My only hope is in you...

Lots of good stuff today.

The Proverb, 10:10, seems to hit upon a fundamental difference between the life of the OT and the NT. "People who wink at wrong cause trouble, but a bold reproof promotes peace." The Judaic emphasis on justice runs counter to the "turn the other cheek" philosophy in Christianity. It was, and is, a sin not to pursue justice, because "winking" at wrong, or being ineffectual at pursuing justice, or being too lazy to pursue justice, "causes trouble." The point is that a lack of pursuit of justice is sinful, just like the unjust person. Because not pursuing justice creates further injustice.

This is where everything gets sticky, especially in deconstructionist vs legalist terms. Whose justice are we seeking? Are we seeking a "rational" justice? I would imagine we are always seeking rational justice. But whose definitions are we using? If we are using definitions from the standpoint of the impoverished Islamist, then his concept of justice may be distinctly different from my concept. His justice may extend to putting a bomb on a family member in order to destroy what he feels to be an "unjust" social order, where his religion is dominated by another's. Or, in a milder form, cultural dishonesty, ingrained lying, may be a tool that is "justified" in his arsenal to bring about social justice for his religion. At this point, religion fails and becomes simple "ethics" or the definition of justice established by the ruling class. It no longer reflects a pursuit of an external moral order defined by God before time, as a way we can all understand God's nature. It is simply a fabrication of mankind's "rationality." With too much emphasis on rationality, justice is defined by one class vs another, and it is not the representation of the fundamental moral order of the universe.

How do we avoid this trap? How do we avoid denigrating "religion" and turning it into nothing more than "ethics" that are a rulebook, for culture vs culture? Do we establish a new covenant, because the abuses of the pursuit of justice, the perversion of religion into ethics via rationality, has fundamentally undermined our understanding of the nature of God through the religion with which He blessed us? I think that this is the message behind all church reformers. Christ, Luther, Rev. King... Our rationality, wonderful as it is, destroys religion and turns it into ethics. And soon we end up with a blind and toothless universe.

How do we stop it? I think David has a wonderful message to keep us on track.

I said to myself, "I will watch what I do
And not sin in what I say.
I will curm my tongue when the ungodly are around me."
...
We are merely moving shadows,
and all our busy rushing ends in nothing
...
And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
My only hope is in you.
Rescue me from my rebellion,
For even fools mock me when I rebel.
I am silent before you; I won't say a word.
...
Psalm 39:1-8

"My only hope is in you." Regardless of our questions, regardless of our concerns, our struggles, our failures, our only hope is in God. We can talk about social justice vs ethics vs morality all day, but at the end of the day, before we lay our heads down, no matter who is with us, we are still alone with God. Because rationality always fails us, we must keep our eyes and hearts attuned to His presence in our lives, and always be listening for Him. Staying silent, and being aware of Him, and our need for Him, continuously. Again, it all comes back to faith.