hmmm
Is there anyone besides me troubled by the idea of the "ownership society?" If we're truly a Christian nation, shouldn't we be talking about a "stewardship society?" And shouldn't Christian politicians be talking about sharing the gifts of the community (something I vaguely remember from various Pauline passages and oh, the book of Acts) instead of self-reliance?Just a thought. . .
posted by Emily @ 9:59 AM
2 Comments:
Emily:
Yes, you've put your finger on something that had only been vaguely formed in my mind. I think you're exactly right: that is troubling. Interesting how politicians who seem most anxious to align themselves with Scripture almost inevitably (not always, but most often) fail to seriously engage with it or wrestle with its meaning, and simply toe a conservative line. As Stanley Hauerwas said at this year's AAR convention about a similar issue: "Where are the fundamentalists when you need them?" That is, if you are going to be consistently literal in your interpretation, you also have to be about such things as turning the other cheek and giving to the poor. (Hauerwas also said: "I believe that George W. Bush is a sincere Christian, which goes a long way towards explaining why I think sincerity has so little to do with being a Christian.")
I agree -- I actually preached it that Sunday -- we were talking about Stewardship and I used the example.
Good Blog -- I am reading it backwards
=o)
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