Description: plēnius humanum esse ... "to be more fully human" ... reflections on history and faith from the Second Temple Period to Late Antiquity informing contemporary socio-political commentary and criticism
“Christian” America has lost its way. This week another assault rifle massacre. In Texas (again) this time. The governor’s response to the problem? Pose for a social media photo with an assault rifle. After all, a packing nation is a beacon of freedom and strength. A nation whose people are armed to the teeth will live secure. You know, “a good guy with a gun ….”
The church has always struggled to live Jesus’s message, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Or this one, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus connects this with what he called the greatest commandment, to “love God.” In today’s Americanized Christianity, faith is no longer about love, forgiveness, and grace, as it has been for thousands of years for God’s people. Now, for the Americanized version of “Christianity,” faith has become more about American exceptionalism, power, dominan
Instead of loving your neighbor, now we are encouraged to “have a plan to kill everyone you meet.” Always be aware of your language, the talking head anxiously blurts. Always be nice to others, because you can never know when your words will trigger someone’s anger to the point of breaking and acting out with violent assault. So you must be prepared to kill that person. Always.