In my experience, growing up Southern Baptist and being a practicing Presbyterian for most of my adult life, I’d say most of the people I’ve worshiped with view justice as the punishment that wrongdoers get, not the honor, respect and aid that all get.
I wonder if part of the reason why North American evangelical theology has a hard time with social justice is because it has a limited view of evil? It starts out well, with an understanding of the individual evils that each of us is enslaved to, but then limits salvation in this context to when we get to heaven. For me that’s a problem. But apart from that, there are probably at least two other kinds of evil that we see in the world around us. One of them is a structural evil -- where social justice firmly fits as a solution, and other the other would evils that affect us because of the curse attached to creation. Here I mean floods, typhoons, volcanoes, earthquakes, and pandemics. A theology that doesn’t properly understand these evils cannot properly accept solutions to these evils as well.
Hey Jesse - I knew someone was bound to ask this. 😂
I’m an egalitarian by conviction but I wasn’t always one. I’d highly recommend NT Wright’s interpretation of these texts (available on his podcast, Ask NT Wright Anything) as a New Testament scholar. They were deeply formative for me in helping me change my position. Hope you’re well too!
In my experience, growing up Southern Baptist and being a practicing Presbyterian for most of my adult life, I’d say most of the people I’ve worshiped with view justice as the punishment that wrongdoers get, not the honor, respect and aid that all get.
Thanks, James. This is a helpful perspective.
I wonder if part of the reason why North American evangelical theology has a hard time with social justice is because it has a limited view of evil? It starts out well, with an understanding of the individual evils that each of us is enslaved to, but then limits salvation in this context to when we get to heaven. For me that’s a problem. But apart from that, there are probably at least two other kinds of evil that we see in the world around us. One of them is a structural evil -- where social justice firmly fits as a solution, and other the other would evils that affect us because of the curse attached to creation. Here I mean floods, typhoons, volcanoes, earthquakes, and pandemics. A theology that doesn’t properly understand these evils cannot properly accept solutions to these evils as well.
Great insight, Michael! Thank you for this.
Hey Jesse - I knew someone was bound to ask this. 😂
I’m an egalitarian by conviction but I wasn’t always one. I’d highly recommend NT Wright’s interpretation of these texts (available on his podcast, Ask NT Wright Anything) as a New Testament scholar. They were deeply formative for me in helping me change my position. Hope you’re well too!