BUILDING A PROGRESSIVE FAITH AGENDA
By Dr. Linda Seger, author
Jesus Rode a Donkey: Why the Republicans Don’t Have a Corner on Christ
A Christian Progressive takes Faith, and Works, seriously. Politics is a means by which we put our faith into action, recognizing that the words and actions of Jesus were not just meant for individuals, but for us to follow in all walks of our lives – individually, socially, relationally, politically and through the governments we choose. The same standard of integrity, justice, mercy, good works, and compassion that we try to exercise in our individual lives also need to be exercised in the choices that we make for the works of our government. There are not two standards, but one.
A faith agenda would undoubtedly include the following:
- That we would apply the Social Gospel and the command to do unto the least of these to social policy. If Jesus came to heal the broken-bodied and broken-hearted, the outcast, those who are hurt and wounded, and to respond to the poor, then political policy needs to respond to those who need help in our society. This would include caring for the health of our nation – health care, veterans who are hurting mentally and physically, the children who have health needs, the poor who can’t afford health insurance or help when they’re ill. This could include giving a hand to those who need special help – through education, through job training, through help to afford a home to buy or rent.
- It would include a recognition that justice needs to be given, to level the playing field. This means confronting racism, sexism, ageism, and economic injustices.
- It means recognizing that justice needs to be combined with mercy. That means seeing the humanity beneath the problems, and trying to address ways to resolve and reconcile the alienated and downtrodden.
- That we realize that human rights are not special rights, but need to be extended to all, not just to the privileged who have special benefits because of their race, gender, economic class, or sexual orientation.
- That we take the Words of Jesus seriously, and recognize that Love of others can be extended politically and socially, and that it isn’t impractical. That we recognize that we can follow the Prince of Peace, not the God of War, and that we can work for non-violence, conflict resolution, justice, mercy, and compassion.
- That we care for Creation, and follow a theology of Genesis 2, to care for the Garden rather than a theology of dominion, conquering, and subduing.
How do we get there? I believe that we need to be willing to claim the Words and Commands of Jesus just as much as the Conservative Right does. We are not Christians who work outside the context of the Scriptures and the context of the Holy Spirit, but work within this context. This means being willing to quote Scripture when working with literalists and conservatives, and also using sound Christian theology. It means not pitting us-against-them, but recognizing our similarities, and looking for ways to speak diplomatically, truthfully, and through unity, rather than emphasizing our divisiveness. We may be the ones who have to lead, and to cross the divide, because, I believe, we have the skills and desire to do it, perhaps more so than others. Perhaps it is one of our greatest strengths.
Progressive Christian Agenda
I've been wanting to respond to this post. What do folks think of what we developed two years as a starting point for our agenda:
http://www.crossleft.org/?q=node/1165
Excuse the formatting, i'll try and get a cleaner version up.
An Agenda
I think Linda's post is great and The Agenda started two years ago is huge. As you say ,it needs to be cleaned up a bit and polished, some of it obviously reflects what was going on two years ago, but it could become a real classic statement with a little work.
Oops
Forgive this newbie, who knows where she wants her post to land in the order of the comments, but doesn't see that it's going elsewhere until it gets posted (in the wrong spot). I don't know how to delete my own posts, so I have several consisting of only "." and this one explaining why some of my others only have one character in them. I'll learn the drill, I just haven't yet.
How we get there:
GET REAL!
The term 'Christian' was not even coined until the days of Paul, about 3 decades after Jesus walked the earth a man.
The early followers and lovers of Jesus were called members of THE WAY-being THE WAY he taught one should be; Nonviolent, a Peacemaker and that his sisters and brothers were those that did the will of the Father; not those that said the Billy Graham prayer!
"What does God require? He has told you o'man! Be just, be merciful, and walk humbly with your Lord." -Micah 6:8
Jesus was a social, justice, radical revolutionary Palestinian devout Jewish road warrior who rose up and challenged the job security of the Temple authorities by teaching the people they did NOT need to pay the priests for ritual baths or sacrificing livestock to be OK with God; for God already LOVED them just as they were:
Sinners, poor, diseased, outcasts, widows, orphans, refugees and prisoners all living under Roman Military Occupation.
What got Jesus crucified was disturbing the status quo of the Roman Occupying Forces of his time, by teaching the subversive concept that Caesar only had power because God allowed it and that God preferred the humble sinner, the poor, diseased, outcasts, widows, orphans, refugees and prisoners all living under Roman Occupation above the elite and arrogant !
Jesus remained NONVIOLENT and forgiving even while being mocked, whipped and nailed to a cross and he promised that it is the Peacemakers who are the children of God, not the peace-talkers.
JC had compassion and patience with humble sinners, but the arrogant, self-righteous received his holy wrath.
2,000 years ago The Cross had NO symbolic religious meaning.
When Jesus said: "Pick up your cross and follow me."
He was issuing a POLITICAL statement, for the main roads in Jerusalem were lined with crucified agitators, rebels, dissidents and any others who disturbed the status quo of the Roman Occupying Forces.
Now use a little imagination, for "Imagination is evidence of The Divine"-Wm Blake
100 years before Jesus walked the earth a man, Rabbi Hillel knew that the Hebrew understanding of Hokema; Holy Wisdom; The Feminine Divinity
Was the same as the Greek understanding of The Logos: The Word.
It was the first John and Paul who understood,
The Word was good and The Word was The Logos and The Word was Jesus.
It was John Lennon on 'Rubber Soul' who intuitively knew:
"The Word is just The Way and The Word is Love."
So, with a little imagination, an open heart and mind, one could see that before Jesus walked the earth a man;
He was already a SHE!
Hokema, Holy Wisdom; the Feminine Divinity
Now, isn't that good news?
e
Eileen Fleming,
Reporter and Editor of
http://www.wearewideawake.org/
Author "KEEP HOPE ALIVE" and "Memoirs of a Nice Irish American 'Girl's' Life in Occupied Territory"
Producer of "30 Minutes with Vanunu"
"How do we get there?"
Well said, Linda.
I agree that progressive Christians are the ones who have to lead, to cross the divide, since the Conservative Right is interested in increasing the divisiveness and playing off of it -- wedge issues and all that.
I don't know to what extent it's possible, though. Quoting scriptures, which I do, and "sound Christian theology", with soundness being in the ear of the hearer, can easily become a game of warring soundbites.
If there's a key to it, it's in what you say about speaking diplomatically and truthfully, as best we can see and articulate the truth -- and speaking with love in a spirit of unity. That is to say without ad hominem remarks, epithets, or stereotypes.
The first step
I think our first step on the way to getting there may not be to speak. I think our first step is to listen.
Now I know we've listened and listened, and gotten angrier and angrier at the Religious Right's habit of speaking for our faith. And I don't mean more of the same, for who could stomach more of the same?
I mean to start out listening, not for areas where they seem to completely miss the meaning of the Gospels, but to listen for where we can stand together. They speak of our great all-powerful Father, hey! we can go for that one! They speak of family values in Christianity? Oh yeah, we for sure can stand on that deal, even if some of them can't really.
And our dialog with our conservative starts out like this:
Oh, I agree with you!
I agree with that, too.
Amen and amen. I so agree!
You mean like the family values taught by Jesus? Those were what I was brought up with, what I raised my daughter with, what I believe we all should be able to get behind and be advocates for. Everything that Jesus says to do, I am THERE!
(If nothing else, we'll confuse 'em.)
But no, we won't confuse them, or not for long. They'll say something we can't stand up for and we'll say "oh I'm not so solid on that, I always thought Jesus meant us to be doing (something else).... Let's ease back a bit and see where it is we start to disagree, maybe we can come to agreement instead."
And yes, I know it's not going to be that easy, and there will be some we'll never get to even listen to us at all. But if we can assume that the members of the Religious Right really care about our country, and truly love the Lord, well, SO DO WE! We DO have common ground.
We just need to define that common ground and work to increase it.
Or so I believe.
exactly
You are on the mark Janet. One of the primary points of this site is to make it known that there is another political perspective; one that is also derived from an understanding of Jesus' life and message.
We also want to take a different approach to the way that we communicate our differences and transmit our ideas. I think you've encapsulated some of the core principles well.
david