Shane Claiborne and “Progressive Christianity”

I wanted to write this last week, but ran out of time with so much happening at IFI. However, last week I attended the Shane Claiborne "Jesus for President" event at a local church. I must say that I am a little disappointed. I've been reading "The Irresistible Revolution" and trying to get my mind around the "Progressive Christianity" folks. By "Progressive Christianity," I mean folks like Shane who seem to be evangelical Christians (other than looking at the "fruits of the spirit" only God can judge one's relationship with Him and I will attempt to refrain in this post), yet who hold beliefs contrary to much of the evangelical community on issues such as poverty, war, the environment, the economy, etc. The problem with Shane is that he has lots of "sizzle" and very little "steak." One minute he is talking about the tenants of the Christian faith (great Shane…I'm with you). The next he is criticizing America as an emperialist, warmongering, wealth hording, earth raping, idolatrous nation (you lost me).

The most frustrating part for me is that I'm really interested in learning what his solutions are to the proposed problems he sees. He wants the church to get back into politics, but then he wants to write in "Jesus for President" come election time.  Hmmm...I wonder what political candidate (who is actually running for President) it would help if evangelicals wrote in Jesus when they vote for a President of the United States ...hmmm.

I want to take this guy seriously, but he makes it difficult. He gives the impression that he is all bleeding heart and no brains, though I think in some ways this is a ruse.  Perhaps he pretends to have a naive understanding of human nature and how the world works so that people won't press him on his policy goals (which would appear to be quite destructive, if implimented, for both the average U.S. citizen and the cause of Christ).  I'm still not quite sure.

Based on his "Jesus for President" presentation and book it seems that he takes the following positions, but unfortunately, Shane makes me piece this together rather than just telling people straight out, so here is my version:

War: The war in Iraq is America's fault. We should try loving Islamic radicals who want to blow up our children rather than defending ourselves. If we were truly a Christian nation we would not use violence for any reason. Defense contractors are evil and we should dismantle the military immediately.

Poverty: Poverty is a result of the market system and the greed and imperialism of America. A truly Christian nation would not allow its citizens to do business with companies that do not pay the janitor the same as the CEO. Government redistribution of wealth is preferred in order to lift people out of poverty.

Environment: Someone help me on this one. I know he wants us all to run our vehicles on used cooking oil and for us to power our washing machines with stationary bicycles, but I'm not sure what he wants the government to do as far a environmental regulation. It's one thing to urge people to modify their energy consumption patterns. It's quite another to force them through government coercion.

Materialism: America is too worried about money and possessions. (I would actually agree with him on this count)

Government: "We can never expect the government to do what the church should do." (I agree with him on this as well. A good example would be government welfare…Christian charity is a far more efficient and effective tool for lifting the poor out of poverty. I'm not sure if Shane would go that far with me or not)

Patriotism: Christians have turned America into an idol. Patriotism is idolatry. Nation-states are irrelevant. The international church is what counts.

I truly appreciate Shane's heart for living a truly Christ-like life.  Actually, I agree with him on a variety of topics related to Christians being serious about our faith and truly taking the words of the Bible to heart.  However, on war, poverty, the environment and patriotism I not only disagee with him, but think that his position on these issues would actually bring about more of what he dislikes.  In future posts I will attempt to take on the issues Shane and "Progressive Christians" champion...stay tuned. 

Comments

[IndyChristian]

Ryan... Thanks for weighing in. We've added your link among others that summarized the evening, at...

http://indychristian.com/2008/06/jesus-for-president.html