On Nov 4, 2004, at 8:02 PM, JDG wrote:
At 06:03 PM 11/4/2004 -0800 Dave Land wrote:
The problem is that, despite all the evangelical language that
accompanies the bombast, this line of thinking dethrones God. It
denies the gift of the cross and says that we, not Christ, are the
savior.
So, I guess that we should just close all the soup-kitchens, because
Christ, not "we" are the savior????
I know what a skilled rhetorician you can be, so I suspect you've
asked your question to make a point :-). Nonetheless, I can imagine
that a reasonable person -- or a Brineller, for that matter -- might
seriously ask that question, so here goes.
There's a world of difference between being Christ's hands and feet
and assuming that we are responsible for saving the world from evil.
After all, Christians believe that that has already been accomplished.
There's a difference, but it's a very faint, fuzzy line, and there is
plenty of room for interpretation. Part of my struggle in Christianity
is knowing how to toe that line without overstepping it.
It's that overstepping that concerns me (and a fair number of Christian
progressives and conservatives alike). When I hear language like
"Infinite Justice," I hear the buzzer go off and suspect that the foul
line has been crossed. It's not the end of the game, but it does call
for corrective action.
That said, there is much in the New Testament describing the church as
the "body of Christ," and words attributed to Christ stating that the
disciples -- and, by some folk's extension, we -- would do even greater
things than He did. That really makes it important to step forward in
faith, but humility. And it is exactly that -- humility -- that I find
sorely lacking in America's execution of the war on terror.
Q: What kind of God does it take to leave the whole world in the
hands of a bunch of humans?
A: One who gave us the Holy Spirit.
Thanks for a thought-provoking question: the richest-tasting kind.
Dave
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