Yes, I Believe in Social Justice!
Now, I don't normally give Glen Beck the time of day. He's a hate monger, bigot, and disseminator of misinformation. But, I want to address his attacks on the progressive churches, because the statements are egregious and false.
In a clip that can be found here he not only tells people to leave churches that proclaim social justice, but equates this with both communism and nazism. Now, I don't know which Bible Glen reads, but there are clear passages (many more than speak about homosexuality) that call for social justice. Jesus himself declared:
When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’(Luke 4:16-21).
In this passage, Jesus is quoting from Isaiah 61:1ff.
Jesus tells the rich young ruler that if he wanted to be saved to sell all that he had, give it to the poor, and follow him (Luke 18:18ff). In Acts we read that the early Christians shared all things in common (Acts 4:32-37), so that "no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything was held in common."
I could go on, but I think that this is sufficient to respond to Beck's rant. If you look through scripture we find it clear that God is concerned about social justice. Indeed, I'll close with a statement from biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann, defining biblical justice:
Justice (mispat) in the Old Testament concerns distribution in order to make sure that all members of the community have access to resources and good for the sake of a viable life of dignity. In covenantal tradition the particular subject of YHWH's justice is the triad "widow, orphan, immigrant," those without leverage or muscle to sustain their own legitimate place in society. (Walter Brueggemann, Journey to the Common Good, WJK, 2010, p. 62).
That I think is sufficient.
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Comments
But whatever it is, it's not about getting your fair share and its not about punishments and rewards. Instead of worrying about who's entitled to get how much of whatever, over and over again, in the the New Testament and the Old, God calls on those who have to take care of those who have not.
That's it - Goats and Sheep; kingdom living comes down to whether we care for the least among us for it is in their faces that we encounter the face of God. The rest of it is of secondary importance.
Funny that Mr. Beck would display a swastika. Isn't he at least a little concerned that people might draw certain obvious connections?
John
John, you are right about what justice is all about -- it's not about getting my "just desserts," what ever that might be.
Brueggemann goes on to define righteousness as actively intervening in society "to rehabilitate society, to respond to social grievance, and to correct every humanity-diminishing activity."
John
But, he's also talking to people who attend Rick Warren's church, for despite his conservativeness, he's been active in social justice causes.
Tis bizarre!
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bleck
How I share what God has given to me with those in need is MY business, not the business of anyone else, including the government.
Granted.. I will fall on the side that I believe social justice must always be lead by the church and not the state. Jesus lived under a dictatorship and he by no means preached revolution to this government. Nor did he plead to the officials to send out more aid to the poor. It is "harder" and requires real sacrifice for the church to do it.. but I feel it is ultimately the way to truly worship God. He is glorified in the weak not the establishment.
Chuck
The question is whether social justice is a proper focus of the church, or perhaps the proper focus of the church.
Government spending doesn't enter into this discussion.
John
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DeKzg6vbTg