This is a slightly modified version of a joke I heard yesterday in church:
Three pastors – an evangelical, a Roman Catholic priest, and an emergent pastor – died and found themselves at Heaven’s Gate with St. Peter. Peter explained that they had to correctly answer one question before they could gain admittance. If they answered wrong, they’d unfortunately be excluded.
Peter first turned to the evangelical pastor. “Who do you say that Jesus Christ is?”
The pastor started, “The Bible says, …”
“Sorry,” Peter replied. “I asked what you believed, not what the Bible said. You cannot come in.” Turning to the Priest, Peter asked, “Who do you say that Jesus Christ is?”
The Priest thought a moment. “The Pope and Church tradition says…”
“I’m sorry, Father, but you, too, failed to answer the question.” Peter now turned to the young emerging pastor and asked the same question.
The young man began, “Jesus Christ is the Messiah, God’s Son, and the Savior of the world.”
Peter smiled wide. As he turned to open the gate, the emerging pastor continued, “But, on the other hand…”
I love it! Great Rector.
In the original version, the “emergent pastor” was Episcopalian.
The Associate Rector seems to enjoy pointing out the congregation’s weak points. Last week, it was: “Sometimes I like to walk into a group of Episcopalians and whisper ‘evangelism’ just to see them scatter.”
Wow. Good jokes in church? The next thing they’ll try are meaningful sermons.