tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7110103.post109415903220702923..comments2023-12-27T11:23:38.346-05:00Comments on Vanguard Church - Bob Robinson: Beyond Liberalism & FundamentalismBob Robinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08576734261775426385noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7110103.post-1095729361104747582004-09-20T21:16:00.000-04:002004-09-20T21:16:00.000-04:00Byron,
Thanks for some clarification.
Obviously,...Byron,<br /><br />Thanks for some clarification.<br /><br />Obviously, to make a point I over-simplified the categories, but I think I DID make a point. <br /><br />You said it yourself: "Though I think that conservatism in theology TENDS to beget conservatism in public policy, there is certainly nothing approaching a 1-to-1 correspondence, and when the two are conflated, I agree that we've got a problem."<br /><br />But, I think we DO have a problem! If you listen to Dobson, Falwell, or Robertson, they make it clear that there MUST be a 1-to-1 correspondence, or your just not a Christian. At one of our pastor's gatherings (if you'll remember), when I asked if the pastors thought Jesus would be a Democrat or a Republican, you would have thought I had spoken blatant heresy! When I visit churches, the subtle undertone in conversations is that Bush is God's chosen candidate, and how dare you think otherwise.<br /><br />There are those that are on the far sides of the spectrum in the conservative-liberal continuum, but what I am finding is that I was too far on the right in a lot of my views, without really thinking through the reasons. We are manipulated by what Brian McLaren calls "Radio Orthodoxy" into this all-or-nothing mentality--that if we are "conservative" in our biblical beliefs, we must be "conservative" in our political and social and economic beliefs.<br /><br />I've come to the point that I've said "ENOUGH!"<br /><br />I can believe in Jesus Christ, I can trust the Bible's authority, without believing that God is "Pro-War" and "Pro-Greed" and "Pro-Capitalism" and "Pro-Rich" and "Pro-Manipulation of the truth". In other words, I can be a Christian and not buy the conservative political agenda.<br /><br />While I affirm that there are theological liberals who deny things like the divinity of Jesus Christ, I have found that there are good, honest, thinking, "born-again" Christians who are farther left on the spectrum than I would have been comfortable with earlier in my Christian life--people who affirm a lot of what you say are the "very clear issues". Yet these Christians believe that the gospel has a lot to do with how we live NOW, what we do about social justice NOW, and how we further the Kingdom of God in THIS world NOW, as opposed to simply getting people their tickets out of Hell at the end of their lives or keeping them from being "Left Behind" when Jesus returns.<br /><br />Since they may not believe in certain things, they are labeled as "liberals" flat-out, and therefore labeled as not Christian. To play off your partial list of what separates conservatives from liberals, here is a more nuanced list of things that can label a true Christian a "liberal":<br /><br />a) They may not believe in an absolute literal reading of every passage in the Bible, allowing for more allegory and symbolism;<br /><br />b) They may not believe that we have a clear understanding of all that Jesus and the apostles taught because of our fallibility as human beings;<br /><br />c) They may not believe that forensic justification is the only way to understand the "Good News" that Jesus Christ proclaimed.Bob Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08576734261775426385noreply@blogger.com