{"id":374,"date":"2011-08-02T16:46:56","date_gmt":"2011-08-02T21:46:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/frenchrevolution\/?p=374"},"modified":"2011-08-02T16:46:56","modified_gmt":"2011-08-02T21:46:56","slug":"christians-for-a-sustainable-economy-the-launch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/frenchrevolution\/2011\/08\/02\/christians-for-a-sustainable-economy-the-launch\/","title":{"rendered":"Christians for a Sustainable Economy: The Launch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Anyone who reads this blog knows that we\u2019re particularly interested in the relationship between economic freedom and social justice<\/a> and the role of the Great Society in creating a permanent underclass. \u00a0For too long evangelicals have let religious leftists dominate the debate, offering \u201csolutions\u201d that depend on discredited economic theories and require pouring money we don\u2019t have into programs that don\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

Led by Jim Wallis and his \u201cCircle of Protection,\u201d the religious Left has asked President Obama \u201cWhat would Jesus cut?\u201d \u00a0It was past time for Christians to rise to this challenge and remind our political leaders that good intentions cannot substitute for sound policies, and there are profound moral problems with coercive redistribution of wealth and ever-higher government spending.<\/p>\n

Today marks the launch of Christians for a Sustainable Economy<\/a>, an informal coalition of Christian leaders who signed a letter<\/a> asking President Obama, \u201cWhom would Jesus indebt?\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s Jordan Sekulow writing in the Washington Post<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n

While we believe that it is imperative that we show compassion for \u201cthe least of these<\/a>,\u201d that commandment is best fulfilled through Christian charity and spiritual counseling, not government programs. \u201cTo suggest that Matthew 25 \u2013 or any commandment concerning Christian charity <\/a>\u2013 can be met through wealth redistribution is to obscure these truths. . . . Just as we should not balance the budget \u2018on the backs of the poor,\u2019 so we should not balance the budget on the backs of our children and grandchildren.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And Tim Dalrymple in Patheos<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n

The religious left has monopolized the language of morality and justice when it comes to matters of government spending. \u00a0If we should ask, \u201cWhat would Jesus cut?\u201d, then we should also ask \u201cWhom would Jesus indebt?\u201d and \u201cWhom would Jesus make dependent on government?\u201d \u00a0Since the poor are the first ones hurt by a damaged economy and low unemployment, there is a deeply moral case to be made for serving \u201cthe least of these\u201d through policies that promote a flourishing economy and culture.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Don\u2019t forget Marvin Olasky in World Magazine<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n

Nicholas Kristof\u2019s\u00a0New York Times<\/em> Sunday column praised John Stott,\u00a0who died last week<\/a>. That was good. Kristof also used the death to attack his usual suspects, Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, and to praise liberal evangelicals Rich Cizik and Jim Wallis.<\/p>\n

Stott, of course, was all about the gospel. He rightly didn\u2019t put politics first, and I\u2019m tired of evangelicals who get more excited about politics than the gospel. I\u2019m also tired of Wallis\u2019s Sojourners, which claims biblical warrant for welfare spending that helps posturing politicians but not the poor.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Last, but not least, is yours truly in National Review<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n

The letter represents just one step in a long battle to educate Americans \u2014 of all faiths \u2014 that the poor are not best served by welfare and that hundreds of billions of dollars of Great Society entitlements have not eradicated poverty but have instead created a permanent underclass and stifled the social mobility that is one of the cornerstones of the American dream.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Read the letter, sign it<\/a>, and join an effort to turn the heart of Christian America back to true charity and away from the soul-killing failures of socialism and welfare.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anyone who reads this blog knows that we\u2019re particularly interested in the relationship between economic freedom and social justice and the role of the Great Society in creating a permanent underclass. \u00a0For too long evangelicals have let religious leftists dominate the debate, offering \u201csolutions\u201d that depend on discredited economic theories and require pouring money we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[84,34,22],"class_list":["post-374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-christians-for-a-sustainable-economy","tag-economic-freedom","tag-social-justice"],"yoast_head":"\nChristians for a Sustainable Economy: The Launch<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Anyone who reads this blog knows that we're particularly interested in the 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