Based on recommendations from Raitz and Nigel, I started reading the book The Irresistible Revolution (You can read the book online for free here at Google Books). It's the story of Shane Claiborne's journey as a Christian and the transformation of his view of the church. His story includes his time working in leper colonies and side-by-side with Mother Teresa and in a commune type shelter in Phil.
Aside from being a good story and interesting to read, the book is pushing me and stretching me hard at a very deep level that I can't really articulate very well right now. It's challenging me around my stuff, my values and what incarnational ministry looks like for me, as opposed to just feeling bad about what I have and the fact that I live in the suburbs (which was my inital response). It ties into a larger struggle I've been wrestling with in terms of what it looks like to help people get health care even if it's at the expense of me paying more taxes, with the balance of knowing the government stinks at entitlement programs and creating institutional dependencies with them. I've been trying to challange my thinking around how would Jesus vote around issues in terms of war, immigration and health care. I've been thinking about how institutional sin plays into these areas, and how people voting and thinking around the issues pursuing the easy answers the feel good or don't impact their taxes, and not looking at the systemic impacts of the decisions to burden business and the rich with everything. There's a balance, and I'm wrestling with what that looks like. Sorry to ramble incoherently.
My friend Ken Buck has been a huge help as i'm wrestling this stuff, as he's been chewing on this stuff for a while. Ken's very good at not giving pat answers, but asking tough questions and sharing his own humble take on his own journey.
7 comments:
Several points in response to your post:
1. Your list of considerations excluded one key point - the court. 2 seats will likely be vacated in the next 4 years. The replacements will have an impact long after the next president is out of office. Obama opposes parental notification of abortions, favors partial birth abortion and stem cell research and include sexual orientation language for hate crimes. His nominees would likely support the recent laws proposed in California (see marriagebuilders.com/graphic/mbi4501_enq.html)
2. I'm guessing that Jesus would think that nearly 1 M abortions per year in the US is enough of a poison pill to take his vote elsewhere. By the time the sun sets again, more babies will die than the number of 9/11 victims.
3. For taxes, I have a story. Five guys are sitting at a bar drinking. One has an idea. He think that it would be fair to allocate the cost of everyone's beer based on income. By a vote of 3 to 2 the idea is passed and the total cost is split $20, $15, $7.50, $5 and $2.50. A few weeks under this plan tick by and another idea is suggested. Under this plan, people who make under certain amount should be reimbursed for drinking beer because their income level severely limits their ability to pay. The vote passed 3-2 again and the new split is $35, $22.50, $0, -$2.50 and -$5. The following week two guys don't show up.
Obama has already proposed the largest ($1.3 T) tax increase in history, free public college for anyone with a B average etc and may other big government programs. The people who end up paying for it may not stick around.
4. On health care, providers have millions built into their cost for charity care. They pass this to payors who pass this to you. So your already paying for it. If the government takes over we'll have a system that's as poor as the UK or Canada. For example, our pastor's dad needed critical heart surgery in Canada and had to wait a month for something that would take place the next day in the US. What's needed is tort reform and more incentives for preventative care and to decrease unnecessary health care consumption like consumer driven health programs. These changes would drive costs out of the system and make coverage more accessible to a larger population.
5. You may find the book "Who Really Cares" helpful. The basic premise is that conservatives give away their money and volunteer at charities in much higher rates that liberals (who are happy to volunteer everyone else's money through higher taxes). My view is that if someone wants a program implemented s/he's welcome to get friends together and make a donation to the government ear marked for that purpose.
6. To his credit, Obama has done a good job of not following the polls or where the wind blows, but the past (e.g., voting record in Illinois state senate and US Senate) is the best predictor of the future, so we know exactly where Obama will lead and that's far left rather than the moderate position in all the media spin. Though some think he's the messiah to pull together a broken country, a divided country headed in the right direction is better than a unified one headed the wrong way.
I'm interested in hearing your specific thoughts on the war, health care and immigration along with why these are the key issues for the election. Social security will also be a big issue.
Um... Wow... Long comment.
I'm not really looking for a debate or to discuss the polar sides of the issues or the ranking of abortion as a sin (it's wrong) or how the church has focused on it at the expense of lots of other equally important issues to Jesus. There's a million facets to these issues and to approach them like they're all black and white with easy answers seems a little ignorant. Go ahead and check out the book... You can read it online for free..
2 out of every 10 or so pages of the book are missing.
There are easy answers which is exactly the point. How about posing a 'tough question' then?
These are probably only easy answers if you look at them from a very narrow angle. If taking care of the poor, the windows and the orphans is such an easy question, you'd think we'd of resolved it by now.
The previous post should have said 'there aren't easy answers'. Jesus said that we'll always have the poor. I don't expect an answer to this one (easy or not), but where would you start after reading the book?
Many people Shane lives with are probably poor because of gambling, yet it pays for other kids educations. How do you weigh in on that?
Mr. Boilermaker... I will attempt to make my point a better way. sorry for the first attempt. There is no excuse.
that said, your assumption about the poor and gambling is wrong and offensive.
You need to do three things:
1. find good research regarding the conditions of poverty and their causes and cures (the struggle for you might be that you will discredit them for being "liberal" and will never hear or learn from them.)
2. Spend a year consistently serving with the poor and with the christian and social workers who work with them. You will hopefully put faces to the poverty. hear their stories and reserve judgment until you have taken in the complexities of their journey.
3. Spend that year seriously studying the scripture and its commentators regarding poverty, mercy and grace. Your above rendering that Jesus said we will always have the poor is a misuse of that passage, and misusing that verse can lead to drastic hurtful consequences for the poor that we will never feel.
I hope this is clearer and that my sinfulness will not get in the way of God's ways. I regret that I get in his way far too often.
I leave this comment with Ezekiel 16:49-50... notice what their sin was against God
49 " 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.
Thanks for being willing to discuss this, though my lack of clarity on previous posts is causing lots of topics to be mixed together.
1. The gambling comment was to Dave's point about the complexity of the issues. The question is whether Jesus would vote to allow gambling in this country (riverboat, lotteries). On one hand, gambling can lead to bankruptcy and then combined with other circumstances lead to homelessness. I didn't intend to imply all homeless have gambled themselves into their situation. On the other hand, gambling revenues go to support education in many states, which can prevent homelessness. What does Jesus do? He's potentially contributing to bankruptcy/homelessness, but also supporting US schools? I would suggest that we make the same decision when we decide to gamble (and thereby support the industry) or not. On the complex issue of health care, I've highlighted a couple of issues that get us started to solve the complex problem. What do you think the solution is?
2. On homelessness overall, I'm not suggesting that the homeless/poor should not be helped, but that individuals rather than the government should have control of whether their money goes to this cause or one of many other worthy causes. By increasing my taxes, I lose control of that pool of funds that I may wish to direct otherwise. For example, to a program that helps the poor while delivering the gospel (e.g. World Relief, World Vision). As an individual, you're welcome to use all of your discretionary income to help the poor. I found the results of research in the book I referenced earlier (Who Really Cares) interesting because it's the conservatives who donate their time/money to these issues rather than liberals (who are happy to donate other people's money through higher taxes). Bottom line is that I want to be able to help the poor or others under my terms rather than the governments' irregardless of who's in office.
3. In a depraved world, I don't think there is a solution to poverty, so we'll always have it (with the eisegezed Jesus reference). That doesn't mean we don't work to alleviate it. Micro-loan programs have been amazing in the 3rd world, but it's not the solution in the US.
4. To your reference on good research, please point me to it. I searched SSRN for a couple hours and can't find something details the cause of poverty.
5. A family we are close with just hosted a homeless family for 2 months despite having a small home, so I am very familiar with one recent story. This lead me to research government programs (e.g., earned income tax credit, housing assistance, savings match programs etc.), so I am somewhat aware of the existing support network provided by tax dollars. In a similar manner, a family member does government planning to reduce the poverty level and we've spent time trying to problem solve solutions. I realize I should know more, but I can say I'm not totally blind to the issues.
6. Once again, I'm happy to look at a book that does a good job of exegeting the Scriptures on this topic. I understand this to be Blomberg's work, but I could be wrong.
7. I'm interested in your proposed solutions to poverty (and other issues), but in the context of the true mission of spreading the gospel to all people (regardless of socio-economic status). Feeding the body without the spirit is not enough. I believe the history of the Social Gospel movement has shown that.
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