the faith discussion

Relevance vs. the Escapist mentality...

Our ability to recognise apocalyptic is, in our day, is often most hindered by the popular; best-selling misunderstandings of biblical witness. Confusing the death-dealing forces that enslave, exploit, and crucify (what our biblical translations sometimes render ‘the world’) for the created world itself, such so-called ‘apocalyptic’ is a negation of this-worldy experience. It tends to view the physical as only fit for burning. In a kind of Gnostic-style propaganda, creation is deemed a sort of waiting room, irredeemable and best discarded. Confusing redemption for escape, real injustice--political and personal--goes mostly unengaged , and the actual, everyday world gets left behind. (David Dark. Everyday Apocalypse: The Sacred Revealed in Radiohead, the Simpsons, and Other Pop Culture Icons , 11 . Emphasis mine)

This is the danger of dualism: that we become so irrelevant to our present existence and view this world and ‘all its’ troubles’ as secular and passing away. The temptation to sing ‘just a few more weary days and then, I’ll fly away....’ is the expression of an escapist mentality, and does not reflect the intentions of Christ’s ministry on earth. He constantly was referring to a Kingdom that that is here, that is coming . The reference is to one that was ushered in with his infiltration of the world as God in flesh. It is also referring to one that is both here and coming. This is not a contradiction, but can be likened to a train that passes through town. The train is there when the engine roles through, but is also coming as the other cars roll into town. It is both here, and coming...

The escapist mentality reduces the social message of scripture to nothingness and negates any form of social conscience, allowing, as Dark says, “real injustice--political and personal” to go on unchecked. Contrast this indifference and ‘pie in the sky’ mentality with Jesus’ very present humanness which focused on the poor and the downtrodden.

“Religion that means something with Father God is this: looking out for the homeless, empowering those in the poverty trap and keeping yourself from getting polluted by the system” (James 1:27, Lacey- Word on the Street , emphasis mine).

posted by J.M @ 8:48 AM