Over the past several weeks, there has been much fomenting in the Blogosphere regarding the One Campaign, the G8 Conference, and Live8.
Not to be the guy who is left out, I am taking a brief break from my church musings (I might still have more to say, but I am not sure) to give you a measure of cognitive dissonance over the whole African aid issue.
To start off, David Smith seems to be all in a lather about the One Campaign, claiming that corruption is at the root of all evil in Africa. He is probably right, but sometimes I have a hard time reading because of this log in my own eye, you know?
Then we have Doug Payton at Stones Cry Out commenting that Americans are really generous. I have read this before, I believe in the Wall Street Journal, and other places, and this concept makes me feel strange. We are generous, isn't that nice of us? Come to think of it, we are also clean, brave, thrifty, and reverent (well, sort of), we Americans. Please reference the graphic above, as it is self congratulation time. Oh wait, I forgot to mention that we Americans are also humble. As a matter of fact, in scientific studies, Americans were found to be 15 times more humble that any other major population occupying a land mass north of the Equator.
Alright, I am sorry, the sarcasm is getting too thick. But in response, I want to share with you this (HT to Tod Bolsinger) which for me, captures what really should be happening. I just have to quote my favorite paragraph:
Why appeal to government when the church is a far better resource? John L. and Sylvia Ronsvalle, authors of The State of Church Giving Through 2001, note that if American Christians gave 10 percent of their income to support the work of the church, it would provide $143 billion to equip the church to do what she is called to do. Why ask for a measly $25 billion when the American church has more money and can directly support those private groups charged with addressing the greatest needs in the most effective ways? This approach allows governments to focus on things like building infrastructure and securing peace and justice.
So, is the church a better resource? What you say? No?! What is wrong with us self-congratulatory American Christians? When will the church stand up and become something more than an institution, but rather a living, breathing vessel of the transformational Christ? When will we stop sitting on our wallets and open them? Perhaps then, those around us who sit on the sidelines and giggle at our little church silliness (as I have been recently discussing, and have been a part of myself) will begin to see a community of Believers that actually can and do make a difference? Oh, and if that is not enough, you might want to get a hold of this (it is amazing), because it seems there are a lot of non-Christian folk who are doing work that is more redemtive than a lot of church folk can often do.
Stepping down off my soap box now. Thanks for letting me rant.
4 comments:
But it is such a good rant, full of truth and merit. I think if we put one third of our energy, voice and money into world poverty that we do into those political issues we all love to fight for, then we would accomplish two things. World poverty could be eradicated and people would have the proper view of the church as salt and light offering mercy and grace to the world instead of judgment and (sometimes) hate.
Steve:
You are welcome. Now take a deep breath. My flesh is well ripped. But now what?
The visible church is still little different from the Rotary Club; Africa is still dark because of its institutions, beliefs, and practices; America is still swell--and dark--because of its institutions, beliefs, and practices. And we who claim Christ as our Lord are still sitting on the Blessings He gave us and saying "mine,mine,mine."
David Smith is right: it is wrong for us USers to put our feelings ahead of African needs as the ONE campaign does; Doug Payton is right; we Americans as taxpayers are generous; and you are right to be frustrated. But....the big difference between government and its ability to be generous and the church and its inability to be generous is force. The government uses force to exact tax; the church uses gratitude--and some ill-advised psychological manipulation--to elicit offerings.
It is of little long-term use for you to state the obvious which is this: force is more effective than gratitude. Machiavelli did that long ago. But you can be effective ranting if your rants join the rants of others and become a raging river of rants IF that torrent floods the appropriate target. That target is not the heart of the US in Washington DC but the heart of us American Christians who believe and behave more like our American Idols, than our putative Lord. How do we get there from here? By having pastors who are more willing to equip than to placate, pastors for whom theology is a stronger foundation for gratitude than therapy.
May you continue to seek, find, and encourage such pastors.
Your Brother in Christ,
Derek Simmons
Hi Steve,
There are time tested solutions that will work to help Africa and African’s and there are time tested solutions that are guaranteed to make the problems worse.
The Church (WE) need a strong and determined government (Maybe Our Own) to enforce (Military if necessary) the rule of law before it will even be possible for The Church (US) to make a dent in the moral climate in Africa. [Then again, maybe we don’t have much morality to export anyway!]
The ONE Campaign solution in Africa has made the problem worse. More aid and more debt relief is not the answer. Aid and debt relief caused the problem.
Just because you are not perfect and just because I am not perfect does not mean we have to go along with a bad solution. People really can grow their own crops and raise their own goats and provide for their own family when they are allowed to own what they produce.
If you interpreted anything I wrote to mean that every African caused their own problems and therefore they don’t deserve help, then you misinterpreted me. I think most African’s are victims of foreign aid similar to what the ONE Campaign is advocating. I believe Africans need some help, but they also need some being left alone. How would you feel and what would it do to your family if your wife and daughters could get their food and clothes from the government and you couldn’t get a job because nobody else in your country needed to work or couldn't work?
I don’t have an answer for your “When will we become…” question. Part of me thinks we are becoming and part of me thinks we are crumbling. I can only hope we think with our heads and care with our hearts and love like our Savior. Thinking with our hearts and loving like the world will destroy us.
Derek and David,
As always, I appreciate your thoughts, input, and wisdom. Well done. God help us all, and may He give us a renewed passion and energy to serve within the (broken, like us) church in order that it might become more effective in the world.
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