By Rudy Barnes, Jr.
In
John’s Gospel Advent is about the coming of Jesus as the mystical Logos, or Word of God. Jesus was a
light that shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
(John 1:1-5; 3:19-21) Jesus symbolized
God’s light, and at the heart of John’s Gospel is the new command to love one
another. (John 13:34) It is John’s
version of the greatest commandment
that is found in the other three gospel accounts.
Advent
is about the light of God’s love coming into a dark world. It represents the power of God’s love to
reconcile and redeem humanity in contrast to Satan’s dark power to divide and
conquer humanity. But Satan does a convincing
imitation of God, and does some of his best work in the church, mosque and in
politics—as we have witnessed over the past year.
Judging
from the recent election, half of all Americans—most of them claiming to be
Christians—have little love for those who do not share their race or religion. Last month they made Donald Trump their President,
and through his designated national security advisor he has proclaimed Muslims
to be “evil people.” In so doing he has furthered
the evil cause of radical Islamists by polarizing our religions and setting the
stage for more religious hate and violence.
The
election of Donald Trump should be an embarrassment to Christians. He is the antithesis of Christian morality. But then Christianity comes in all flavors
these days, from the prosperity gospel that promises health and wealth to
believers to Catholic monks and nuns who take a vow of poverty. Ironically, progressive Christians and
Muslims have more shared values than do progressives and fundamentalists within
the same religion.
The
election of Donald Trump was not the first time that Christianity took a dark
turn. From crusades, inquisitions and in
religious wars up to the Enlightenment in the 17th century, the
toxic combination of religion, power and politics corrupted the world. In the 19th century the U.S.
defied the moral imperatives of its faith with a terrible Civil War, and in the
20th century Germany and Italy, both Christian nations, took the
dark road to fascism and World War II.
Globalization
has made religions in America and around the world more pluralistic and
contentious. The next four years will be
a test for libertarian democracy. A
politics of reconciliation is necessary, but it cannot be based on hate and
anger for those unlike us. It must be
based on shared altruistic values that are absent in our current polarized
politics.
The greatest commandment to love God and
our neighbors as ourselves is a common
word of faith for Jews, Christians and Muslims alike, and it provides the
shared altruistic values needed for a politics of reconciliation. A commitment
to love our neighbors as ourselves—including our neighbors of other races and
religions—can bring the light of God’s love into our dark world of polarized politics.
May
the light of God’s love shine on you—and all of us—this Christmas and throughout
the New Year, and may God’s light dispel the darkness that threatens to
overcome us.
Notes:
On concepts of Advent that promote
a politics of reconciliation, see Michael Gerson at https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/where-is-god/2016/12/23/495ebfca-c881-11e6-85b5-76616a33048d_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines&wpmm=1
and Kathleen Parker at https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/its-all-a-joke-so-we-may-as-well-laugh/2016/12/23/3ce16b72-c952-11e6-bf4b-2c064d32a4bf_story.html?wpisrc=nl_opinionsA&wpmm=1.
On Donald Trump as the antithesis
of Christian morality, whose values must be rejected rather than reconciled,
see https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/not-time-reconciliation. See also,
In the context of religion and a
politics of reconciliation, Anthony T. Kronman has suggested that Walt
Whitman’s 19th century American religion be referred to as …born-again paganism: a reaffirmation of the
unity of God and the world, enriched by the central teaching of the three
creationist religions that insist so vehemently on their separation.
Born-again
paganism gives spiritual depth to America’s culture of individualism. It
explains our reverence for diversity in a way that avoids the worst excesses of
identity politics. And it gives us a God that is magnified, not threatened, by
the restless drive to explain all things that is such a striking feature of our
national character.
In
these respects, born-again paganism suits us well. It is the right religion for
America.
No
one can be compelled to embrace it, of course, but those who do may find it
easier to see that, despite our proud commitment to the separation of church
and state, we are one nation under God after all. See http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-kronman-american-religion-20161222-story.html.
Growing up “in the middle” as a
colored person (neither white nor black) in South Africa, Trevor Noah has put
the concept of a politics of reconciliation in more contemporary terms:
Sadly,
given what we’ve seen in this election, Mr. Trump’s victory has only amplified
the voices of extremism. It has made their arguments more simplistic and more
emotional at a time when they ought to be growing more subtle and more complex.
We should give no quarter to intolerance and injustice in this world, but we
can be steadfast on the subject of Mr. Trump’s unfitness for office while still
reaching out to reason with his supporters. We can be unwavering in our
commitment to racial equality while still breaking bread with the same racist
people who’ve oppressed us. I know it can be done because I had no choice but
to do it, and it is the reason I am where I am today.
When
you grow up in the middle, you see that life is more in the middle than it is
on the sides. The majority of people are in the middle, the margin of victory
is almost always in the middle, and very often the truth is there as well,
waiting for us. See http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/05/opinion/trevor-noah-lets-not-be-divided-divided-people-are-easier-to-rule.html?_r=0.
On the greatest commandment as a
common word of faith for Jews, Christians and Muslims, see http://www.jesusmeetsmuhammad.com/2015/01/jesus-meets-muhammad-is-there-common.html.
On irreconcilable differences and the demise of democracy, see http://www.religionlegitimacyandpolitics.com/2016/11/irreconcilable-differences-and-demise.html.
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