Has your ideology become your theology?
Take a careful look at your Bible. Yeah, that dusty-covered thing that decorates your shelf. The one you use as a thumping pad whenever you proclaim your beliefs.
Now, open it.
There are books inside, divided into chapters and verses by a fellow you never heard of (OK, his name was Robert Estienne, aka Robertus Stephanus, a printer and classical scholar who lived in Paris, back in the 1500s, but I digress).
Yes, some of your Bibles contain more books than others. And some have those books in different order. Honest. Oh, and lest we forget, if you’re reading yours in English you’re about three or more languages behind so, for this installment at least, let’s not sweat the differences in girth or translations.
Whether you read this library disguised as a book from cover to cover as though it was a book (I’m looking at you, Biblical literalists) or as a collection of stories (your turn, progressives), there are certain things you can glean from the text, regardless of the ideological differences we claim as our theologies.
One of those things ought to be largely clear: leadership requires responsibility. Another ought to be to whom: everyone, especially the poor.
There was a pre-21st century time when religious people believed they were wealthy, or poor, healthy, or sick, because they deserved it. The idea was, if you were a “have not” person, it was because you had somehow offended God. Or (I’d like to think this next part applies more to pre-Middle Ages thinking – unfortunately, it doesn’t) you were paying for the transgressions of some ancestor who had stepped over God’s line in the sand.
Now, however, as modern people with the best science, scholarship and medicine available in the history of the planet, we recognize some children are born with Cerebral Palsy or a poorly functioning heart, some people contract cancer or multiple sclerosis, through no fault of their own. And despite those Alger Hiss few, some people are born inescapably poor. In the midst of which some people lose jobs when factories close and leave town, or when technology changes, or when they work for a person who is simply ruthless and cruel. (Because you’re able to read this, I’m guessing you’re reasonably educated and, even if you think you are “self-made,” can come up with a few more examples on your own.)
In the midst of which, the societies in which we live require leaders who are responsible. To everyone, not just their pals. Including (and in my belief system, especially) the poor.
So when you read about things your leaders do, particularly when those things are callous, rude, or offensive, your Bible is exhorting you, “Don’t look the other way!” That’s especially true if your leaders break not just the law, but the spirit of the law (that’s my personal cheap code for “Moral Authority”).
In that latter instance, it works like this: true leaders are vested with authority in order to secure the blessings of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for everyone. Including, if not especially, the poor. True leaders are expected to be the last best hope (and, in worst cases, the last bulwark barrier), for whatever is in the best interests of protecting all the people, especially the poor.
Is that happening now? Or has your ideology become your theology?
The Rev. Dr. Robert Sichta, Congregational United Church of Christ, 3700 26th St. W., Bradenton, can be reached by calling 941-756-1018 or e-mailing PBKAlpha1@gmail.com. Faith Matters is a regular feature of Saturday’s Herald, written by local clergy members.
This story was originally published July 14, 2017 at 3:23 PM with the headline "Has your ideology become your theology?."