For me, it started with the supposedly biblical teaching. Small cracks appeared in the internalized doctrinal edifice. Still I found very many good things in my evangelical environment, however there was a problem with the teaching. Things were put forward as “biblical” for which there was no confirmation in the Bible. Much has been inferred about the Bible and faith without being rooted in Scripture. I saw this discrepancy more and more clearly and in more and more places. So my confidence in the doctrinal edifice crumbled.

What happens then might have been called a rectification of this Bible teaching 50 years ago. Wrong teaching was replaced by right teaching. However, that no longer applies today. Today, it’s about more. It is not just about understanding the Bible, but also about a broader understanding of faith. In addition, there are more and more forms of community that arise outside of churches and congregations. If nothing else, it’s about letting go of a rigid and flawed belief in order to replace it with something better and more alive. Today, we often speak of deconstruction when long-held assumptions crumble away until perhaps there is nothing left.

How do we deal with it?

Deconstruction and reconstruction

Of course, the “nothing” is warned against. Especially in evangelical circles. Then you lose faith, I have often heard. What actually happens, however, is somewhat different: people question what is taken for granted. Sometimes I want to shout out loud, “The cracks in the doctrine – don’t you see them?”.

For me it started with teaching, for others it started in other places, such as rigid confinements or exclusions. When a deconstruction begins, it is also a sign of a reorientation. Some leave not only the teaching but also the church. You get out. Some become ex-evangelicals, are no longer Christian, and abandon any notion of faith. However, this is far from true for everyone. Deconstruction can also be continued in reconstruction. Then one speaks rather of post-evangelical.

The occasion for my deconstruction was the examination of the Bible. I realized that many a doctrine is not confirmed by the Bible, but diametrically opposed to it. Therefore, although I have experienced a deconstruction, I have also experienced a reconstruction based on the Bible. I consciously worked out a new understanding of faith. That took many years and I don’t think that process will ever be completed. Because not only am I learning, but I’m getting older, reflecting differently, and realizing that the earth has turned a few times too. Furthermore, society, church and many other things are changing. We remain engaged in a process. Today, I tend to ask questions like: Is my understanding of faith open to change? Does my trust in God have room for others, even if they don’t think like me?

I no longer share many of the assumptions of a typical evangelical theology. However, this does not mean that I no longer take the Bible seriously. Rather, the point is that I no longer take the former doctrinal buildings seriously. There are far more lively views, which in my opinion are much better based on the Bible.

Today I want to encourage others to learn to read and understand the Bible with new eyes. My understanding of the Bible has changed, namely deepened. My understanding of faith has changed, namely expanded. I am no longer naive about everything and now also think that I am not young enough to know everything.

Overcome challenges

Deconstruction is often demanding. Some people wrestle with the internalized lessons of the past for a lifetime. Some are traumatized by rigid and strange ideas. This is to be taken seriously. Not everyone comes out of a deconstruction resolved and liberated. However, this is precisely what it is worthwhile to work for. It then takes much more than just better answers to biblical questions. A new understanding of faith that touches life is needed.

People who dare to deconstruct would be a precious source of good inspiration for communities – if they are taken seriously. People who drop out dare to think faith in a new way (See the article: “Breaking out of rigid faith structures”). They are the ones who can drive renewal from within. However, when they leave the community, there was no room for such a process. This usually has to do with the culture of the community in question.

Those who dare to deconstruct can do so on the basis of various questions, such as:

• “Hey, this teaching isn’t right – I need to address this”.
• “I can’t stand this narrowness in the community.”
• “I’m not going to take this exclusion of others anymore.”
• “Why should I take seriously the community that doesn’t take me seriously?”
• “Pitting God’s love against His justice? Not with me!”
• “Faith is sober and thereby not what I experience on Sunday.”
• “Religious paternalism? No, thanks.”

Which reason is decisive for you does not matter. Something can be the impetus for you to deal with the previous belief system and to question the traditional. That’s fine, and you’re not alone in having such thoughts.

There are two sides to reorientation. On the one hand, there is somethingthat you no longer want. On the other hand, there is something thatyou positively want. It is not enough to reflect only one side. If you want to get through deconstruction well, you need both of these things, but above all you need an understanding of what you positively want.

Deconstruction means adventure. It’s like leaving on a ship without knowing when and where you’re going to arrive. This can only be mastered with a healthy self-confidence and/or a healthy trust in God. It can be helpful to realize that God is not bound by the teachings of men. It is not our understanding that matters, but His work. Psalm 23 reads: “He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake”. That has always made me confident.

Develop basics

Reconstruction can be approached in several ways. Some begin to study theology, others first immerse themselves in other religions. Still others take a church break or begin to examine specific questions using the Bible and come to a new understanding. Reconstruction is a process.

In this process, you can consciously set your own course. If you let go of doctrine – or this one form of piety that you have experienced – you can look for alternatives. If you want to look for an alternative, you need clear questions. Only with clear questions can there be clear answers. With what attitude and with what goal we look for it does not matter. Paul gives advice in the form of a prayer:

“And for this I pray that your love may overflow still more and more in knowledge and all sensitivity to it, that you may examine what is essential.”
Phil 1:9

Those who question their previous assumptions are in a state of upheaval. You can think of it as a construction site. Some things are broken away, others are rebuilt. Temporarily, it looks a bit chaotic at first glance. Sometimes sparks fly! These are just snapshots. A process takes longer and means development.

There is a special challenge for evangelical Christians who very consciously take the Bible seriously, but who no longer agree with the doctrines. This is difficult because doctrine is often equated with the Bible. It is a double liberation blow if one has the courage to let go of the doctrine on the one hand and to take the Bible seriously nevertheless on the other hand (now detached from the doctrinal edifice and open for new insights).

Building a new understanding of faith

The second part of this mini-series will be about how we can read the Bible with new eyes. The doctrinal imprint one has experienced may have become so flesh and blood that renovation is not possible, but reconstruction becomes necessary. You need tools for both deconstruction and reconstruction. Just as this is demonstrated on a construction site.