Abiding

[pecunium]

On the flip side of my last post, there are those Christians who don't subscribe to the pernicious doctrines I was railing against in my last post (disjointed though the beginning was).

Sojournors

An excerpt.

Confessing Christ in a World of Violence

Our world is wracked with violence and war. But Jesus said: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God" (Matt. 5:9). Innocent people, at home and abroad, are increasingly threatened by terrorist attacks. But Jesus said: "Love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you" (Matt. 5:44). These words, which have never been easy, seem all the more difficult today.

Nevertheless, a time comes when silence is betrayal. How many churches have heard sermons on these texts since the terrorist atrocities of September 11? Where is the serious debate about what it means to confess Christ in a world of violence? Does Christian "realism" mean resigning ourselves to an endless future of "pre-emptive wars"? Does it mean turning a blind eye to torture and massive civilian casualties? Does it mean acting out of fear and resentment rather than intelligence and restraint?

Faithfully confessing Christ is the church's task, and never more so than when its confession is co-opted by militarism and nationalism.

3. Christ commands us to see not only the splinter in our adversary's eye, but also the beam in our own. The distinction between good and evil does not run between one nation and another, or one group and another. It runs straight through every human heart.

We reject the false teaching that America is a "Christian nation," representing only virtue, while its adversaries are nothing but vicious. We reject the belief that America has nothing to repent of, even as we reject that it represents most of the world's evil. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23).

...The Lord Jesus Christ is either authoritative for Christians, or he is not. His Lordship cannot be set aside by any earthly power. His words may not be distorted for propagandistic purposes. No nation-state may usurp the place of God. "

Comments

Re: Respect means that G_d is a word that entails many religious teachings

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

...but I will respectfully disagree with your equation of "most orthodox" with "most observant." I cannot speak to Judaism, as I am not Jewish.

Oh no, she is right. The orthodox are more observant. The question is whether or not those sorts of observance is still required. This has been one of the most difficult questions in talmudic argument, one might argue is the only question in talmudic argument.

The hasidim are observant to an extreme (and the Ba'al Shem Tov would, I think, take them to task for losing sight of his primary message, but that would be a major digression).

But, as the Jewish understanding is that there are two parallel bodies of Law (think of it as the Constitution, and the decisions of the Supreme Court), and as a result differing sets of rulings lead to a host of variants on the religion. The three most of us are aware of are Orthodox, Conservative and Reform, with the various flavors of Hasidim being added to the understanding of the outside world in the past few decades.

TK

Re: Respect means that G_d is a word that entails many religious teachings

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

As I said, I cannot speak to Judaism, not being Jewish and having really little knowledge of Judaism. I was if anything reacting to the assertion that "more orthodox" = "more observant" is applicable in Christian thought. I was especially reacting to what I perceived to be an assertion that Roman Catholicism by its nature had a greater claim to theological/moral legitimacy than "less orthodox" or "less rigorous" Christian sects.

The nature of faithfulness to God is a difficult thing to determine. This is especially true of Christianity, which in its canonical writings rejects the idea of salvation through law. My sister. who is the wife of an Antiochean Orthodox priest, once told me that "we can tell where the church is, we cannot tell where it is not." Simply because the expressions of faith do not follow a specific form does not mean that faith is not there. Only God knows the heart of men.

Re: Respect means that G_d is a word that entails many religious teachings

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

I certainly agree, with respect to Christian faiths. Being a Catholic (though not quite apostate) I understand the dilemma.

Elizabeth I said it best, "I will not make a window into the hearts of men." Henry was, at heart, a Catholic, just not, after all was said and done, a follower of the Pope.

TK