DISQUS

Groans From Within: Are You a Neo-Roman or a Subverter of Empire? Quote to Ponder: R. Horsley

  • Jason · 7 months ago
    Interesting quote kurt... I do not know the context of the above quote but I do see how Americans have historically identifed with both Rome and Israel depending on the situation.

    Ironically, Rome persecuted Israel (and then Christians).

    I think that we do need to re-evaluate America's role in the Middle East and around the world (for those of us that are Americans) and ask the question "Are we like Rome the oppressor?" The problem is that every culture views their own as right and ordained by their own gods... unfortunately many Americans follow a god that is only American. (Side note: if you have not checked out this new "bible" coming out, the American Patriot Bible, do it... it is scary! Greg Boyd talks about it in his blog... check it out. http://www.gregboyd.org/blog/the-patriots-bible...)

    Anyways... we (Christians in any nation) need to stop being ethnocentric. And, be careful to not re-write our histories to only focus on the good and not be honest about the bad.
  • Dan Martin · 7 months ago
    Right on, Kurt! I would only add that there's a minority who has seen this imperial tendency for a while. . .growing up as I did in a Mennonite household, with two uncles serving in Vietnam with Mennonite Central Committee during the war, our imperial behavior as a nation was made clear to me since my youth. I'm relieved to hear more people coming to this realization.

    Jason's point about the "New American Patriot's Bible" is disturbingly relevant, however. I fear as more believers recognize the subversive nature of true Jesus-following, that the consumers of the PB may well become the empire's oppressors and enforcers.
  • The sword of God · 6 months ago
    Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

    Please, visit to:
    http://thewordofgodistheswordofthespirit.blogsp...
  • graceshaker · 6 months ago
    im wondering just how many ways american christians crucify the historical jesus on a regular basis..
  • Kurt · 6 months ago
    I am with you on your quesiton about how often we crucify the historical Jesus. On one side we tend to remove Jesus from the historical gospel accounts and on the other end we forget how much jesus actually spoke to the culture of his day ie Roman Empire. We need to be less conditioned by our American culture and more conditioned to the way of Jesus!