Social Justice. Our Involvement as Christians in Politics. And the Kingdom of God

The Beck controversy over social justice is an issue that will not die.  The reason is that at its core are two deeper issues:  What the Christians role in the government should be in a representative democracy and how do Christians reflect the kingdom of God in the here and now.  Beck does a tremendous yet unfortunate job blurring the two. 

The misunderstanding people have is that social justice does not inherently have to express itself in socialism despite both concepts having the word "social" in them.  Pre-school logic might say that since they both use the word "social" they are immanently linked, but that just is not the case.  The Salvation Army grew out of social justice thinking.  As far as I can tell, no government intervention there.  Just a group of Christians trying to more fully reflect the kingdom of God and transform the society around them by providing the poor with inexpensive clothes and other items.  YMCA and Habitat for Humanity are a few more examples of originally-Christian organizations that grew out of that same desire. 

People who take seriously Jesus' teaching to love the hungry, give water to the thirsty, help the sick, visit prisoners, and welcome strangers will look radically different in a society that is a collection of individuals focused on accumulating personal wealth and ignoring those less skilled, educated, connected, or fortunate than them.  You can be a good libertarian, communist, or anywhere in between and desire for society to reflect the kingdom of God; our political differences will not cause us to change our goal for society but will alter our approach in reaching that goal. 

The issue with Beck deals with one's approach to politics, not the validity or purpose of the social gospel.  When it comes to politics, you can either take a hands-off approach, a transformational approach, or a mixed schizophrenic combination of the two.  I still struggle with what stance I should have as a Christian in a representative democracy.  Beck is obviously in the hands-off realm, and he is battling against those like Jim Wallis who take a transformational approach.  Unfortunately, Beck confused the battle as one against social justice, which he then proceeded to link to communism and nazism, two political systems that were natural enemies when they were geographic neighbors who share nothing in common except oppression in their mid-19th century manifestations, when his real argument is that Christians should have a hands-off, libertarian approach to government.  Social justice proponents can have that approach, and you will see it expressed in the development of charitable organizations like hospitals, clinics, counseling centers, homeless shelters, thrift stores, etc.

People who believe in social justice and choose to use the instruments of politics to transform society will politically work for things like open immigration, civil rights, universal health care, and other other policies that would cause an earthly kingdom to reflect more purely the kingdom of God.  Should we expect anything less from them?  Would they not be hypocrites if they claimed to follow Jesus, believed that the government should be used to transform society, and yet did not strive to transform the government into what they believe is God's will?  The difference is not in the Christian views on what the kingdom of God should be here on earth; the difference is the role one believes the government should have in bringing that kingdom about.  The teachings of Jesus are clear that we are to take care of the sick, help immigrants, feed the hungry, and look out for prisoners.  Beck and Wallis just disagree on the government's role in bringing those teachings of Jesus about.

Or maybe there is a bigger difference among us who claim to follow Jesus.  Maybe some of us are happy living selfishly and do not desire to see the kingdom more clearly reflected here on earth.  Maybe that is the real difference.  If so, I am scared and saddened.  But I would like to think that the difference is just our approach to politics.

The Dance of Politics and Religion - Social Justice is a Codeword

Politics and religion are oftentimes inherently connected.  Where would we be without religious people standing up for Civil Rights or Abolition?  But then it can go terribly wrong as in the Inquisition, Prohibition, or other modern examples.

My point on Glenn Beck has been misunderstood.  I have no problem with religion and politics dancing together.  This blog is an example of that.  Beck is a personally religious political commentator who just made a jump into the realm of theological debate without doing his homework. He appears to not grasp the concept of social justice when he attacks all social justice proponents together as if every religious individual who works for equality in their community is a Commie or Nazi. Politically, that view is also baffling because Nazis and Commies are extreme polar opposites and were historical enemies. Christians can believe in social justice and find themselves anywhere on the political spectrum. Unless I missed the memo, it is not a codeword for being a "Commie." Although a "good" Commie should believe in social justice. 

Good people can stand up for social justice and disagree on whether the government should be involved at all in restoring creation to its intended place.  Restoring creation and bringing God's will into the here and now is also a subject that some theologically disagree on, but that's another subject for another day.

Beck is concerned about minimal government.  He, like many political people before him, is trying to use religion to achieve his purpose.  If he could get the churches on his side in this debate, then he has a better chance of seeing his will brought about.  The problem is that the churches should never play the puppet to the powerful political puppeteers.  Historically, that has typically ended badly for the church.

If we expect religion to influence politics, then we should, in turn, anticipate politics to try and influence religion.  But we need to remain strong to our convictions and never allow ourselves to compromise our beliefs or witness because it is politically expedient to do so.  We have a mission in God's kingdom that is not directly tied to any one earthly kingdom. 

At the heart of Beck's comments, it's not a rant against social justice, although he might think it is.  It's not a rant against helping people.  It's a rant against the government being involved in that process.  Beck could still be a proponent of social justice and hold a view of limited or no government.  He would just need to make sure that he was living his life as a proponent for social justice in his personal interaction with all aspects of society.  Buying fair trade goods, standing up for the oppressed, living without overconsuming, helping those you see in need are all aspects of social justice that do not involve the government.  It's not a codeword for Commies of Nazis; social justice is a codeword for love.

More Thoughts on Glenn Beck, Social Justice, and Leaving Churches

The great debate over whether Glenn Beck was right to say what he said when he told churchgoers to leave their church if they teach social justice rages on.  Obviously, Beck has the right to say whatever he wants.  This seems to be what you get when a political commentator starts to dictate religion  I responded to it the other day in Jim Wallis answers Glenn Beck.  I think Beck just misunderstands social justice.  He actually said, "There is a very good chance that people don't know what it (social justice) is.  That's why you have to educate yourself."  He could use a good dose of the education he speaks of when it comes to understanding the churches stance on social justice.

Here is Beck's controversial statement:

“I.’m begging you, your right to religion and freedom to exercise religion and read all of the passages of the Bible as you want to read them and as your church wants to preach them . . . are going to come under the ropes in the next year. If it lasts that long it will be the next year. I beg you, look for the words ’social justice’ or ‘economic justice’ on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. Now, am I advising people to leave their church? Yes!”

Here it is in context: Audio clip.


Wisegeek.com defines social justice: "A general definition of social justice is hard to arrive at and even harder to implement. In essence, social justice is concerned with equal justice, not just in the courts, but in all aspects of society. This concept demands that people have equal rights and opportunities; everyone, from the poorest person on the margins of society to the wealthiest deserves an even playing field."

The problem is that Beck was not talking about the purely secular view of social justice.  You can be a firm teacher of social justice and be a libertarian.  To confirm that nearly ludicrous statement, I ran across a site that was all about libertarians who were proponents of social justice.  It's not about political orientation in church circles; it's about living out Jesus' radical teaching to love the poor.  That would compare to the definition provided above, but it goes much deeper than that in a religious sense.

Beck would be welcome to have a discussion on whether we should be proponents of social justice as followers of Jesus.  What would Jesus do to help the oppressed, downtrodden, unemployed, or disabled? Personally, the church I pastor teaches and tries to live social justice, a social justice that should love the unlovable and help the unworthy.

The Catholic church is one of the biggest promoters of social justice.  Beck even mentions priests in his statement. Whether Beck meant it or not, his statement was a direct attack on Catholics and their rich history of social justice. So when Beck tries to link this great theological concept to Nazis and Communists, he does a disservice to the theological concept and those who try to live it out.

When we started the Kid's Clothes Closet at our church to help clothe people in need, that was a practical expression of our theological belief in social justice. Same thing when we provide school supplies or help in any other way. Social justice is us living out Jesus' teachings to love the poor.

We can have a healthy dialogue about whether that should be done at all in government. But telling people to leave churches that teach the concept that he apparently misunderstands was unwise. I really don't like Glenn Beck telling people who go to the church I minister with to leave it.

Jim Wallis Responds to Glenn Beck

Jim Wallis is probably the most prominent Christian proponent of social justice and has made a rebuttal to Glenn Beck's statement for Christians to leave churches that teach social justice.

Good people can disagree on what social justice should look like, but we can all agree that Jesus tells us to love our enemies, our neighbors, and our brothers and sisters.  Pretty much, that would mean that we need to love everyone.  But when it comes to what form of government our society should have, we can, as brothers and sisters in Christ, disagree widely.  You can be a Christian and be a libertarian and you can be a Christian and be a socialist.  Jesus did not prescribe a political party; he inspires us to love.

Biblical Social Justice and Glenn Beck

Wallis concluded that people should quit listening to Glenn Beck for his statements.  That seems to be a misstep in what Wallis is all about.  If there was any reason to quit listening to Beck, that would be with the way he presents his information, instigates a culture of fear, demonizes the other side, and does not add to a constructive dialog that will lead to a common ground.  This stance on churches and social justice is just one example of that.  But in the end, we should dialog and interact with those we disagree with.  If I could be friends with Glenn Beck, I would. 

This culture of isolation where we surround ourselves with only people we agree with will ultimately lead to us not understanding one another.  When that happens, we, as humans, have this unfortunate tendency to vilify the opposing side and treat them in an inhuman manner.  This is easily stopped by becoming friends with those we disagree with.  

I really hope Beck's comments backfire.  I hope that we examine ourselves and our privilege to love others.   I would love see an awakening in churches to promote social justice.

The title of their two new books reveal their two different approaches.

I've written further on this: More Thoughts on Glenn Beck, Social Justice, and Leaving Churches