Back in 1919, the Chicago Blacksocks Baseball scandal was unfolding in the newspapers before the public eye of the American people. One afternoon as Shoeless Joe Jackson was leaving the field, a die-hard baseball fan cried out, “Joe, say it ain’t so, say it ain’t so.”
The July 6, 1990, issue of the United Methodist Reporter newspaper reported the findings of a Gallop poll that was conducted by the Board of Discipleship and the Reverend Ray Sells, a denominational executive. Here is what it states, “Study Says UMs Don’t Live Out Their Faith.”
“United Methodists are being influenced more by the values of American society than by the values of the Christian faith. Study results show that ‘people are bringing cultural values into the church for affirmation, not challenge…’
“What we’ve found is that the values in the marketplace have more power to shape people’s lives than the values of the Christian faith. I wanted to shout, `Say it ain’t so,’ but I know it is. It was a disturbing indictment. And I wondered, if it’s true of Methodist people across the nation, could it be true of us? Once again, inwardly I cried out — say it ain’t so. However, deep down, we know it is true.” (1)
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1. The United Methodist Reporter, Eastern Pennsylvania Edition, July 6, 1990, pg. 3.