Zacchaeus and Christian Support of Destructive Administrations
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Luke’s gospel brings us the story of a tax collector named Zacchaeus who walks away from his support of and participation in a systemically unjust and exploitative system to become a Jesus follower. In response to Zacchaeus, Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham” (Luke 19:9).
The picture we get from the synoptic gospels is of a 1st Century Jewish prophet of the poor traveling through his society’s margins, teaching and calling his audiences to a distributively just society where those on the edges are included. Jesus appears in the stories as one who, like prophets such as John the Baptist before him, was a voice on the margins, “crying in the wilderness. ” Jesus’ vision was of the kind of society that the Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas refers to as God’s just future.
Do Jesus’ ethical teachings still offer anything relevant to us in the 21st century, as we work to reverse systemic injustice? I’m convinced they do.
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Luke’s story indicates that Zacchaeus was Jewish but also complicit in the injustice of the larger Roman empire. Like many Christians today who continue to unconditionally support the present administration in the U.S. despite harms to decency, democracy, minoritized people, and our planet, Zacchaeus participated in Rome’s economic exploitation of the vulnerable people around him.
Because all Christians not buying into the social gospel of liberation theology or the stagnating mainline establishment catholic or Protestant views of the Lincoln project must be lost for daring to disagree or for supporting a President who has kept his word.
I’m not sure I’m even understanding your post; but, let’s try any way.
first off you keep mentioning “Lincoln Project” Which I had to google as I haven’t a clue about them.
Regardless, support for an evil person is not excused.
Is this post directed at Trump or the misunderstanding of the Gospel according to Social Jesus?
I don’t understand your question. Could you please expound a little further?
i guess according to some it’s our Christian duty to vote for Sanders or Bloomberg now and was a betrayal of our faith not to have voted for Hillary and her 1st man who opposed most everything we stand for in 2016.
I was asking to whom you referred as the evil person in your statement...
Were you referring to Trump as the "evil person" or to the person on the Social Jesus site?
Trump; he is an egomaniacal, narcissistic, evil ruler.
And to boot: Trump is a liar and the truth is not in him!
Um, wow. This is so weird. I had no idea that you'd posted an article on this when I included a link to this article in your other post.
Thanks Drakkonis, perhaps universal inspiration ?!
I am glad this is pulled out for a topic. Because the article needs some elaboration on.
Leviticus 6.
1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "When a person sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD, and deceives his companion in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his companion, 3 or has found what was lost and lied about it and sworn falsely, so that he sins in regard to any one of the things a man may do; 4 then it shall be, when he sins and becomes guilty, that he shall restore what he took by robbery or what he got by extortion, or the deposit which was entrusted to him or the lost thing which he found, 5 or anything about which he swore falsely; he shall make restitution for it in full and add to it one-fifth more He shall give it to the one to whom it belongs on the day he presents his guilt offering. 6 "Then he shall bring to the priest his guilt offering to the LORD, a ram without defect from the flock, according to your valuation, for a guilt offering, 7 and the priest shall make atonement for him before the LORD, and he will be forgiven for any one of the things which he may have done to incur guilt."
Zacchaeus make amends base on one of the civil laws written down and relevant to the people of his day. Thus, he aided in the removal of a guilt sin, for which the villagers who saw Jesus attending him was complaining. The article writer is wrong to draw a "social gospel" from this verse, and specifically to do using it alone.
Hmmm. Conservative Christians are not writing about Christianity when given a chance in public. I wonder how come. /s
There is no Christian Left. You missed that article?
No I saw it on the front page. Whatever happened to just being good old fashioned Christian, Donald J. Trump fan 1?
Do you think it makes Jesus sad when the Spirit prays and groans for us as brothers and sisters to be one and you choose to play up what divides the brethren instead?
Like this seed does as well?
Don't run away. CAUTION: Virtue Signaling ahead:
Mark 9.
50 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with each other.”
'Trump fan 1'?
If the Tax Collector is a sinner then surely the Administration that lowers Taxes must be less sinful. While Trump is accused of many "sins" by the left every Democratic Candidate openly supports "sinful acts" as if they are not "sins" with no guilt or remorse. Who is worse the Sinner or the one who advocates Sin ? Why on earth would Christians vote for Candidates that promote and justify sin over a Candidate who has sinned but speaks and acts against sin ? Everyone has the right to their own beliefs and you might not believe the same things Christians do. While they believe certain things are sins you might not believe in sin at all and that's your right in America. According to Christian faith the Liberal attempts to lead Christians astray is itself a sinful act so why would they vote for a Liberal. Christians like everyone else sometimes have to choose the "lesser of two evils" so to speak, so while Trump is an imperfect Man and Candidate they have to weigh his strengths and weaknesses against those of the Democratic Candidates and the Liberal Agenda that are in many ways anti-Christian. It's not that hard of a choice really.
Let's roll with your "lesser of two evils" model. First, all people are imperfect. Second, there are all kinds of candidates. Why not put forward an imperfect man and candidate who embodies the absolute morality conservatives preach to the world? Trump is a hypocrite, a pretender, a Christian fraud. Thus, Trump is changing the right-wing evangelical faith into something unrecognizable; a monstrosity.
You will be hard-pressed upon to defend the indefensible.
Already, in Trump, you have no more claim to absolute morality, indeed he has not finished stretching your concepts of morality out to dry. Therefore, your morality is no different than that which you label relative morality in others.
I think many chose Trump in the primaries because they though in order to beat the corrupt Clinton Dynasty they needed someone who didn't mind getting a little dirty. I'm sure many Christians didn't want Trump then and would rather have better now but he's the guy who can win. When you're a Christian you cheer for the Guy fighting Satan even if he's not a Saint, especially when the only other choice is Satan.
One defeats real or perceived evil by greater good. That is, you best real or perceived darkness, with a brighter light. Right-wing evangelicals failed in their choice of candidates in 2016. And today, republicans shut down their own candidate process in the face of potential runners against Trump in order to punctuate the darkness that is Trump.Twice now republicans and conservatives have chosen this man to be their "champion."
Republicans and conservatism is exposed. You wanted this man, Trump. You have forsake the good in order "to have and hold" Trump, possibly in an eight year contractual agreement.
It is conservatism which has put God to the test.
Now conservatism and republicanism are held in well-deserved disrepute. Its belief in God called out as lacking. Because ,you thought you could pick a pagan leader to do God's bidding, and in the process you chose a man a proper pagan would not vote for or serve.
Republicans and conservatives, y'all have lost your way. You have displaced your 'higher morality' and become hypocrites in the eyes of everyone.
I will simply say I don't know how many "advantageous" nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles you and yours need to to sleep as soundly as other people in this world, but hopefully you are content now. It is not helpful nor advisable to tear down other former presidents in order to lift your model of a president up! Especially, when being untruthful in doing it. The Obama Administration was not an apologetic one, that is a perpetual lie straight out of Republican and Conservative hell. Thus, it is unworthy of being spoken by a believer in private and certainly not in public!
Did you live under a rock for 8 years? And of everything XDM mentioned, this is what you picked up? XMD wasn't destroying Obama, he was comparing a successful POTUS to an UNsuccessful one. Obama's administration was the apology administration. FFS he spent 8 years blaming Bush.
It stripped away so much from field commanders in our military that we were USELESS. Taliban complained about the success of night raids the US military are very good at, Obama's administration told us to stop night raids. As soon as that went into effect we saw an severe increase of IED activity and coordinated attacks.
A vast majority of the jobs Obama said weren't coming back, have come back (magic wand found). We now have the capability NOT rely on other countries for oil. Something we DIDN'T have under Obama.
I will choose not to get into these specific details with you, Jeremy. Because I don't have the time or inclination to argue over a so-called "depletion of the U.S. military" which my understanding was then and is now multiple times over-advanced than the nearest country. Night raids? Is that public policy?
Fracking? Keystone Pipeline? I am all for the lowering of gas prices. Will they stay lower? I don't know. Is it good just the short-term? Will it be good for the long-term? (Right now in California gas is truly cheaper than its been in at least ten years.)
What the heaven are you talking about?! Three issues - hyped or not - does not an APOLOGETIC president make!