I often have Christians telling me that I am dealing with insignificant issues when I write on social justice or similar moral concerns (such as on the need to deal with climate change). They say that Christians should prioritize the salvation of souls. It is funny they do not do this when dealing with their own concerns, such as those around the culture wars, or their own theological reflections. It is only when they are challenged to do and be better that they respond in this fashion, even if much of their own concerns prove to be what is insignificant (and have little to no scriptural warrant).
It doesn’t entirely surprise me when this response is given to me by an adherent of an evangelical Protestant tradition. This is because they are led to believe salvation is had by reciting the so-called sinner’s prayer (out of a sincere faith), and Christian evangelization, Christian work, should be focused on getting people to pray it. However, it surprises me when others, from Catholic, Orthodox, and even many other Protestant traditions, say the same thing to me. All Christians can say salvation is by faith through grace, but faith is not just simply having right ideological beliefs, but rather it is about having faith in God and being faithful to what God wants from them. Faith is meant to be a living faith, one which is transformative, leading people to moral and spiritual perfection (recognizing the two go hand in hand, so that in rejecting one, the other becomes impossible). If we think we can be faithful while ignoring and rejecting the moral vision which Christ gave us to follow, we greatly err.
This is why it is important to point out the moral expectations God has for us, especially those presented to us specifically by Jesus. We are not told in Scripture that we can be saved and then ignore God’s directives for us. How can we truly say Jesus is Lord if we think his Lordship means nothing, that what he taught means nothing, so that what he told us to do is insignificant? But that is exactly what I find happening when I am reproached for writing on social justice. Why do they think Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount? Why do they think he spoke in parables, indicating through them (such as the parable of the Good Samaritan) the way they should treat others, especially those in need? Why do they think Jesus said that in the Last Judgment, how they treated the vulnerable, the poor, and the oppressed will be used to determine their eschatological fate? Jesus didn’t preach that all we need to do was say a prayer and be saved. Rather, he said not everyone who says Lord, Lord, is known by him and those who treat the poor and vulnerable in contempt will be told to depart, for they showed contempt upon Jesus himself in doing so. That is, Jesus pointed out the eschatological fate of people, including believers, was connected to the way they treat those in need.
How can anyone say I ignore the salvation of souls when I discuss the implications of Jesus’ words for our lives today? I am telling people what Jesus expects of them, using Scripture and tradition to do so. I challenge them to follow Jesus by applying his words to show how they relate to our contemporary situation. I am pointing out how Jesus said that to be welcomed into the kingdom of God, and not told to depart, they need to be transformed into people who reflect Jesus and his ways, to wear, as it were, the garment of love. To think we can ignore our responsibility to the world, to the people who are suffering, to the people who are being oppressed by bad governmental policies, and treat that as all insignificant, is to suggest much of Scripture is insignificant.
Thus, if people complain that I often write on political issues, and in doing so, I ignore the salvation of souls, I would say, they are the ones ignoring the salvation of souls as they are telling people they do not have to repent and change their ways. They are doing the opposite of St. John the Baptist. And, though of course, we must not become integralists, we must engage politics in such a way to promote the common good, and with it, the justice which God said we should put into effect.
We are to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are to look after them, making sure they do not needlessly suffer. We should not create policies which will make things worse for the poor, the needy, or the vulnerable, especially if we do so to make things easier for the rich and powerful. We should not be malicious. Love, not cruelty, should be the way. When I find many Christians supporting cruelty, defending injustices, and pushing for changes in laws which leads to more cruelty and injustice, it is imperative for me to warn them (as with anyone else) that they risk losing their way, and with it, their salvation. We cannot say we love someone if we do not care for their well-being. It is impossible to be charitable to someone if we first deny them their due justice. Charity transcends justices, yes, but it also presupposes it. Denying justice, saying political concerns which relate to the way the state will deal with people, especially the poor, the needy, the vulnerable, the oppressed, is unimportant, indicates a rejection of the moral character which we need to embrace for the sake of our salvation. Scripture points out that the sins which cry out to heaven relate to the lack of justice and charity, indeed, relate to the way those in positions of power and authority, or are wealthy, use what they have to further harm those who are desperately in need of basics to survive. We cannot embrace or promote such sins and think we are faithful to Christ. Paul said if we do not have such love, we are nothing. If we, therefore, deny the importance of politics as it relates to justice, trying to pit such concerns with those concerning the salvation of souls, it is like saying we should be concerned with hunger, to fix it, while thinking it is not important to help people get the food they need to eat. It is completely and utterly absurd.
Of course, I can understand the way some Protestants think, because I used to think that way. All those who speak out against works, saying works are not necessary, due to a bad understanding of what Paul meant, at least can be seen to be consistent with the lack of concern they show to those in need, or the political involvement which follows. When I became Catholic, I saw the error of that point of view, and the way it misunderstood what Paul meant by faith, works, and grace. I saw, likewise, how other Protestant traditions did not follow with such a simplistic notion of faith. But then I saw, as famous evangelical Protestants became Catholic, this error sometimes was brought over with them (unconsciously if not consciously); they had not fully taken on a Catholic way of thinking, and it is here, I believe, a lot of this rhetoric found in Catholic circles.
I will not stop speaking out against injustices. I will speak about our responsibility to deal with them, including in and through our political engagement. Certainly, it is not the only thing we can and should do. We should do what we can to confront injustices as we find them, but we should remember that to deal with them properly, we must engage the systemic structures of sin which generate them. It is the Christian thing to do. Justice concerns are constantly brought up in Scripture. Often, those in positions of authority, like kings and priests, are called out for the way they ignore the concerns of justice. This would not be the case if it were unimportant, or unrelated to the salvation of souls.
* This Is Part LI Of My Personal (Informal) Reflections And Speculations Series
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