24 January 2011
Thoughts on Justice from Tim Kellar
Christians can understand more deeply why they should help the poor when they see themselves spiritually in those that lack materially, said Pastor Tim Keller pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City. Often people look at a poor person and ask, “Why didn’t you pull yourself up by your bootstraps?” But if God asks that same question to humans then everyone would be spiritually dead, said Keller. And if Christians question whether the poor person will abuse their charity and grace, then they should remember that they have also “trampled” on God’s charity and grace by not living the life they should. “The more you see yourself as spiritually poor and the recipient of God’s overflowing love the more your heart is going to go out to the poor,” said Keller. “When you look at the materially poor you know that in a sense you are looking in a mirror.”
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I'm not sure a metaphor that places the privileged in a God-like position over the materially poor is entirely helpful, regardless of how 'graceful' the God figure is.
ReplyDeleteI think the metaphor portrayed is more of a grace-recipient therefore compelling more grace-sharing.
ReplyDeleteisn't that the problem though? we think grace is something that is ours to freely give, but poverty is a systemic evil, something we collectively create. we don't need to share grace, we need to stop creating hell.
ReplyDeletegrace is what cleans up hell.
ReplyDeletewhat then, should we continue to create an impoverished class that charity may abound?
ReplyDeletefrom your perspective who is creating this impoverished class?
ReplyDeleteWe all are implicated in the ways that we perpetuate this grossly inequitable system ('grossly' to distinguish from the ways that any human devised 'system' is inherently not-perfectly-just). It's not grace to share our resources with the poor, it's grace that reveals how fortunate we are that many privileges have conspired together to give us an abundance that we no more earned than the poverty that befalls many others.
ReplyDeleteI just think giving up anxiety about whether our 'charity' will be trampled is a perfectly good answer to really wrong question. That's all.
I agree and disagree. Grace is fully defined by Jesus. Grace is found in the acknowledgment and gratefulness of how loved and blessed we are by the Father and then moving out in generosity. This was the narrative God wanted Israel to live out "blessed to be a blessing"(Genesis 12:1-3). Instead they chose to cling to their status and hoard their blessing.
ReplyDeleteI agree that we have "no more earned our abundance". This should birth humility.
But practically, when one finds themselves blessed are they supposed to curse the blessing? No. They are to steward according to God's ethic in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 25:14-46).