tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5080372433953859587.post6429466739802114723..comments2023-08-06T07:02:49.496-04:00Comments on Little Steps Home: Social MoralityAmberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09002997517784638068noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5080372433953859587.post-48693569462730198352011-11-14T14:44:17.758-05:002011-11-14T14:44:17.758-05:00sanil,
Okay, as long as it makes sense to someone...sanil,<br /><br />Okay, as long as it makes sense to someone who's not me we'll call it consistent!<br /><br />Oooh...good. See, Lewis doesn't include references, probably because the book was originally a series of radio shows so I couldn't just go look it up to see what he was talking about. And I'm not as well versed in the Bible as you or Susanne or probably a million other people so I couldn't recall reading anything along those lines off the top of my head. Part of that is probably that the emphasis is put so much (in sermons and books) on giving charity so that's what really sticks in the front of the mind.<br /><br />I agree with everything you wrote, so *thumbs up*. :)<br /><br />And yes, Hildy's a character from The Help.Amberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09002997517784638068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5080372433953859587.post-18078025835552732852011-11-14T14:33:00.984-05:002011-11-14T14:33:00.984-05:00Susanne,
Hey, how's Andrew doing anyway? I ho...Susanne,<br /><br />Hey, how's Andrew doing anyway? I hope his hand is healing well and he's not in too much pain!Amberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09002997517784638068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5080372433953859587.post-11870394544166689582011-11-12T22:45:24.915-05:002011-11-12T22:45:24.915-05:00I think that is actually pretty consistent! :D It ...I think that is actually pretty consistent! :D It just means that the board/government/whatever of any group should be representative of the whole group - no more and no less. Just like someone who's not a member of the church shouldn't be on the board for it, someone who's not a citizen of a country shouldn't be elected to public office and make laws for it. And just like government shouldn't be limited to Christians because the whole country is not Christian, a church board shouldn't be limited to a sub-group such as by race, gender, job, etc.<br /><br />The bit about not eating unless you've worked actually is "Biblical," in the sense that it's mentioned at least once. (2 Thessalonians 3:10) It's also supported by Paul's whole ministry, which is what he's talking about in that passage as an example. He traveled around and worked when he got to a place, but (I think) only asked for food and housing as payment. He was earning his keep by serving as part of the community. <br /><br />It's not a commandment against charity, because even feeding Paul that way could be seen as "charity." In a Christian society, ideally, the plan seems to be that no one would go hungry and <b>need</b> charity, because the community takes care of each other and shares what they have. So even if you don't have a job that society as a whole considers valuable and pays you for, if you work to help the community, the community feeds and clothes you. <br /><br />But obviously, as you note, there's more to it than that. We don't live in that sort of community (at least, most don't), and so people can't just take a verse or passage out of the Bible and say that because it worked for them it exactly applies in the same way today. You have to think through it and evaluate what the community was actually getting at and trying to live out, and how to make that work today. In a society where it's hard to get ahead and make a good living without college, and where those who don't get those good jobs <b>won't</b> be looked after, giving someone a loan to help them through college isn't throwing away money, it's making an investment in the community. A statement such as the one Hildy (a character in the book/movie?) makes is just ignorant - the system is not actually set up to allow people to help themselves. We just tell ourselves that so we don't have to deal with caring for each other and inconveniencing ourselves the way the early Church did. I don't know what can be done about that, given that our current system is so different and it <b>is</b> hard to apply those concepts (not to mention the fact that its Christian source will make some non-Christians defensive off the bat and not interested in applying them, which is sad because it they are good ones sometimes), but I think it's something that we could all learn from.<br /><br />(AW! My word verification is "squee"! It knows me!)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07382787889525110718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5080372433953859587.post-74809515865386311832011-11-09T08:02:12.122-05:002011-11-09T08:02:12.122-05:00Oh, lots of interesting topics here! I'll try...Oh, lots of interesting topics here! I'll try to come back later and delve into them more if I can. Andrew has surgery this morning so I am a bit pressed for time. I have to be there since he will be put to sleep.<br /><br />Thanks for sharing this!Susannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03115294023069458287noreply@blogger.com