October 28, 2006
Jeff at Mr. Dawntreader pulls together a collection of thought-provoking perspectives on the question of whether Christians should fast from politics – a question now fashionable following the publication of Tempting Faith, the kiss-and-tell book of former White House aide David Kuo.
October 26, 2006
Actor Michael J. Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, has attracted a great deal of attention during the last several days for lending his voice in support of various Congressional candidates who support all types of stem cell research, including that which results in the destruction of human embryos. Among the campaign ads drawing attention is Fox’s endorsement of Democrat Ben Cardin in his U.S. Senate race against Republican Michael Steele.
Fox’s appeal is powerful, particularly within the context of our postmodern culture in which narrative is king. “With so much at stake,” including “hope [for] millions of Americans with diseases like diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s,” it could be argued that the compassionate response would be to do whatever Fox asks. In this case, his request appears simple: he’s asking that we support Ben Cardin and other candidates willing to do whatever it takes to relieve these types of human suffering.
Continue reading "Michael J. Fox, Stem Cell Research and Compassion in Political Discourse" »
October 24, 2006
Today I offer further evidence that I and my family are just stumbling along in our own search for truth and meaning in faith and culture. A mere two weeks ago I attempted to explain why the Wilson Family does not celebrate Halloween. Now, I am going to try to explain why we have changed our minds, and how we intend to celebrate this year.
My previous post implicitly assumed that Christians have just two options when it comes to Halloween: to celebrate or not to celebrate. Within that framework, I described why I was (and remain) uncomfortable with the “celebrate” choice. In short, we are to honor and glorify God in all that we do, and it is difficult to conceive of how that goal would be advanced by our participation in Halloween which, with its pagan origins and lingering influence, often celebrates or trivializes evil.
That analysis conveniently ignores another option: perhaps the most appropriate way to serve the Lord in this season is to engage the culture, to bring the Light of Christ to the darkness, to serve as His hands and feet, participating in His work of redeeming all of creation. I accuse myself of “conveniently” ignoring this possibility, because it is the most difficult path for me to take. Not since about third grade have I been a fan of Halloween. I don’t enjoy the attention that comes with wearing costumes. (What are you? Who are you? Why did you choose to dress up as that?) I personally wouldn’t miss it at all, if we all agreed to drop it from the calendar. Moreover, it’s rarely easy to stand up with Christ against the current of the culture. Being a fool for Christ takes courage, and enjoying being His fool takes practice.
Continue reading "Halloween II: Taking a Less Safe Course" »
October 21, 2006
My bride and I watched Hotel Rwanda last night. Like the first time we watched it, the story was gut-wrenching and conscience searing. The civilized world closed its eyes as Tutsi Rwandans were murdered by the thousands by their Hutu countrymen. I don’t feel culpable for or complicit in those atrocities. The Rwandan genocide transpired while I was in college. I was still a kid, or at least still acting like one. I was blissfully ignorant. The current crisis in Darfur is less convenient for me. Evil has reigned in Darfur for three years. Systematic acts of violence are ongoing. As SaveDarfur.org explains:
Darfur has been embroiled in a deadly conflict for over three years. At least 400,000 people have been killed; more than 2 million innocent civilians have been forced to flee their homes and now live in displaced-persons camps in Sudan or in refugee camps in neighboring Chad; and more than 3.5 million men, women, and children are completely reliant on international aid for survival. Not since the Rwandan genocide of 1994 has the world seen such a calculated campaign of displacement, starvation, rape, and mass slaughter.
So, I sit here . . . wondering . . . What can I do? What should I do? How can I not do something?
October 21, 2006
As I matured into and through young adulthood, my worldview solidified into a form of radical personal, political and economic individualism. I conceived of little communal obligation other than the requirement that we all act in our own rational, long-term self-interest. When questions of racial or economic injustice were raised, in law and business school classrooms and private discussions, I was among the more strident defenders of the American meritocracy. I still can hear myself: “We have no caste system. Racial discrimination is illegal and has been for decades. Material success is available to all who are willing to sacrifice and strive.”
I had little to no sympathy or appreciation for arguments that there exist structural inequalities – between rich and poor, black and white – that cause our would-be meritocracy to produce unjust outcomes. I didn’t dispute the existence of apparently unjust outcomes, or that those outcomes might be the result of structural inequalities. I argued that structural barriers were minimal compared to the power and ability of a free individual of strong motivation and will to succeed. “Each of us, from across the demographic spectrum, encounters innumerable barriers to success in life,” I would argue. “Certainly, some have been born into tougher circumstances. But can we reasonably hope to correct such imbalances through the unwieldy hand of government?” As an educated (some would say overeducated), upper-middle-class, white male raised in a safe suburban neighborhood, these were very convenient positions for me to adopt.
Well, as I’ve mentioned elsewhere (e.g., Greed, Political Giving, Halloween), my relatively recent submission to the unbounded sovereignty of Jesus Christ has resulted in His welcome yet uncomfortable intrusion in many corners of my life. That questions of racial and economic injustice are no exception comes as no surprise. What does surprise me is learning that members of His Church may be unwittingly perpetuating racial inequality in America by emphasizing, in part, individualism and free will, much like I used to.
Continue reading "Racial Inequality: Is the Church Correcting or Perpetuating It?" »
October 21, 2006
There’s a lie I tell myself that’s recently been getting a lot of mileage. It’s very effective at getting me off balance and keeping me there for a while. This is it:
“Yes, it’s a sin, but it’s not a big deal.” I’ll call it LIE2.
I was saved by God’s grace and I’m bound for heaven. But while I’m here I am expected to continually drive sin from my life. To recognize my weaknesses and stop taking the bait. To guard against dangerous situations, and avoid them when I can. When I slip (which is daily, if not hourly) I sometimes comfort myself with LIE2.
LIE2 is the most effective source of confusion in my life. Every time I sin, I need to immediately stop it. Address it. Reject it. That is how I grow in faith and trust in God. The second I turn to LIE2, Satan is on my back and we’re off to the races. When I accept one sin in my life, I open the door to whatever else might be waiting to waltz in.
For me, sins come in bunches. They must travel in packs, looking for any chance to stop and visit. Take their shoes off. Stay a while. When I let one in, his friends are right behind. How could I possibly believe LIE2? In my heart, I know that even the smallest of sins - and just one - is enough to keep me in hell forever. All praise to Jesus Christ for saving me from that.
Society will continue to pound their message: “Buy more, eat more, envy and hate. Steal and lie. Sneer, despise. Download it for later. It’s OK. Sneak a peek, and rationalize. Above all, be proud, trust and believe in the gods we love: tolerance, things, and yourself. And if you go too far, get embarrassed or caught, tell LIE2. And find support.”
Christ is my joy and my all. I’m a new man in Him. Sin IS that bad. It’s not OK. If He is my strength, I will prevail.
But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ro6:22-23
In His service,
Mike
October 18, 2006
Until recently, I haven’t paid much attention this year to electoral politics outside of Virginia. That changed when friends asked my wife and me to provide financial support to the Congressional election campaign of a non-Virginian Republican in the midst of a tight race. As a way of helping me think through this decision, allow me to explain why I find it to be a difficult one.
Not until the 1992 presidential campaign did I first consider the issue of abortion. As I recall, I was drawn to some candidate’s explanation that, while he is personally opposed to abortion, he would not seek to make his personal view the law of the land. As a budding libertarian raised in a churched environment, this private/public distinction appealed to me, and I made it my own.
Continue reading "Practicing Discernment in Political Giving" »
October 13, 2006
In a recent post, I mentioned that I sometimes hear nonbelievers explain their aversion to Christianity along the following lines:
I never could be a Christian. I just can’t believe anything based on ‘blind faith.’ . . . There may be evidence [supporting Christian belief], but Christians aren’t allowed to examine and weigh it. Righteousness requires that they believe without question or challenge. I know, because this is what I was taught as a child, when my parents dragged me to church.
(An example of this line of reasoning just so happens to appear today in a post called Hans Zeiger’s Scientific Ignorance: Christian “beliefs are tucked safely behind all sorts of protective mechanisms, particularly the notion that one must have faith that they are true no matter what the evidence says because anyone who doubts them is being influenced by Satan (I’ve been told this directly on many occasions by those who believe such things).”).
October 10, 2006
Ed Brayton sparked an interesting conversation yesterday with his post Historical Ignorance on Display, in which he criticizes a speech by Gary Lankford, president of the Ohio Restoration Project. I know nothing about Mr. Lankford or the Ohio Restoration Project. I am not particularly interested in Lankford’s speech or much of Ed’s criticisms of it.
What interests me is Ed’s history of the formation of the U.S. Constitution, in particular its inclusion of religious freedoms.
Religious tolerance came only with the Enlightenment-influenced founding fathers, who wrote a Constitution that forbid religious tests for office, guaranteed religious freedom, prohibited religious establishment and had not a single provision that was based upon the Bible. . . .
[I]f religious tolerance is to be credited to Christianity, [s]urely one should be able to point to specific references in the Bible or in Christian tradition that argued for religious tolerance if that was true, but one cannot. There was no Christian society that had religious tolerance or religious freedom prior to the founding of this country, which was an explicit rejection of centuries of religion nitolerance [sic] and religious establishments by Christian rulers. . . .
Prior to the Enlightenment, there simply was no tradition of religious tolerance in Christianity; indeed, the movement toward religious toleration was a reaction to centuries of intolerance from Christian leaders.
Continue reading "Religious Freedom: Did Christianity Make Any Positive Contribution?" »
October 10, 2006
Our daughters, ages 7 and 5, will not celebrate Halloween at the end of the month. That’s right: no dressing up in costumes, traipsing around in the dark with friends and collecting candy from the neighbors. Why? Because we love Jesus, and He doesn’t want us to have any fun.
Well, that’s only half true. Jesus did not come to stop our fun; He came that his followers “may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). We love Jesus and are deeply grateful for His sacrifice. Accordingly, we earnestly desire to follow Him, honoring and glorifying Him in thought, word and deed. We cannot see how celebrating Halloween would glorify God. To the contrary, we fear that celebrating Halloween, at worst, celebrates evil and, at best, trivializes it.
Continue reading "Halloween: Is it Just About Kids, Costumes and Candy?" »
