If someone suggested this as the basis for some new business regulations in the US, the outcry would be swift. How could businesses compete if they were required to embrace such inefficiencies? What possible right does the government have to require businesses to set aside some of their potential profits for the poor and immigrants?
Rarely do legislators suggest laws hostile to business or our capitalist economic system because of the Bible. In fact, it is quite rare for anyone to suggest that the Bible is hostile to, or a bit suspect of, capitalism. Yet there are a huge numbers of biblical passages that would suggest such, quite a few more passages than those addressing same sex relationships. And yet legislators regularly mine those few texts to support proposed laws. Just yesterday, my home state of NC passed a constitutional amendment banning recognition of same sex marriage or civil unions.
A column by Aaron Graham in last week's Washington Post began this way.
It breaks my heart today to see how often politics shapes our faith, rather than faith shaping our politics. Over the years the church in America has become so biblically illiterate that we are often being more influenced by cultural and political trends than we are by the Word of God.There is no escaping significant cultural influence on our understanding and interpreting Scripture, but I believe Graham is correct that cultural sources are no longer an influence. Rather they are our primary source for who we think God is and what we think faithfulness is. Less and less is the divide between conservative and liberal Christians about different interpretations of Scripture. It is about political differences that then inform our faith stances.
As a result when we do come to church or read Scripture, we come with our minds already made up. We interpret the Bible through our own ideological lenses, picking and choosing what we want to believe and leaving the rest. This is dangerous, not only spiritually but politically as well.
I see no easy way out of this. Aside from the biblical literacy problem, it likely requires a level of humility that does not come easily to things rooted in political ideologies or religious convictions. Many of us feel a significant amount of pride regarding our faith positions, proudly waving our conservative or progressive banners.
Even though I tend to fall solidly within the liberal church camp, I'm not sure we are true to our calling when we define ourselves this way. And I suspect that a hopeful future belongs to the Church that figures out how to faithfully struggle to follow Jesus without starting on the left or the right.
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