Jottings on science, religion, technology, pop culture and faith from the Antipodes.

Faith & Religion

Consuming Faith

Article by Tom Beaudoin on faith, relationships and economics. Some good stuff. See: Consuming Faith.

This raised the question for me: how central are economic relationships to faith? Are my economic relationships secondary to who I am before God, or central? The popular picture of Christianity today, unfortunately, does not show the best face of my faith on this issue. As a Catholic Christian, I notice the way Christianity is portrayed in the media, and how it portrays itself in its own advertising, and what I see lately is a religion too often indifferent to war, overinterested in individual morality, and defensive about its own institutional abuses. One would almost think that this public image of religiosity was mandated by the Christian scriptures.

(Via Jonny Baker.)

Some connections with Steve’s post on Christian moralising where the issues of “sin” have no connection outside of the individual.

I produced a black marker and wrote what came back. And here is when I am stuck. All the responses were Christian moralizing; black = alcholol, dope, sex. And so Christianity is reduced to don’ts and to private individual morals.

And more connections with The Other Side — Towering Trees and Talented Slaves by Ched Myers and Eric DeBode who say

Most churches that do focus attention on Gospel parables spiritualize them relentlessly. Typically, the parables are preached as “earthly stories with heavenly meanings.” Thus stories about landless peasants and rich landowners, or lords and slaves, or lepers and lawyers are lifted out of their social and historical context and reshaped into theological or moralistic fables bereft of any political or economic edge or consequence.

2 Comments

  1. i’ve just finished reading Beaudoin’s book “Consuming faith” in preparation for a conference in november in auckland on globalisation and youth culture – some bits are a bit shallow esp around ecclesiology – but a good read.

  2. It seems that the ecclesiology bit is quite weak in a lot of books. Everyone has grand ideas but no one (maybe they’re scared to) sits down much to reflect upon the shape, life and practice of the church. (Maybe too institutional). How and why the community functions needs some good theological reflection.