Dare I say it? Amen. Money quote:
The problem with such use of Biblical imagination is that it simply has no controlling story. Nothing tells us which story to use other than our own imagination (which is generally a deluded part of our mind). A governor gets to play King David, and, surprise, he should be forgiven and not resign his office. A group of white settlers get to play conquering Israelites and feel no compunction about murdering men, women and children. A priest, likely in need of therapy, plays the role of Jonah before a crowd who has no idea they are in a play. The gospel is not preached – souls are not saved – the Bible is simply brought into ridicule.
Filed under: GOP, philosophy | Tagged: Bible, GOP, King David, mark sanford, spirituality
Wow, that sounds a bit harsh. What is particularly harsh is that everything said was true. The CliffsNotes’ version.
Sometimes things that are merely true and spoken plainly sound harsh. But truth, if it is such in reality and if we are willing to accept it as such, sets us free and heals what is broken. The funny thing is, Fr. Stephen, the author of this article is one of the most irenic souls posting on the Internet. He is the epitome of kindness. From him, such doses of truth are healing and helpful. Where “truth” is not offered in this irenic (if occasionally bracing) spirit, it becomes somehow less than fully truthful. (That is, if you believe, as I do that Jesus is the Truth, and that truth in its fullness is found only in His Person, not in a string of “empirical facts.”)
@Karen I agree that Fr. Stephen’s words are rather irenic. Had to look up the word “irenic,” though. At first, I tried to figure out how on earth to substitute an ‘e’ for an ‘o’, and what sense the word “ironic” would make in context–twice. I digress. I only find the words harsh towards a biblical inerrantist, or one who believes that every word, every action in the Bible is inspired of the Christian god. To a more liberal Christian, I think Fr. Stephen’s words are a little more common-sense. Point being, I really appreciated your comment.