This came in the mail today… very excited

Do politics and religion blend?

While I hate the idea of a Christian coalition; a religious right movement; and the idea of pushing a so-called ‘Christian’ agenda in politics, I think it is a mistake to divorce government policy from a faith-centered worldview. The notion of compartmentalizing life disciplines such as politics, religion, ethics, etc… is a modern idea. The ancients understood that all aspects of life form a coherent reality.

Of course I am not advocating pushing a specific religious viewpoint as law; I am not suggesting that America be a Christian nation. I think religious freedom is necessary, as are other freedoms, which was well understood by our founding fathers. However, it is odd to suggest that a person keep his religious convictions as a private matter and somehow appeal to government policy as something different.

All ideas… be it politics, philosophy, science, religion, ethics… form a worldview; a way in which each of us view reality. The problem is when we make distinctions as separate categories, we often create fragmented solutions. For example, are human rights issues simply a political matter?

It is a mistake to call Jesus a non-political figure. Of course he was careful in how he dealt with political authority as in those days it was easy to get oneself killed. But, to say that you are bringing forth a New Kingdom was anything but non-intrusive. The kingdom of God is not a private matter… it embodies all of society… it is a new authority, an allegiance to a new king.

Of course Kingdom politics is not what we would expect. Jesus wasn’t advocating a military revolution. Kingdom politics is a radical view towards the poor; the outcast; the sick; the lost. It is a movement that begins with redemption and continues with shalom for all the earth. Kingdom people are to fight for the oppressed, whether we call it politics or ethics, human rights is a kingdom-centered concern.

To be in the conversation, you have to listen to it. What are people saying about Spirituality, The meaning of Life, God, Existence, etc…

I ran across an interesting website project called “Hear Something” and the objective is “…an ongoing documentary series that invites ordinary people to answer meaningful questions about life, love, loss and other things that really matter”

The clip that fascinated me most was on spirituality:

Since I am a Christian, I am therefore not neutral when it comes to the big questions in life, like who are we? where we came from? Or what the meaning of life is?

However, it is my humble observation that there is in fact, no neutral ground on these issues.

For example, if you are an atheist, then you have some assumptions about life, such as the non-existence of an ultimate divine being; you may believe that perhaps the universe has always existed or came into being from nothing at all; or that everything in life is based on physical matter. Therefore an atheist has beliefs about the world; a philosophy of life; a worldview.

What about agnosticism? By stating that the big questions are not knowable is in fact saying something about the world. The agnostic believes that the world operates a certain way – in a state of unknowing, which is also a point of view about how the world functions.

I suppose many people might not spend their time thinking about the certainty of big questions in life, but they too, operate with assumptions about the world. For example if ‘business’ is a person’s driving objective in life, they may think that economics is the answer to the world’s problems.

There are plenty of ‘isms’ that people embrace that appear to be tolerant and inclusive, such as pluralism, pantheism, panentheism, etc.. but all ‘isms’ say something about God. They define God and life in some way, therefore they exclude other ‘isms’ and are not neutral. I think we all need to be aware that each of us has a worldview, beliefs about the world, and we all come to the table with assumptions.

We are all faith-based people… it’s just a matter of where our faith rests.

Every year around the month of October, I get the urge to read a classic horror book. This year, I’m thinking about The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but I wanted to share some thoughts on last year’s book – Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, a novella written and published in 1818, London, England.

The backdrop of the story is familiar, Victor Frankenstein, in his desire to discover the secret of life, fashions a creature out of body parts. But the result is a physical deformity which he later abandons. When Victor discovers that his own brother is murdered, he blames his creation and the story develops in a struggle between Victor and his creature.

First off, whatever image you may have of the Frankenstein monster from TV movies growing up, erase that from your mind. The Frankenstein monster depicted in the original story was not a mindless goon, but rather, an intelligent and benevolent being (saves a little child and her family from a fire).

The Frankenstein Monster’s problem is his repulsive appearance which is the reason he is shunned from society. After having been rejected and attacked again and again by the people he runs into, he develops a deadly hatred against his creator Victor and against mankind. It is important to note that the monster strives for one important thing – companionship, to be loved. Alienated from his creator, he seeks identity from the acceptance of others and the companionship of a sentient creature like himself.

The monster speaking to Victor:
“Remember that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous.”

To solve this problem of loneliness, The Frankenstein Monster demands that Victor create a companion for him, a bride fashioned of his own kind. The idea is that if he only had somebody who liked him for who he was – accepted him, then he would be fulfilled.

In Christianity, the human condition is one alienated from her creator as well. Her purpose then, and hence her state, is finding happiness in others. The desire of acceptance; of needing to be loved. However, true happiness for humanity, is found in the love from her creator, and unlike Victor who abandons his creation, the Christian God reaches down to restore it.