Weightier Matters of the Law: Biblical Authority for Progressives

June 18, 2014 by Peter Laarman

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For me the Bible's main message will always be a message of exodus and liberation, it will always be the call for a jubilee of justice in the face of dehumanizing systems. And it will always be the invitation, and the caution, to "walk humbly." That last bit has nothing to do with shying away from courageous proclamation of good news to the poor. But it does mean doing so with the knowledge that while we can say with confidence what it is that God desires—justice and mercy—we can never say with final authority what God is ultimately like apart from the reflection we get in the face of Jesus.

In this respect progressives inherit more than a purely apophatic theology—an approach to talking about God that eschews all positive affirmations. If I may borrow an old expression, we progressive Christians still affirm that God "condescended" for the sake of giving us important information. Jesus is that information, that still-blazing North Star, and his words and example will always comprise a quite sufficient guide for how to live and how to love.

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