The Christian Left
Just once it would be nice to hear a soundbite or read a quote in the national media from a liberal Christian, or someone who identifies with the Christian left. The Christian right, as we all know, is so well represented that you can hardly turn on the television or open a newspaper without being bombarded with snippets of the so-called movement to defend "traditional values," and to "save America" from the impending doom which those outside conservative Christian circles evidently intend to inflict. The Christian right gets plenty of press. It's almost as if journalists keep a default list of potential Christian soudbites in their rolodex, and call the people who are sure to deliver them whenever they happen to need a Christian perspective on a story about abortion, gay marriage, or other issues that are sure to spark moral debate. It's great that Christians have a voice. The problem is, this voice has been primarily singular to this point and not representative of Christianity on the whole.
I would define what I think it means to be a member of the Christian left, but the liberal in me hesitates to categorize anyone for fear that I too will end up boxed in by one more limiting and presumptuous label. But I know this about liberal Christians - they are free thinkers, they will openly share what they have discovered to be truth, and they do not fear change. Their lives are faith-based and not fear-based.
The Christian left is probably just as large as the Christian right, but it is not nearly as vocal or as organized. The Christian right can mobilize its troops more quickly and with more enthusiasm than most organizations on the planet it seems, and so the task to counter them can often seem insurmountable and therefore not worth the effort. But this only gives the Christian right more energy and a veritable stranglehold on Christian opinion, at least as it is presented to the masses. The good news is, the Christian right does not own Christian thought. There are other angles from which to approach the faith, and the Christian left must become empowered enough to let that truth filter through, and in doing so, balance out the power of the right and put an end to the faith monopoly once and for all.
The t-shirts are right...Jesus was a liberal. He was peaceful, compassionate, and an advocate for social justice. And although he may not send us out as an army commander would send out his troops (in fact he would probably be offended if similarities could be drawn between war and any social effort), he would be proud to lead a group of people who were willing to rise up and speak the liberal truth with peace, energy, and conviction. So let's do it. And as we continue to seek Jesus and find him in our individual journeys, we will become better, more impassioned vehicles for peace and justice. At that point the media will have to recognize us has having a valid Christian opinion, and they will naturally begin to more actively include us as part of the coverage regarding moral issues.
I don't believe God has said everything God intends to say before the end of time, and perhaps social revolution is one of the ways in which God will speak to us in the coming years. New ways of thinking can reveal fascinating truths about who God is if we remain open to the possibilities. And as new truths become accepted--namely, as homosexuality becomes better assimilated into the Christian faith--I think the media will play a vital role in illustrating that new ideas cannot automatically be poised as threats to the Christian faith. The alarmists who live fear-based lives are the ones who inflict the damage. The new ideas, in themselves, cause no harm.
The Christian right may be in the business of protecting and defending the precious (and often failed) status quo, but the Christian left in the coming years will increasingly become exhibitors of the unbridled truth that God is not finished, and will embrace the new ways of thinking that will propel us all toward higher levels of understanding.
Besides, if faith is faith, do we really need to defend it?
I would define what I think it means to be a member of the Christian left, but the liberal in me hesitates to categorize anyone for fear that I too will end up boxed in by one more limiting and presumptuous label. But I know this about liberal Christians - they are free thinkers, they will openly share what they have discovered to be truth, and they do not fear change. Their lives are faith-based and not fear-based.
The Christian left is probably just as large as the Christian right, but it is not nearly as vocal or as organized. The Christian right can mobilize its troops more quickly and with more enthusiasm than most organizations on the planet it seems, and so the task to counter them can often seem insurmountable and therefore not worth the effort. But this only gives the Christian right more energy and a veritable stranglehold on Christian opinion, at least as it is presented to the masses. The good news is, the Christian right does not own Christian thought. There are other angles from which to approach the faith, and the Christian left must become empowered enough to let that truth filter through, and in doing so, balance out the power of the right and put an end to the faith monopoly once and for all.
The t-shirts are right...Jesus was a liberal. He was peaceful, compassionate, and an advocate for social justice. And although he may not send us out as an army commander would send out his troops (in fact he would probably be offended if similarities could be drawn between war and any social effort), he would be proud to lead a group of people who were willing to rise up and speak the liberal truth with peace, energy, and conviction. So let's do it. And as we continue to seek Jesus and find him in our individual journeys, we will become better, more impassioned vehicles for peace and justice. At that point the media will have to recognize us has having a valid Christian opinion, and they will naturally begin to more actively include us as part of the coverage regarding moral issues.
I don't believe God has said everything God intends to say before the end of time, and perhaps social revolution is one of the ways in which God will speak to us in the coming years. New ways of thinking can reveal fascinating truths about who God is if we remain open to the possibilities. And as new truths become accepted--namely, as homosexuality becomes better assimilated into the Christian faith--I think the media will play a vital role in illustrating that new ideas cannot automatically be poised as threats to the Christian faith. The alarmists who live fear-based lives are the ones who inflict the damage. The new ideas, in themselves, cause no harm.
The Christian right may be in the business of protecting and defending the precious (and often failed) status quo, but the Christian left in the coming years will increasingly become exhibitors of the unbridled truth that God is not finished, and will embrace the new ways of thinking that will propel us all toward higher levels of understanding.
Besides, if faith is faith, do we really need to defend it?
posted by Jen Austin at 11:17 AM
4 Comments:
How's this quote for you? "We will spread an ideology of hope and compassion that will overwhelm their ideology of hate" Would you believe that came from our very own Pres. Bush? (in response to today's London terrorist attacks) Too bad he can't have the the same ideology of hope & compassion here at home. Just a thought...
"But I know this about liberal Christians - they are free thinkers, they will openly share what they have discovered to be truth, and they do not fear change. Their lives are faith-based and not fear-based."
Do you really think all liberal Christians live faith-based lives? I don't think so. Do you think all conservative Christians live fear-based lives? I don't think that either. I think that, at times, liberal Christians can be guilty of "boxing" in conservative christians. I'm a liberal Christian and I know that I often fall into this trap. I also struggle with living a faith-based life instead of a fear-based life. I think all people do to a certain extent.
For Anonymous above -
You're right, perhaps I shouldn't have generalized. I agree that most Christians struggle to live faith-based lives whether they consider themselves to be conservative or liberal, and nearly all sturggle with fear. But I think the fear-base in conservative Christians makes them the first to lash out in condemnation of something they don't understand, while liberals are more likely to refrain from judging, and instead sink back into their own faith without attempting to dictate morality.
Good explanation. Nice to know you don't just spew information without thinking about it, and that you take other viewpoints into consideration. I still think there has to be care taken not to fall into too much of an "us" and "them" mentality. But then again, if there isn't that mentality, perhaps liberal Christianity would disappear because there would be nobody fighting the far right. Just a thought...
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