Christ and Culture

My two brothers in Christ, Ed and Brad both touch on elements of directions I want to follow concerning the issue I remarked about in my last post about Archbishop Burke, and societal issues in general. I'm torn, you see.

In my church history textbook tonight, I got to the section on my “theological hero,” the good Dr. Karl Barth. Barth is not only almost unanimously judged the most important twentieth century theologian, he is also probably the most important theologian most people haven't heard about. His story always fascinates me. After World War I, Barth rejected the liberal theology he had pretty much bought wholesale precisely because he saw it was a toothless giant. Liberal Protestantism was of the world and hence went right along with what happened in society, supporting World War I and, eventually, the Reich Church in World War II.

Disillusioned, like many young Europeans who saw the destruction of the first world war, he rethought his whole theology. Out of that came der Römerbreif (the Epistle to the Romans), Barth's commentary on the Apostle Paul's letter to the Romans, which sent shockwaves throughout the theological world that we are still sorting out today. His Kierkegaardian Existentialist influenced, but highly orthodox views, which would become later known as Neo-Orthodoxy, set the stage for a showdown in Germany in the 1930's.

When Hitler established the Reich Church and the majority of Protestants bowed to the Third Reich's policies (and many even endorsed them), the Confessing Church stood up against it. In addition to Barth, a better known figure, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, participated in this movement.The Confessing Church issued the Barmen Declaration, authored by Barth, which rejected the eclipsing of the Gospel by another, worldly gospel. I think this probably in large part agrees with what Brad is expressing.

However, like all things Barthian, paradox abounds. In addition to rejecting the Gospel influenced by society, the Confessing Church also stood up with the Gospel against society. Bonhoeffer went so far as to participate in an attempted assassination of Hitler. While the Confessing Church refocused the center of the Church on the Word of God, its members lived out their faith in working against an evil regime. Likewise, great Christians throughout the ages have stood against evil societal forces — for example the abolitionists and their stance against slavery. Which are regimes we called to stand against and which are societal issues that merely distract from the Gospel and even threaten to become another gospel?

I am not sure.

This is a paradox that I think yields no easy answers. I think the Catholic Church is doing a better job at grappling with this than many of us who are Protestant are. The Catholic Church is quite firm in its stand against abortion, cloning, and the like, but it also lives the Gospel out in its many mercy ministries, charities and other works to help the poor and sick. I think that's why many outside of the church hold in higher esteem the pope than they do many Evangelical leaders. I think much of the problem in Protestantism is not that we take stands for political causes, but that we let them take over our message. We are pro-life, but we also should care for the sick. We stand against sin, but we are also sinners. I think this is what Roland Martin was getting at in a piece I blogged about a few weeks ago. We should live out the Gospel, but in a consistent manner, not just in a few key issues that support our favorite political party. At the center must be the Gospel. The problem is that the center becomes decentered.

That's the challenge.