Social Justice

Christ’s Abolishment of ‘Eye for an Eye’ Justice in Favor of Self-Abandonment

Posted on by markwchristy
By Mark W. Christy, PhD In present times, one can visit any news outlet and quickly peruse many stories of people claiming to be victims and demanding justice. Some of these, whether they are truly victims or simply perceive of themselves as being in some sort of contrived victim class, are shouting demands for social justice against supposed assailants who many times have no awareness, much less culpability, of that for which they are being accused. Regardless of the side, both express conc...
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Was Jesus Privileged?

Posted on by markwchristy
Quite frequently, I hear discussions in the media about privilege, especially white privilege. Usually this word is invoked to stifle the conversation of the one who is privileged in favor of the one deemed less privileged. As I considered this prevailing phenomenon, I could not help but ask, Is this concept biblical? Should we evaluate members of society based on external characteristics and matters of choice, apportion to each a degree of privilege or lack thereof, confess our inability due t...
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Silenced for My Privilege, Attitude, and Lack of Christian Love…

Posted on by markwchristy
Recently I posted this comment....During the days of Paul, the NT writers spoke in defense of the gospel against such heresies as proclaimed by the Gnostics and the Judaizers. Like them, we need to be acutely aware of any prevailing worldly philosophy that undermines the gospel. Black Lives Matter is little more than a clever attempt to push identity politics, critical race theory, intersectionality, and social justice theory, all of which are rooted in the atheistic philosophy of cultural Marx...
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Jesus response to the oppression of Jews by the Romans

Posted on by markwchristy
Luke 13 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? 3 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. 4 Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no! But...
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God’s Response to Social Injustice: Biblical Love Defined

Posted on by markwchristy
Many today are claiming Christ and advocating love, especially in these times of social unrest. Both sides of the current debate see injustices that pervade society from their perspectives and desire for a more perfect (comfortable) society. Instead of viewing the world with ourselves as the center, maybe we should revisit Scripture to see how God would respond to the unjust. Let us look at Jonah to see how God chooses to express His love to those who are deemed unjust. "The word of the Lord ca...
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The Politics of Hate

Posted on by markwchristy
One day, I decided to ask my Chinese college students what they would wish for if they had three wishes. One student proudly stood up and wished that every Japanese person would die. In shock, I felt obligated to respond with a discussion on the politics of hate. Here it is in a nutshell. From the time my students were children, the government had repeatedly reminded them of the evils perpetrated by the Japanese in WWII. They were told to never forgive and never forget. Why? The government wish...
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The Connection between Social Justice and Communism Simplified

Posted on by markwchristy
Many Americans, I think, fail to see the connection between communism and the current political landscape. Essentially, communism tries to rectify society's problems by reforming the system. The system, in other words, becomes the sinner and the one in need of change. Focus in this atheistic worldview is wrongly taken off of the individual. The gospel of repentance from sin and forgiveness in Christ is lost. In the current climate where social justice is being advocated, many may still fail to ...
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The Church on the Wrong Side of Justice Historically? -Debunked

Posted on by markwchristy
A thought shared with me on this matter.....“One of the disturbing things about Church history is the Church’s appalling track record of being on the wrong side of the great social issues of the day.” “What will our grandchildren ask us when they look back twenty-five or fifty years from now and wonder how we could have just sat by and watched when justice was demanded?”Response 1I am sorry, but I have to object. Just because some Muslims hold to a more violent understanding of Islam and commit...
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Critical Theory – 3 Problematic Components

Posted on by markwchristy
1. One's identity is based on a group or category to which they are associated with. Membership in these groups (race, sex, etc) is not based on personal choice; even so, those in these groups are guilty by default. So, this is how you can be a racist, misogynistic homophobe. 2. Your duty is to liberate the oppressed. Bear in mind that someone else gets to determine who these people are. Ultimately, most people in society are oppressors of a still more oppressed group. For example, a black h...
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Challenges of Social Justice Theory (SJT) to the Biblical Worldview (adapted from By What Standard, ed. Jared Longshore)

Posted on by markwchristy
1. The promotion of the sense of entitlement - Those who are from underprivileged classes (as defined by these theorists) are told that they should seek to be first and society should make it so. Jesus teaches us to be a servant (Matt 10:42-43). 2. Personal offense becomes the focus - Those who are underprivileged and those who are the cause of their lower status are told to focus exclusively (much of the time) on acknowledging privilege in others (judgementalism by category which is unbibli...
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