Those of you who know me know I am not good at following current news stories. I did just read an article about the pope's visit to the US, though, and it was really interesting. (Badly written, but interesting nonetheless.)
President Bush reportedly told the pope, "We need your message [in order] to reject this dictatorship of relativism and embrace a culture of justice and truth." I like the phrase dictatorship of relativism, it strikes me for some reason as a phrase which not only could our president not have created himself, but also one that I think would be interesting to evaluate in light of our current culture. Are we living under a dictatorship of relativism? Are we capable of embracing a culture of justice and truth?
Sometimes I think truth is much too abstract and at the same time too concrete a concept to be lived out in a nation consumed with itself. The article also said: "Bush showed off America to its important visitor, ticking off what he said are its best virtues: a nation of prayer and compassion, a nation that believes in religious liberty and welcomes the role of faith in the public square, and one that is the most "innovative, creative and dynamic country on Earth" but also among the most religious."
I don't know that I believe that on the whole we are a nation of prayer and compassion, or a nation who welcomes faith in the public square, or among the most religious nations in the world. I think we tend to be on the whole a selfish and self-absorbed nation, focused on meeting its own needs above anyone else's, no matter the cost.
I also believe, though, that we have the capacity to change all that. I would love to live in a nation of prayer and compassion, focusing on how we can do good by the rest of the world rather than consuming it all for ourselves. I think the church is a huge part of this and we are making massive strides in the right direction, but it's a slow process and it's hard to stick with it when immediate results aren't visible, especially in a culture of instant gratification.
I am not immune from any of this. I live in this country. I succumb to the temptations of capitalism, living for myself, ignoring the problems I see around me, not only in the world on a large scale, but in my world on a small scale. I want to embrace a culture of justice and truth.
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3 comments:
This has been in my mind recently too. My dad was preaching about Elijah and killing the 450 prophets of Baal. He just said in passing , "... to us it seems a bit harsh, but that's because I don't think we understand true justice."
I think Christians don't want to hide their 40 watt light under a bush (oh no), but not to many want to be that uncompromising search light that people find annoyingly bright.
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