The Solution? (RJS)

Last updated on: April 23, 2019 at 5:00 am by RJS

The Solution? (RJS) 2019-04-20T21:02:41-05:00 RJS

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The final segment of the conversation between Heidi Lene Maibom and N. T. Wright addresses the solution to the previous question “what is wrong with the world?” The moderators narrows the question to consider what the solution means for personal responsibility. The conversation covers several points worth consideration. Prof. Maibom emphasizes our obligation to our fellow humans. She begins with the idea that we should “each, in our own way do something every day to make the world a little bit of a better place.” (here) Wright picks it up, agreeing with her, but putting the reason for such action into the bigger context of the Christian story. (The section below should start at 1:11:40 in the video.)

Just after Easter, this is well worth considering:

… But for me the solution lies at least one step, if not two back from what you said, because there is a certain point at which I can hear myself saying what you said to a group of people who would then go and turn on the television news and say really, if this politician or that is going to start a thermonuclear war … or whatever, what’s the point going to all that trouble to be nice to people on the street? Is there a solution to the bigger question? And that’s the really tough issue.

But then behind all of that, the solution from the Christian point of view is that the God who made the world has launched the project of healing and renewing the world within the middle of history. This is what the story of Jesus is all about. The kingdom of God, not as an abstract idea, but as a new way of being human, which has been inaugurated and in which we are invited to participate. And in which the best instincts of the best humans of every tradition such as the one’s you’ve so well articulated, can be affirmed as well. Yes, absolutely, we should be doing that. But the point is we are doing that, not whistling in the dark as the world goes to hell in a hand basket all around us, but as part of a project which we believe will have a goal, a telos, and that is where the virtue thing comes home to roost. … In Christianity, virtue is always a team sport. You can’t do it by yourself. It needs to be done in community. And that’s why love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, self-control, you can do hardly any of those by yourself. You need to be practicing virtue within a community. The re-founding, the re-energizing, of a genuine human community, which then creates a context within which it is easier to choose to do the sorts of things you were talking about. …. It is wonderful when you see that going on.

I have been struck this Easter season by the Christian story as one that raises humility and self-sacrificing love for others as the dominant themes. For God so loved the world. This command I give you that you love one another. The Easter story isn’t simply a transaction for our salvation.

But, this take on things brings two critiques from Maibom. The first is one of motive. She responds (1:16:14)

I guess, I think that why we should do it is not because it is part of a larger plan, but because that’s what we owe to other human beings for their sake. I do it for your sake no matter what else is true because you’re a fellow creature capable of happiness and suffering and I owe you to do that for your own sake. … Once we understand that others are ‘other selves’ as it were, we understand the value of other creatures, we understand their pains, we understand their suffering. And then, hopefully, we will be motivated to do things for others for their sake.

Love for others, if it comes from a motivation other than true concern for their very being, is only a shadow of the real thing. As a Christian I agree with her that we do it because we owe it to our fellow creatures. I personally root this in Genesis 1:27 – that all humans are created in the image of God, with a vocation and with intrinsic value. Toward the end of the segment, Wright presses a little asking how she would respond to the Machiavellian position that the only thing to do is take what you can and do what is best for you and your tribe.

In response we have Maibom’s second critique as she turns the conversation a bit, to the consideration of good and how we can know what is truly good (1:20:27).

Let me give you a little different response. … Plato … asked the following question: Is something … good because god loves it or does god love it because it’s good? And there, I think, the problem is that if you just make it the case that something is good because god loves it, it could be anything. It makes good arbitrary. And that I think is not what most religious people think. They think that god loves the good because it good. But that means that good is in some way independent of the will of god, right? And I guess that would be my position, that we have access to this idea of the good whether you want to go through a religion or through, for lack of a better word since I am a philosopher, I should say reason.

Is good something that exists apart from God, independent of his will?

How would you respond to Maibom’s claim?

Perhaps we all, independent of religion or tradition, have an inkling of the true nature of good and of love because God created the world. We can reason to it because it is intrinsic to who and what we are. We can also fall far too short, as individuals and on a corporate level as a people. This is why we feel deep down that there is, in fact, something wrong with the world.

The crying shame is how far short the church – the people of God and body of Christ? – so often fall.

Thoughts?

If you wish to contact me directly you may do so at rjs4mail [at] att.net.

If interested you can subscribe to a full text feed of my posts at Musings on Science and Theology.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

April 23, 2019

Does "Science-Based Morality" Overreach?

Next Post

April 23, 2019 Alex McKnight: He Ran the Race Well

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Acts of the Apostles Adam Advent Anabaptism Angels Anglican Apologetics Atonement Baptism BCP Prayers Bible Biblical Studies Birds Blogging Bloglossary Bonhoeffer Books Calvinism Christianity Church Church History Coffee Colossians Commentary Recs Conversion Creation Creeds Culture Death Ecclesiastes Economics Education Embracing Grace Emergent Emerging Movement Eschatology Essays Ethics Eucharist Evangelicalism Family Fasting Fathers Fellowship of Differents Footsteps Tour Fun and Whimsical Gospel Grace Happiness Heaven Hell Holy Spirit Irenaeus James Jesus Jesus Creed Job Justification Kingdom of God Law Lectures Lent Liberalism Love and Marriage Mabanteneni Manhood Mary Miracles Missio Alliance MissioLife Missional Missional Jesus Movies and Film New Perspective Northern Seminary OneLife Origins Project Orthodox Parables Pastor's Spouse Pastoring and Leading Pastoring and Preaching Patristics Paul Paul-John Tour Pharisees Pietism Political Theology Prayer and Formation Preaching Problems for Faith Psalm 119 Psalms Public Issues Purgatory Religions Resurrection Revelation Romans Rule of JCreed Science and Faith Sermon on the Mount Sports Ten Commandments Theology Third Way Top Ten Lists Translations Uncategorized Universalism University Ministry Way Out Weekly Meanderings Wisdom Women and Ministry Work Worship Writing & Blogging Youth Ministry

Select a Month July 2021 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 0000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

In 1 Timothy, what must an overseer be?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable A miracle worker Ordained by the apostles Wealthy and generous