I illustrated a recent post with Dore's engraving of Satan from Milton's Paradise Lost. Why? Because Satan was at the time of Jesus known as the angel of Rome. His speciality was as upholder of the law. He insisted upon total obedience. I'm not at all sure how he mutated into the Hammer Horror monster of popular mythology. The point is when we think about doctrine and morality we usually think in Satanic terms. Once I know the truth, everyone else is by definition wrong. We saw the consequences of this in the totalitarian regimes of the last century. Christianity offers a radical alternative to these absolutes and this is what Radcliffe was talking about at the CTE Forum a few weeks ago.
He went on to describe how the media pressure church leaders to make statements on ethical issues and then take furious issue once they do. For them morality is even worse than doctrine. They expect churches to take moral stances.
Perhaps they are not far wrong. I have shown how Roman Imperialism has been a part of the Christian psyche for hundreds of years. These values have surfaced throughout Christian history in the crusades, warfare between churches, persecutions of Jews and other minorities, the slave trade and many other grim clamp downs on whatever seems to be the sin of the day. We see it today in attitudes to abortion and sexuality.
It is little wonder such views sell papers. It is news when papers find a church leader who holds such views and usually the media are fast to condemn both the views and the people who hold them. Therefore, Christianity is seen as a culture of control and conversion as a form of mind control. But remember what I wrote about doctrine in a previous post.
Radcliffe quoted the chief rabbi, Jonathan Sachs , who had written that there is no Hebrew word equivalent to the English obey. The 10 commandments were given to a people recently delivered from slavery. They were an invitation to listen, to understand what leads to slavery and what it means to be free. They are words of friendship; they are not attempts to externally control people. They are an invitation to listen and to embrace freedom.
Morality is a shared search, a search in friendship with others, to discern the word for our time based upon the words we have received from the past in scripture. Such conversations between friends will always surprise. Holiness is surprising.
Why do church people with opinions find it so hard to sit in friendship, pray with enemies and seek together the power of the spirit to transform the way we see things? The scandal of Christian negative views of homosexuality is the direct result of opinionated people who would never dream of praying with gay people (except for their healing), and together seeking a holy consensus which speaks to where we find ourselves today.
Radcliffe introduced the idea of virtue ethics eg, courage, temperance, prudence, justice. They are not tied to any written law. With Paul, we are invited to discern the way together, with the spirit. It is these virtues which allow us to face problems without fear.
This is to delight in doing what is right with a spontaneity from our love of God. They are virtues we can share as ecumenists, seeking words for the present age together.
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