Today, July 10,2010, is John Calvin's 501st birthday. He is probably one of the most controversial of the Reformation theologians, but he is also equally regarded as one of the best. Whether you agree with his "Calvinist" theology (which, by the way, some theologians have argued came along to a great degree after his death), there is no question in my mind that without him, Protestantism would not be what it is today. He, unlike Luther, for example, really developed a Systematic theology. This theology that he developed spread widely and rapidly across the European Continent. Calvin's most famous work, "The Institutes of the Christian Religion," were not only translated into Latin, the academic language of the day, but also into French to be made accessible to the common man. His teachings were spread into France by way of an underground system that kept Reformed pastors safe from authorities. He, picking up from Augustine's ideas about grace and election, helped to craft one of the most disputed points of theology Protestantism has ever known (Unconditional Election vs. Free will).
What I admire about Calvin is his amazing intellect. He was said to be able to quote many of the church fathers by memory and cite which passage he was quoting from. I am struck by the deep amount of insight he had into understanding the Biblical text. My favorite contribution of his is his theory that in the inspiration of scripture God accommodates Himself to the scientific and cultural knowledge of the writers. While this may seem no surprise to us, this truly is a profound thought. It helps to create a theological system in which we have nothing to fear from scientific study. I like how deeply reliant upon God's grace Calvinism demands us to be. While the idea of Double Predestination (that God determines some to go to Hell and some to be saved) has been considered quite offensive to many over the centuries, it does an excellent job of elevating the sovereignty of God far above what we humans can understand. Theologians such as Karl Barth have offered revised versions of this doctrine in which Jesus Christ is the object of God's election and rejection. We view our election through God's act of coming to us through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus, all humans are elected by God, while Jesus faced the rejection of God on the cross. God only elects, not damns, and this is what Calvin was getting at, Barth claims. Would Calvin agree with Barth? I do not know. The mystery known popularly as "Calvinism" will simply have to wait until the new creation to be understood fully. In the meantime, I prefer to enjoy Calvin's genius, whether I agree with him on all points or not. This I know about him; he loved God with all his heart, soul, body, and especially his mind. His contribution to my own theology is immense. Being that many of my favorite theologians seem to be of a somewhat Calvinist stance seems to make me think that he must have got something right. Happy birthday, John Calvin.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Thoughts for Independence Day II
As I'm writing this second post concerning my thoughts for the role of Christianity in the formation of this country, I'm listening to Bob Dylan's classic song "The Times They are a Changing." I cannot help but think that change has been the only consistent force in the shaping of the United States. Change is the way of the world. Nothing in our universe ever remains constant. Every event that occurs whether in nature or in human behavior changes something in the universe and effects everything else, I believe. There is no such thing as a neutral action that affects only the being or force doing the action. Even something so simple as a deer walking through a forest creates change. It may spread the seeds of an invasive plant that kills everything else or the deer may destroy the habitat of an endangered insect. The fact is, the world is always changing and so are human beings. The only thing that does not change is God. God is "the same yesterday, today, and forever," "All glory be to thee oh Lord as it was IN THE BEGINNING, IS NOW, AND EVER SHALL BE, WORLD WITHOUT END, AMEN (emphasis mine)."
While God never changes, Christianity often does. Sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst. While many would think it is a good thing that most Christianity in America is no longer like that practiced by the Puritans, it is bad that some factions have begun to say certain sins like abortion and homosexuality are not sin. In the case of American history, much of the change our nation has gone through culturally has been deeply affected by, or has affected the church.
Like I mentioned in my last post it was because of the history of religious persecution that the relatively new idea of separation between church and state was included in our constitution. During the pre-Civil War era, the church found itself split along with the rest of the nation over the issues of slavery. The temperance movement was fueled to a great degree by the church. During the Progressive era of the late 19th century, liberal protestantism found itself working for social reform while forgetting the gospel. This helped give rise to the distinctive American Fundamentalist movement. As the years wore on and the culture changed, fundamentalism gave way to modern Evangelicalism. The last hundred years have been, like much of American history, a time when the Christian community has been a force to be reckoned with concerning many different issues. Abortion, homosexuality, entertainment, evolution, and even foreign policy have been issues inseparable from the presence of the Christian population.
The ability of Christianity to thrive in a country that aims to leave religion alone has also been the source of much overseas missions work. The Evangelical churches in America are, and have been, very missions-minded. Our great prosperity has made it possible for practically any church member, who so desires, to go on a short term missions trip. In continuation with the Christian character of this country, Americans supply a great amount of aid to underdeveloped countries all over the world. Because of the Protestant work ethic that has so pervaded the populace, our wealth has given us so much more than we need, even plenty to spare.
However, the world still changes, and within recent years, it seems our wealth is not as stable as it used to be. We have been given the blessings, but we have not been godly stewards of it. We have forgotten God and have bloated ourselves on our riches. The recent economic crashes have begun to show us that money is a fickle master to have. We have been faced with the reality that we cannot have everything we want, as we have long believed. However, even in our economic hard times, we are still richer than most of the world. As Christians living in this context, we have found that even we have fallen into the sin of idolatry in our pursuit of consumer goods and money. However, American Christians can use this time of economic hardship to begin to break free from our idols. We can look at our brothers and sisters throughout the world and see that they live in greater poverty than we ever will. This can show us that the gospel and power of Christianity lies not in a strong society but in the lives of believers. When our Christianity becomes so closely tied with our culture, especially a culture of wealth, it can become difficult to remember the distinction between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of the world. Our Mega Churches are a good example. They are a product of our wealth and can be used for God's glory. But we can also reach just as many people, if not more, without the grand buildings and fancy worship bands. We can meet in our homes for Bible study. As our culture repairs itself, it is up to us to show America the lessons we have learned. I will discuss more about Christians as the conscience in America in my next post.
While God never changes, Christianity often does. Sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst. While many would think it is a good thing that most Christianity in America is no longer like that practiced by the Puritans, it is bad that some factions have begun to say certain sins like abortion and homosexuality are not sin. In the case of American history, much of the change our nation has gone through culturally has been deeply affected by, or has affected the church.
Like I mentioned in my last post it was because of the history of religious persecution that the relatively new idea of separation between church and state was included in our constitution. During the pre-Civil War era, the church found itself split along with the rest of the nation over the issues of slavery. The temperance movement was fueled to a great degree by the church. During the Progressive era of the late 19th century, liberal protestantism found itself working for social reform while forgetting the gospel. This helped give rise to the distinctive American Fundamentalist movement. As the years wore on and the culture changed, fundamentalism gave way to modern Evangelicalism. The last hundred years have been, like much of American history, a time when the Christian community has been a force to be reckoned with concerning many different issues. Abortion, homosexuality, entertainment, evolution, and even foreign policy have been issues inseparable from the presence of the Christian population.
The ability of Christianity to thrive in a country that aims to leave religion alone has also been the source of much overseas missions work. The Evangelical churches in America are, and have been, very missions-minded. Our great prosperity has made it possible for practically any church member, who so desires, to go on a short term missions trip. In continuation with the Christian character of this country, Americans supply a great amount of aid to underdeveloped countries all over the world. Because of the Protestant work ethic that has so pervaded the populace, our wealth has given us so much more than we need, even plenty to spare.
However, the world still changes, and within recent years, it seems our wealth is not as stable as it used to be. We have been given the blessings, but we have not been godly stewards of it. We have forgotten God and have bloated ourselves on our riches. The recent economic crashes have begun to show us that money is a fickle master to have. We have been faced with the reality that we cannot have everything we want, as we have long believed. However, even in our economic hard times, we are still richer than most of the world. As Christians living in this context, we have found that even we have fallen into the sin of idolatry in our pursuit of consumer goods and money. However, American Christians can use this time of economic hardship to begin to break free from our idols. We can look at our brothers and sisters throughout the world and see that they live in greater poverty than we ever will. This can show us that the gospel and power of Christianity lies not in a strong society but in the lives of believers. When our Christianity becomes so closely tied with our culture, especially a culture of wealth, it can become difficult to remember the distinction between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of the world. Our Mega Churches are a good example. They are a product of our wealth and can be used for God's glory. But we can also reach just as many people, if not more, without the grand buildings and fancy worship bands. We can meet in our homes for Bible study. As our culture repairs itself, it is up to us to show America the lessons we have learned. I will discuss more about Christians as the conscience in America in my next post.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Thoughts for Independence Day I
As we approach Independence Day, I have been thinking quite a bit about the United States of America and we Christians living here. I have been thinking about the history of this nation and all of the great things it has done, as well as some of the not-so-great things it has done. I have been considering the role that Christianity has played in our history and the role that we must play in the future. While I am not making the argument that America and her inhabitants are God's chosen people for today, I do believe that in many ways, we have felt many blessings from God.
America never was a Christian nation, as some people claim. Many of the founding fathers were deists and secularists. America was framed partly according to the governmental models of Ancient Greece and Rome as well as drawing from the Magna Carta and much Enlightenment era work. While some of our documents such as the Declaration of Independence appeal to a Creator, Thomas Jefferson, the author, did not believe in the God of Christianity. Rather than trying to create a country run by Christians, the framers made a country where it was safe to be a Christian of whatever persuasion one might be. Those ideals also made it safe for those of other faiths to live in this country without fear of governmental persecution.
However, beneath all of the Enlightenment philosophy there did lie the influence of Christianity. It was Christianity that made Western culture. Christianity was the religious motivator of all of Europe since the time of Constantine. To understand Europe and America without the influence of Christianity can be likened to trying to understand middle eastern history without the influence of Islam. American history is linked to the influence of Christianity, and especially Protestantism. Much of the early settlement in North America was due to religious persecution. It was this that helped to establish America as a country that held religious freedom in such high esteem. A population with a fairly Christian worldview combined with much of the wisdom gained from the lessons of history helped to create a prosperous country that millions of people have flocked to in hopes of a better life. This is the most prosperous country in the world, and even today people all over the world desire nothing more than to come to this land.
America never was a Christian nation, as some people claim. Many of the founding fathers were deists and secularists. America was framed partly according to the governmental models of Ancient Greece and Rome as well as drawing from the Magna Carta and much Enlightenment era work. While some of our documents such as the Declaration of Independence appeal to a Creator, Thomas Jefferson, the author, did not believe in the God of Christianity. Rather than trying to create a country run by Christians, the framers made a country where it was safe to be a Christian of whatever persuasion one might be. Those ideals also made it safe for those of other faiths to live in this country without fear of governmental persecution.
However, beneath all of the Enlightenment philosophy there did lie the influence of Christianity. It was Christianity that made Western culture. Christianity was the religious motivator of all of Europe since the time of Constantine. To understand Europe and America without the influence of Christianity can be likened to trying to understand middle eastern history without the influence of Islam. American history is linked to the influence of Christianity, and especially Protestantism. Much of the early settlement in North America was due to religious persecution. It was this that helped to establish America as a country that held religious freedom in such high esteem. A population with a fairly Christian worldview combined with much of the wisdom gained from the lessons of history helped to create a prosperous country that millions of people have flocked to in hopes of a better life. This is the most prosperous country in the world, and even today people all over the world desire nothing more than to come to this land.
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