Blog Archives
the best ways to fight poverty – really???: a response to mark galli
The following post is a response to an article in Christianity Today entitled “The Best Ways to Fight Poverty—Really“ by Mark Galli (editor). It is worth reading Mark’s article before launching into mine.
—
The Better Ways to Fight Poverty – Really: A Response to Mark Galli
In Christianity Today’s February issue Cover Story, “The Best Ways to Fight Poverty—Really“, Mark Galli offers a thought-provoking sketch of the current state of global poverty and a generous critique of action on poverty within the Church.
Galli’s insights, however, are undermined by a number of critical flaws, notably his understanding of development, global poverty trends and the intersection of eschatology and Christian and ecclesial practice. Perhaps most concerning is Galli’s interpretation of poverty and Christian action within the biblical narrative.
There is no doubting Galli’s concern for Christians to engage with the poor. “It would be foolish to stop caring for the poor,” he says, “We are not called to obey Jesus only if our efforts are guaranteed to make a difference.” To that I say, Amen.
Galli, however, goes on to suggest that such Christian engagement with the poor is meant to be personal, in the sense that it should not attempt to go beyond the level of individual charity into the realm of “national and global initiatives”. In other words, Galli does not believe it is the task of the Church to attempt to end poverty, but merely to bind the wounds of those who must endure it. Read the rest of this entry
exploring violence & peace: an interview with nonviolence trainer simon moyle (part 3)
Welcome to the third and final instalment of my interview with antiwar activist Simon Moyle. Perhaps you would like to begin by reading Part 1 and Part 2.
If you are new to the life.remixed blog you might want to subscribe to receive articles like this regularly. You can sign up via RSS Feed, or by using the email subscribe function in the column to the right, near the top.
—
So far in our discussion Simon you have mentioned and quoted Gandhi, and that raises a worthwhile question. Everyone has heard of people like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., 20th Century icons who brought about significant social change and who were influenced by the nonviolent teachings of Jesus Christ.
But to most people these figures seem legendary, almost superhuman; what have their legacies got to do with us, in our lives?
Hagiography has a lot to answer for in setting up Gandhi and MLK Jr. as unattainable ideals. You really need to read their stories to learn their struggles and failures. MLK was a notorious philanderer and adulterer who spent much of his life in depression and self-doubt. I mean, the civil rights movement was often a mess of egos, backstabbing and embarrassing failure. Gandhi was often a terrible father and husband – his eldest son ended up dying young and homeless. To some people these failings invalidate their work and witness – but to me it humanises them, makes their example more compelling. If they were able to achieve everything they achieved despite their brokenness, perhaps I have something to offer too.
We also have to realise that MLK and Gandhi alone – just like Hitler alone – couldn’t really achieve much at all. They were made to look good by the people who surrounded them – the ones who did the hard yards out of the public eye, going to gaol, being beaten. Certainly those people no doubt learned from the Gandhis and MLKs and looked up to them but did just as heroic things without the glory. Read the rest of this entry
for you will always have the poor with you…
Recently I was asked if I truly believed that global poverty could ever be “fixed”. The question was accompanied by a reference to Mark 14:7—“For you always have the poor with you…”
Have you ever wondered what Jesus might have meant in Mark 14:7? Was he saying that we should not bother helping the poor, since the problem of poverty will never end? Perhaps he was saying personal acts of devotion were superior to helping the poor?
Check out my latest article from TEAR’s Target Magazine, entitled “For you will always have the poor with you…“, for my perspective on this often misunderstood passage of Scripture.
MCA
is there a third way in economics?
Back again for another round of musings in 2011…
I’ll kick this year off with something that has been on my mind for quite a while. I have posted on this subject before, and I’m sure my opinions about it will continue to evolve as I continue to learn throughout my life.
That subject is economics.
Just to inform people, I have never been an economics student; in fact when it comes to the technical side of economics I’m sure that I’m very ignorant (though as Michael Moore recently showed, not even Wall St economists can explain derivatives…). Indeed I have friends who are far more familiar with studies in economics than I will probably ever be.
This, however, does not exclude me (or you for that matter) from discussions about economics. While most people may not understand the technicalities of economics, the fact is that this sphere of reality affects their lives every day – everybody is involved with economics. A wise economics-savvy friend once told me, “Economics is not so much about numbers as it is about anthropology; how do humans behave in regards to money.” In my experience this is an apt statement.
My question today is, which economic philosophy should Christians adopt? Of course, there will be no definite or comprehensive answer here, but I want to briefly explore some reflections on a Christian response to capitalism and socialism.
Western Christians (and Western people in general) have largely derided socialism as a perverse and ridiculous theory that has too often led to totalitarian regimes. The same people however often fail to note the similar accusations that should be equally levelled against capitalism. Keep Reading…
arrogant middle class white people
I can say that because I am one.
I got thinking about this post when a friend of mine went to a Christian gathering of some kind. The people there, all middle class white people, were discussing giving to the poor in their area – a great cause!
My friend however was appalled at the way in which the these people spoke so condescendingly of the poor. They talked about maybe inviting them to dinner or church so they could teach them how to earn and save money, and so that these people could learn from their lifestyles. Keep Reading…
the irresistible revolution
“We can admire and worship Jesus without doing what he did. We can applaud what he preached and stood for without caring about the same things. We can adore his cross without taking up ours. I had come to see that the great tragedy of the church is not that rich Christians don’t care about the poor but that rich Christians don’t know the poor.
When the worlds of poverty and wealth collide, the resulting powerful fusion can change the world. But that collision rarely happens… I long for the Calcutta slums to meet the Chicago suburbs, for lepers to meet landowners and for each to see God’s image in the other. It’s no wonder that the footsteps of Jesus lead from the tax collectors to the lepers. I truly believe that when the poor meet the rich, riches will have no meaning. And when the rich meet the poor, we will see poverty come to an end.”
Shane Claiborne, The Irresistible Revolution: Living As An Ordinary Radical, (Zondervan: Grand Rapids, 2006), 113-114.
