The Little Friar

Michael Walzer's Obligations:  Essays on Disobedience, War and Citizenship is a collection of essays about consent theory.  Democracy rests on the notion that power is derived from the consent of the governed, and that once power is consented to, the governed are obligated to obey.  The formula, as Walzer describes it, goes something like this:  I have committed myself (consented):  I am committed (obligated) (page x).  But that is not a clear-cut occurrence, for we do not always agree on the democratically elected leaders, but we give consent and agree on the process.  Thus, consent also occurs within degrees.  Yet, what is it that we consent to, and to what are we obligated?  In the context of the federal government, or the state (what Walzer calls our primary group affiliation), what do we make of those whose consent is not given?  To what and whom are they obligated?  Put differently, in the course of the democratic process, ...

In The Revolution of the Saints , Michael Walzer traces the arc of cultural upheaval in England during the 16th and 17th centuries that led to the democratic revolution. He primarily focuses on the role of Calvinist theology in forming the ideology and shaping the character of the Puritan saint and consequently the role the Puritans played in the English revolution. He argues that Calvinism's appeal (the dominant theological perspective of the Puritans) was that it confirmed and explained in theological terms, "perceptions men already had of the dangers of the world and the self" (p. 308) and that it presented a remedy to the anxiety created by the shifting tide of culture through the rigid discipline of "sainthood"  (p. 308).  The important theological themes that characterized Calvin's ideology were, (1) "the permanent, inescapable estrangement of man from God" (p. 27); (2) "a cure for anxiety not in reconciliation but in obedience...

Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality is one of the most important books that most people have not read.   It is especially important if you have a general interest in justice, have a specific interest in economic justice, wonder about current immigration policy, or have an interest in the relationship between politics and religion.  In Spheres of Justice , Walzer identifies eleven goods -- spheres of justice -- that get distributed in western culture.  For each sphere, he delineates the criteria and marks out the appropriate boundaries that guide our internal judgments of justice.   These eleven goods of society are as follows:  (1) membership in the community, (2) security and welfare, (3) money and commodities, (4) office, (5) hard work -- jobs that nobody wants to do in society, (6) free time, (7) education, (8) kinship and love (family), (9) divine grace, (10) recognition, and (11) political power. Walzer argues that these ...

Race Matters (a book about which I'll write in a few days as part of this series) uses the African American experience as a conceptual metaphor of the outcast through which to analyze their plight, and examine our society.  In Democracy Matters:  Winning the Fight against Imperialism , race plays a role, but its role this time is to help us see more clearly the manner in which the twin motors of race and empire sap life from the democratic energies in America.  For example, in Race Matters , West talks about nihilism in the black community resulting from the invasion of the capitalist, free market mentality eroding the black civil society and robbing it of its ability to deflect the negative influences of a white racist world on the black community.  Yet, in Race Matters , the nihilism he talks about is characteristic of a communal sense of despair.  In Democracy Matters , it is an inverted nihilism characteristic of an unprincipled abuse of power.  West...

In Just Generosity:  A New Vision for Overcoming Poverty in America , Ron Sider argues for a comprehensive holistic program for reducing the problem of poverty in America -- a reprehensible problem given the great wealth of America.  Sider paints a picture of the ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor in America through narratives of people who suffer from poverty and statistics that show that the United States, more than any other developed nation, has the greatest inequalities of income in the world (page 45).  Sider contends that we as Christians have an unprecedented opportunity in America to move toward the vision of elevating the 36 million people who live below the poverty line out of poverty. Sider argues that the problem of poverty is more than an economic or political problem; rather it is a moral and spiritual problem in America (page 50).  Therefore, the solution needs to be moral and spiritual.  Sider cites six biblical "foundations" to a...

Thinking Politically:  Essays in Political Theory is a collection of Michael Walzer's essays on political theory.  Several threads run through all of Walzer's work:  (1) the liberal assertion that political life is best lived when the spheres of society are separated; (2) the idea that justice is the appropriate distribution of goods within a particular sphere without domination by other spheres; (3) that communities should be allowed to determine those goods and just distributions themselves; (4) that communal self-determination is limited only by three criteria (life, liberty and membership in community); (5) that the political sphere (especially in the nation-state) is the only sphere that holds coercive power; (6) the political sphere, since it has the coercive power should be limited through some kind of representation by the people governed; (7) groups of citizens who gather in secondary associations are the ones who provide the best check of political domination...

Social criticism is typically considered to be the practice of one who can be detached enough to examine a particular society from a vantage point located "no place in particular" (pages 5, 16).  What does this sort of analysis and criticism yield?  Walzer demonstrates three sorts of criticism in this book, two of which can be called a detached analysis .  Walzer calls them "paths to moral philosophy" that we find in the practice of social criticism.  The first path is the "path of discovery", the second "the path of innovation", and the last one "the path of interpretation".  This final path, "interpretation" is the one that Walzer claims "accords best with our everyday experience" (page 3), and is not practiced from a critical distance.  Walzer argues that interpretation recognizes that a stance of detached observance, which the other two paths rely on, is in fact not possible.   Critical interpretation is th...

In Just and Unjust Wars:  A Moral Argument with Historical Illustrations (abbreviated JUW here), Walzer argues that aggression is the only crime that a nation can commit against another nation; war is an international crime (page 21).  It is also a socially-constructed, rule-governed activity that can be adjudicated (page 43).  Hence when a nation is drawn into conflict to defend itself against an aggressor, there are limits to the targets, times and types of aggression.  For Walzer, this is a moral argument that has more to do with the manner in which wars are fought, than the justice of their occurrence.  And it is consistent with Walzer's work on pluralism.  Here in JUW, Walzer makes use of his notion of a moral minimalism to argue for a way of speaking internationally about rules of combat: "I am concerned precisely with the present structure of the moral world.  My starting point is the fact that we do argue, often to different purposes, to b...

In Martin and Malcolm in America , James Cone seeks to articulate the African American experience by analyzing the life narratives of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.  Together these two leaders demonstrate two great resistance traditions in African American history:  Integrationism and nationalism (page 3). Fredrick Douglas, the towering presence in African American history, is another historical representative of the tradition of black integrationist thought; and Marcus Garvey, a personality in New York during the Harlem Renaissance, is representative of Black Nationalism.  Both traditions are important for anyone attempting to come to terms with the truth of black experience in America (page 16).  Integrationism:  Cone claims that integration was practical.  Black proponents of integration advocated what they thought was possible to achieve.  They understood that justice demanded more from the dominant white society, but they did not dem...

The topic of Human Rights is not one that Christians need avoid.  Christopher Marshall demonstrates that the discussion of human rights is one that is not only valid for Christians to contribute to, but has a biblical foundation, and is a core constituent of Christian living.  In Crowned With Glory and Honor Marshall borrows and elaborates on a definition of human rights describing them as:  "fundamental claims or entitlements that are acknowledged to be morally justified and that take precedence over other societal interests.  Each person possesses the full panoply of human rights simply because he or she is a human being.  Grounded in a belief in human dignity, human rights express the minimal requirements for human well-being".  This definition accords with Marshall’s biblically-based understanding of human rights, and is also compatible with a secular comprehension.  The core difference is in how Marshall interprets this definition:  Mars...

September 11th is just days away. And, even 17 years later, I'm really not sure what to say. In fact, I think anything I say is too much to say. Silence. Silence seems more appropriate. While I'm not sure what to say, I'm not even sure what to pray. Therefore, silence. I am a Christian. I am a pacifist. For me, those things are not two separate things. I am a pacifist because I am a Christian. What does a Christian pray in the face of the world's violent terror? For peace? Is peace merely the absence of conflict? If it is, I have no use for it. Such sentimentality makes me sick. Some folks have told me, over these intervening years, that my pacifism undermines American politics and policies. That's fine with me. I am a Christian pacifist who believe that genuine peacemaking is the only ground upon a politic of life -- a politic that's not based on death -- can be built. Such a peacemaking politic will automatically call into question th...

Scripture:  Mark 7:24-37 When I was in high school and college, the acronym WWJD was very popular.  "What would Jesus do?" was supposed to challenge me to act with love and kindness, but I always felt like it was a way to make me feel bad when I wasn't the "Perfect Christian."  You know the kind -- the people who never get upset, who never use bad language, who don't get sassy when they're frustrated or "hangry."  I was never that person. I lean heavily on sarcasm and am easily frustrated. I figured Jesus would reject me for being such a person. But when the Syrophoenician woman interacts with Jesus, she doesn't have a perfect faith. She isn't reverent or quiet or submissive. She's quick-witted, and a bit of a smart aleck. And what does Jesus do? Heals her daughter! Perhaps Jesus doesn't judge us as harshly as we fear. And I'm delighted in a God who can deal with a little sassiness or spunk! Prayer:  God of the surly a...

Tyler Reagin's The Life Giving Leader:  Learning to Lead from Your Truest Self is a book that utilizes clear pastoral insight with rich biblical teaching about the nature of leadership.  Reagin articulates an "identity-based" leadership -- who we are is more important to our leadership than what we do or the pretense of authority we bring.  While there are certainly some places where I felt like it's just another "embrace who you are" book, I think Reagin makes some important connections between Jesus and that identity leadership that should not be neglected. I am a bit concerned that Reagin relies so heavily upon Andy Stanley in a way that could just as easily have been accomplished by more important pastoral leaders -- I think specifically of Gregory the Great. In the end, The Life Giving Leader felt more like pop psychology baptized as leadership than a rich book that brings so much to pastoral identity and work.  ____________________________ I r...

Patrice Gopo's All the Colors We Will See:  Reflections on Barriers, Brokenness, and Finding Our Way offers a bold and beautiful account of Gopo's experience growing up in Alaska as an American woman born to Jamaican immigrant parents.  She shares selected memories from what it was like as one of the only brown-skinned children in her school, and how her identity was shaped by various facets of her upbringing. Gopo offers rich insights and wisdom into a broad range of topics including race relations, commitment, friendship, and identity.  With each essay I read, I kept thinking to myself, "Oh, that was my favorite so far ...", then after finishing another, "No, I think that one was my favorite".  This is an important and timely book that will likely open doors for deep conversation. _______________________ I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review here.

While I was in seminary (back in 1996) the US Catholic bishops published a tenth anniversary edition of the their 1986 version of Economic Justice for All ( available online for free here ).  With ten years of experience they reaffirmed the basic thrust of the book:  That there is a moral dimension to economic life.   This moral dimension challenges the prevailing problems of poverty in our nation and abroad and calls for a robust renewal of our commitment to economic justice for all.  The Catholic bishops argue that there are three economies in the United States:  (1) those who experience the prosperity of the US, (2) those that are increasingly squeezed by declining real incomes, the rapid expansion of technology and changes in global economics, and (3) those who are discouraged and despairing because they wonder if their basic needs will be met each month.  Economic Justice for All is concerned with the last two economies. ...

In Justice:  Rights and Wrongs , Nicholas Wolsterstorff wants to redeem justice and rights language from those that wrongly attribute the possessive individualism of modernity/post-modernity to the human rights tradition of fourteenth-century nominalism (against the idea of universals) or seventeenth-century atomism (the rise of the solitary-self).  His project travels along two tracks:  (1) to give an alternative account of the origins of our concepts of justice and rights and (2) to give an account of justice based on inherent rights. First, Wolsterstorff argues that the notion of inherent rights finds its origins in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures.  Contrary to the narratives of Alasdair MacIntyre and Stanley Hauerwas, Wolsterstorff argues that the modern misuse of rights-language is the culprit in creating our current predicament of possessive individualism.  He argues that if we recover a narrative that grounds the origins of justice and rights-lang...

Scripture: Psalm 146 Praise the Lord! Don't trust in mortals. How hard is that, though? I see the people who get the most attention and praise. I see those in power. I can taste the things money can buy, and I can really be excited by the future that people in power offer. But God doesn't care about the newest fashion, the fastest car, the latest social media trend or what celebrity couple is together this week. God probably doesn't even care about powerful and influential people unless it concerns how they are treating others. God cares about the unflashy -- the poor, prisoners, the blind, strangers, orphans and widows -- you know, those who won't really advance your popularity or status. But when our lives are finished on this earth, our money and fame and big houses won't matter. What matters is that the Lord is steadfast and true forever--and cares about how we treat others. Challenge yourself to care for others--and practice grace for yourself when you c...

Walter Rauschenbusch lived and served as a pastor among the poor and hurting white working-class victims of the industrial revolution; living just north of New York's "Hell's Kitchen", on the west side of New York City.  Rauschenbusch became the leading voice of the Social Gospel movement with the publication of his book Christianity and the Social Crisis in 1907, while he served as a professor of history at Rochester University.  In Christianity and the Social Crisis , Rauschenbusch makes the case for a Christian influence on society that would inoculate it against the plague of capitalist industrialization (page 357).  Christianity had failed to have a transformative effect on society, and there were social, historical, and predominately economic reasons for that.  But before he pointed to the cause for Christian social impotence in the face of the ravishes of industrialism, he described the potency within Christianity for a positive social impact. To begin with, ...

Written in the "revolutionary" 1960s, when cultural upheaval was trendy, John Howard Yoder* argues that the "original revolution" was the "creation of a distinct community with its own deviant set of values and its coherent way of incarnating them" (page 28).  For Yoder, this distinct community -- the church under the leadership of Jesus -- is a voluntary society of mixed composition (Jews and Gentiles) practicing a new way to live.  Essential to this new way of life is the community's resistance to the fundamental human temptation -- power. Yoder draws us back to the pages of the gospels and the history of first-century Palestine to contrast this new way of life with four common responses to power.  The first response to power is realism (modeled by the Herodians and the Sadducees).   Realism aims at what is possible, accepting the dominant social system and working for incremental change within it.  The second response to power is revolutionar...

Walter Rauschenbusch's Christianizing the Social Order is one of those books I didn't set out to like.  I first read it as an undergrad, later worked it into a paper that developed a theological account of the social nature of humanity (using both Rauschenbush and Martin Luther King).  In retrospect, I wouldn't stand by that paper now.  Which is why I left this book aside for over a decade after.  Until the past few years. According to Rauschenbush, the conditions of our current social order stand in direct contradiction to Christian conceptions of justice and fraternity (page viii).  What is the condition of the current social order?  Simply put, Rauschenbusch describes the condition as one where economic exploitation in a system of industrial capitalist greed is esteemed.  Big business and industrialization is damaging society.  The lives of people are a means to better financial ends.  But for the Christian, lives are the priority ove...