Its all in the soil, parts 1 & 2
Simply brilliant post from Fr. Edward Tomlinson, over at the The Saint Barnabas’ Blog, I wish I could write like this without getting all steamed up, but I can’t.
The Chinese have a proverb; ‘if a man has a woman, he’s happy for a day. If a man has a cow, he’s happy for a week; but if he has a garden, he’s happy for a lifetime!’ Not the finest example of Oriental wisdom. Surely we chaps can have more fun with our women than our cows? The mind boggles…perhaps the author of this ancient proverb also discovered we can drink milk…well you tell me how that discovery was made?!! Nevertheless the proverb does strike a chord with regard to gardening. For, as every monastic community will testify, and multiple studies demonstrate, tending the land is beneficial for the soul. Those who garden find peace, fulfilment and joy.
Not that this lousy horticulturist is an expert ‘in the field’ (hoe, hoe!)…far from it. The best gardening tip I offer is- don’t take my advice! Yet despite profound ignorance in matters floral I have harvested one tiny colonel of wisdom in my life- that the soil is every bit as important as the plant. How often we wrongly check blooms for disease when the real problem lies buried underground.
Now to Christian life where, like a wilting rhododendron chocking in an alkaline soil, the church is floundering rooted to modern culture. Where all too often we gaze inwards, bewildered at the rotten fruit we find, when we need to gaze outwards to the true source of our malaise- the anti-Christian values drip feeding into souls by means of a rampant, secular agenda. How can the ten minute homily compete with the modern ‘values’ of the BBC that enter our ears by the hour?
The effect of the secular media on the life of the Church is examined in Brown’s book ‘the Death of Christian Britain’, where the author clearly demonstrates how the Christian decline, with its severe drop in church attendance, coincides perfectly with the rise of modern media. Indeed faith tapers off at precisely that point when ‘family values and faith’ were dropped by the West in pursuit of a new brand of consumerism nurtured by a spirit of individualism, 1962 to be precise. According to Brown it was this time in modern history that heralded the dawning of the secular age.
Once we accept the correlation, the pressing issue for Christians becomes clear. We face an uphill struggle because the individualistic society in which we live is not conducive to Gospel living. Put simply modern secularism is a destructive soil in which Christian lives can be planted. For Christian philosophy, rooted in family values of duty and self-sacrifice, does not strike a chord in the shallow world of celebrity and self. Furthermore this clash of cultures runs deep, affecting the very values we espouse. A problem made worse because we share a common language.
Having become detached from Christian culture, the secularist no longer possesses the vocabulary to understand us. We not only say different things, but the things we say can have widely different meanings!! The message of the Church then gets lost in translation, misunderstood or misinterpreted. Let me explain what I mean.
Take ‘justice’, something both Christian and secularist hold dear. The secular notion of justice – liberation of the individual to ‘do as thou wilt’- is clearly at variance with the Christian notion of justice -liberation of the soul through obedience to Christ. There may be overlap in discernment of injustice or desire for freedom from oppression (this can lead some to assume we share common ground) but our endgame differs hugely.
One form of ‘justice’ leads to elevation of self, a position largely dismissive of authority and tradition in which self sacrifice and obedience become an anathema. The other ‘justice’ desires the surrender of self for the other, that we may behave as Christ ordained, a position largely respectful of authority and tradition. Each understanding of ‘justice’ is not only different, but radically opposed. And the one we opt for has profound effects on the people and society we become. But more of that tomorrow….
(just time for a final shot of man and cow!)
Yesterday I noted how our culture presents poor soil for producing true Christians. I also noted how orthodox Christianity and secular modernity are on a collision course due to diametrically opposed endgames. Finally I made the point that our relationship is made more destructive and confusing because we share a common language, (check out Fr. Jones’ superb contribution here) which can lead to cross fertilisation and confusion on all sides. Today I expand on this as regards our different understanding of ‘justice’ in order to shed light on the malaise within Anglicanism- a church that has made an abortive attempt to reconcile secular and Christian philosophy with disastrous consequences. Phew!…I need a cuppa just for writing this introduction!
Accepting the secular model of ‘justice’ (freeing people to ‘do what thou wilt’), as Western society has done, can lead to fixation on self. We see the evidence for this in the cult of celebrity that pervades modern life. Very soon this self-centredness, for the liberation secular ‘justice’ seeks is centred on self, breeds hubris. We grow cocksure and unable to recognise our weakness. This is seen in the modern scepticism of the past and the desire to deconstruct our heritage. The novel and new is embraced, look at how politicians fawn over minority faiths, but the old order is rejected, consider how Christianity is singled out for ridicule and attack.
This is quite deliberate for a new world order is being created, one based on secular and atheistic ideals. It only makes sense that the old, Christian order- which demands a very different justice requiring sacrifice, obedience and surrendering of self- is overcome. Thus a power game is played with language. In the name of ‘inclusion’ and ‘political correctness’ – the words that define secular ‘justice’- the new order is established and given ascendancy. Only that which embraces all (which naturally excludes the Christian with his/her definite creed) is afforded respect. Those who fall foul of ‘embracing all’ are labelled negatively and forced to life in the margins.
It is subtly and cleverly done but explains why Catholic adoption agencies were forced to close under accusation of ‘homophobia’, despite doing wonderful work in many cases. Note these agencies were not campaigning against homosexuals. No they were condemned for exercising judgement by only selecting heterosexual couples in accordance with belief. But with secular justice –judgment of another is an unforgivable sin, (unless perversely they are non-inclusive when they can be damned to hell as a fundamentalist) Why? Because it thwarts ‘do what thou wilt’. It is ‘me and my rights’ and anything oppressing that is glibly swept aside.
This would not be calamitous if ‘justice’ were delivered. But of course a ridiculous fantasy is at play. The secularist ‘justice’ is smoke and mirrors! Has secular liberalism really ushered in fairness or do we still rely on sweatshops in the third world? Has the political system been transformed or wrecked by immoral self seekers? Have we learnt to care for the vulnerable – or to slaughter them by abortion and euthanasia. Do we have more choice or rely on immigrants to do the work we deem beneath us? Has feminism delivered justice or is the typical feminist from a privileged university educated background and far luckier than both men and women on working class estates? I would argue this self absorbed society, with its flawed notion of ‘justice’, has bankrupt our nation spiritually, educationally, morally and financially. It is time for the liberal experiment to stop.
What we need is a return to the Christian understanding of justice, which comes through relationship with Christ. It transforms lives to produce such outstanding reformers as William Wilberforce, Mother Teresa et al. True justice can only be found in reconciliation with God as the revelation of Christ makes clear.
Now to shed light on the Anglican malaise. So many problems we face arise because we apply the secular notion of justice onto Christian life. It does not work. Take for example, the issue of women in the church. A secular notion of justice would demand women were entitled to ‘do what they will’. If they wish to become priests it is their right! And any who deny them can be silenced with the label of ‘sexist’ and shamed once and for all. Welcome to the typical argument of supporters of women priests.
Naturally there is a possibility the accusation is true. Perhaps the Church was/is oppressive, but that is not the point. What is interesting is that the vast majority do not even explore the Church teaching to find out. And if they do, they seek to change it that it might provide the answer they seek! The conclusion comes before the theology due to social conditioning as regards ‘human rights’.
The conflict between feminism and Christianity is not then a difference in desire for justice. The bible promotes equality within God’s design. That is to say- celebrating the difference of man and woman and calling us to work in complimentarily. Women celebrated for being women (pink does not stink!) and freeing them to be what God calls them to be! Every bit as precious as men, witnessed in Mary, Queen of All Saints, most holy being ever created. That is justice but not the sort the world demands! That is the conflict. Secular ‘justice’ demands something radically different- ‘equal and same’, a deliberate morphing of gender whereby biological difference is ignored in pursuit of pleasure. After all we must ‘do what thou wilt’.
The same – of course- can be applied to the sexuality issue. If homosexual people are to be loved this must, de facto, include a licence to sex; ‘do what you will’. When the Christian argues that homosexuals can be loved while being called to celibacy, the modern mind balks! How can one live without sex?? It seems ludicrous, we look stupid. The problem again is not homosexuality nor love nor justice but an over sexualised culture wherein the bloom of chaste Christianity struggles to survive.
Fight for women and homosexuals Christians must! But on radically different terms to the world, and there’s the rub. Our understanding of justice must be grown in a distinctly Christian soil, not influenced by the culture we live in. Otherwise, like the Anglican Church in America, and increasingly here as well, we will grow distinctly less Christian each day, pursuing secular goals whilst remaining silent on matters of faith. Environmentalism eclipsing confession!
Let the liberal Christian, so influenced by the world, understand. We orthodox do not desire to thwart justice. Far from it, we just desire justice on very different terms than this world is offering!
Tags: Christian Life