Andrew Thompson has a great response to the recent Newsweek article about the demise of Christianity in America. It is a must read.
While the Newsweek article riled a lot of conservative Christians. Thompson's article should raise that hackles on a lot of liberal Christians. Here's what he says that I think is at the heart of his commentary.
For his part, (John) Yoder is deeply skeptical of the project of Christianizing America. He argues in The Original Revolution that the attempt to turn the larger society Christian by ‘Christianizing’ laws and institutions is actually a sign of unfaithfulness. Such an attempt indicates a belief that “what God is really doing He is doing through the framework of society as a whole and not in the Christian community.”
Instead, Yoder wants to Christianize the church by emphasizing that following Jesus and following the nation (any nation) are two different things. It’s a point that needs making in a culture where people have long assumed that the church and the society are pretty much synonymous.
What comes naturally to a Mennonite is not such a popular position to take in the mainline church, of course. But Yoder’s right. After all, where in the New Testament does it say that the body of Christ can ever be society writ large?
Christians can and should fight to preserve both law and social custom that we understand to fit with a Christian worldview. But we also shouldn’t think the goal of Christian discipleship is to baptize the culture.
Jesus is not using America to save the world. He’s using the church, which is his true body.
Some would counter that such a view is narrowly sectarian, but that is only because they don’t have much faith in the church as God’s true vehicle for salvation. (emphasis mine)
Too many Christians are looking to the government to solve the problems of poverty, healthcare, and education, to name a few. The government has usurped the Church's rightful place in dealing with these issues. This is true in part because it has been easier for the Church to let the government deal with these difficult issues. The Church in America has been way to willing to hand over the reins of the works of righteousness and justice to the government. This is a relatively new development. Still one can see the remnants of the Church's active role in dealing with society's woes. Many of the greatest universities in America were founded by Christians in order to develop new generations of Christian leaders. Many of the greatest hospitals and nursing care facilities were founded by Christians who felt the need to provide medical care to those in need. Many of the greatest charitible organizations came into being because Christians heard God's call to care for the orphan, the widow and the poor. Sadly, Americans, including many Christian Americans now look more to the government to provide these services rather than the Church.
I find no where among Jesus' teaching where the government is mandated to care for the poor, the sick, and those who are oppressed. I find many places where the Church is commanded to do these things.
Thompson rightly says in closing:
Jesus did not reconcile the world to himself by conquering Rome. The call he gave was not to powerful aristocrats to build a new Roman Senate. It was instead a call to humble fishermen, to build a church.
For us who want to obey him by following his example in mission and ministry, empty claims about a ‘Christian America’ are irrelevant. Supremely relevant, though, is our discipleship. And that discipleship will surely be more faithful as we worry less about the Christian identity of America and more about the Christian fidelity of the church.
Amen to that!
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