If you struggle to balance social media and real life, read this book. And if you are wondering what the crap happened to the modern evangelical church over the last few years, read this book!!
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