Christians nowadays emphasize private faith in Christianity, caring deeply about personal salvation and personal moral behaviour like drinking, cursing and se[i]x[/i]ual purity. Across board, these are important matters, no doubt. The issue is that this personal faith is emphasized at the expense of public faith, which tends to be grossly underemphasized.

In public faith, the only ones the church ALWAYS seems to care about is inter-personal social concerns, and in only two categories: abortion and homose[i]x[/i]ual marriage/relations. As seen in the Bible, God obviously cares about unborn children and se[i]x[/i]ual orientations/integrity, regardless of what side of these issues you are on. But inasmuch as these may be considered important, they are not all that matters in public faith.

Other matters of public faith include poverty, caring for nature (plants, animals and the environment), quality health care, immigration laws, peacemaking, racism, race relations, fairness in taxation systems, debt relief, just court systems, fair and timely salaries and wages, condition of prisons and actual rehabilitation of prisoners, hunger, and other various categories of inter-personal social concerns (besides the more popular topics of abortion and homose[i]x[/i]ual relations).

As I type this, I remember a reaction I saw on twitter back when the Oyedepo-slapsgiving case was in the media. Someone said "What's the big deal? Is he not a man of God? If he slaps her and she dies he will bring her back to life". And my heart sank deeply at the reasoning employed. We've missed the point of Christianity if we neglect the issues of public faith.
Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever flowing stream. - Amos 5:24

Many of us "Christians" see no reason to employ compassion, fairness, sympathy, and a steady awareness of inter-personal relations and man-to-nature interactions. Some of us are pro-life activists but we have never visited or supported any of the orphanages filled with these children that their mothers did not abort, based on our advice. And we have Christians with no respect for nature and the environment that God has made us regents thereof. The list goes on and on.

Agreed, some of the policies needed to invoke this public faith on a large scale, are closely tied to partisan politics. So I am not saying churches should take sides in political campaigns, because this is illegal (in the correct sense of it. In places like Nigeria, churches have publicly endorsed political aspirants as THEIR candidate, which is wrong in my opinion). As nonprofit organizations, churches shouldn't have politically partisan views. Such politics will seduce the church, which might damage its integrity (Nazi Germany and Apartheid South Africa are good examples in history, the church always loses when it gets too close to partisan politics) and also divert the church from its primary mission of influencing change directly in people's lives because it will pit the supporters of various political parties against one another. God didn't intend the church to be a political action committee. God is way bigger than partisan politics and should not be seen as a political tool. I digress. Non-partisan political participation does not mean the church cannot influence change socially, though. The social issues need not be neglected.

Talking to someone, they said, "Leave the trees, animals and moral codes to the environmentalists, PETA activists, moralists and humanists. God is concerned only about human souls". I beg to disagree!

I believe God cares about all of this just as much as he cares about salvation of souls (in fact, I believe they are completely intertwined, but that may be a discussion for another day). And since the issues matter to God, they should matter to the church.

"God is personal, but never private" - Jim Wallis

What do YOU think?

what do you think, which? you mean what do you think of the whole matter raised or what do you think of the vulture biding its time or moment with the kid soon to be cadaver?

danwo: what do you think, which? you mean what do you think of the whole matter raised or what do you think of the vulture biding its time or moment with the kid soon to be cadaver?

Yes to both. What do you think of the topic?

Meanwhile that image is symbolic of many things I already described above.

The child sits there, dying while roasting in hope. And the vulture just waits patiently.

InesQor:

Yes to both. What do you think of the topic?

Meanwhile that image is symbolic of many things I already described above.

The child sits there, dying while roasting in hope. And the vulture just waits patiently.

i dont know which world you resurfaced or resurrected from but which "Christians nowadays emphasize private faith in Christianity, caring deeply about personal salvation and personal moral behaviour like drinking, cursing and sexual purity" havent you been following the media or tabloids at all if not lately? listen this whole thing is convoluted. Moral? how long is a piece of string. when you were galavanting over the place, have you considered the carbon footprint you contributed to. i know you have sincere, genuine and good intentions but hey i think its all personal and at the end of the day, it will be a private thing between the concerned and God. i dont follow the correlation between what was addressed in the posting and the picture of the vulture and the kid though. Are you impying that the church nowadays have turned to preying on the vulnerable or exploiting the helpless like the vulture is about doing with the kid? The vulture isnt turning a blind eye or burying its head in sand, that seemingly is what the post is suggesting the church nowadays is doing but the vulture is waiting for that moment of complete weakness before pouncing - an opportunist.

@danwo:

danwo:

i dont know which world you resurfaced or resurrected from but which "Christians nowadays emphasize private faith in Christianity, caring deeply about personal salvation and personal moral behaviour like drinking, cursing and sexual purity" havent you been following the media or tabloids at all if not lately? listen this whole thing is convoluted.

I speak from my observation, and limited experience. It can help us all if you tell us how you think the Church has paid attention to the matters discussed.

danwo: Moral? how long is a piece of string. when you were galavanting over the place, have you considered the carbon footprint you contributed to.

I'll take this as an attempt at humor.

danwo: i know you have sincere, genuine and good intentions but hey i think its all personal and at the end of the day, it will be a private thing between the concerned and God.

I don't know if you're a Christian, but the way of Christianity as Jesus taught, does not rate these things as "personal" the way you have stated it to be.

danwo: i dont follow the correlation between what was addressed in the posting and the picture of the vulture and the kid though. Are you impying that the church nowadays have turned to preying on the vulnerable or exploiting the helpless like the vulture is about doing with the kid?

This is only your assumption. I never implied such a thing.

danwo: The vulture isnt turning a blind eye or burying its head in sand, that seemingly is what the post is suggesting the church nowadays is doing but the vulture is waiting for that moment of complete weakness before pouncing - an opportunist.

My point in inserting the image was to illustrate suffering/social injustice and also how nature / the environment takes over (often adversely) when human beings who are the regents meant to take control have failed in their duties. But basically it was there to illustrate poverty, lack and hunger, social ills.

Whatever else you infer are misconstrued, at least going by my intentions. Thanks for contributing.

InesQor: @danwo:


I speak from my observation, and limited experience. It can help us all if you tell us how you think the Church has paid attention to the matters discussed.


I'll take this as an attempt at humor.


I don't know if you're a Christian, but the way of Christianity as Jesus taught, does not rate these things as "personal" the way you have stated it to be.


This is only your assumption. I never implied such a thing.


My point in inserting the image was to illustrate suffering/social injustice and also how nature / the environment takes over (often adversely) when human beings who are the regents meant to take control have failed in their duties. But basically it was there to illustrate poverty, lack and hunger, social ills.

Whatever else you infer are misconstrued, at least going by my intentions. Thanks for contributing.

sorry I cant do those or cant be bothered doing those fanciful "individually separated quotes" and then "respond beneath each one of the quotes" bedazzle thing. you will just have to do with my block quoted lame style response. what I wrote is that on the contrary the church has not being "caring deeply about personal salvation and personal moral behaviour" talkless an expectation to explore a or its public faith. That was the core reason of asking which world had you sprung from because it is obvious the chuch has degenerated."but the way of Christianity as Jesus taught, does not rate these things as "personal" the way you have stated it to be." It is a personal thing, better believe it. Jesus said "You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." if you are found wanting of truly loving yourself, how can you love the next person or empathise with others. first that is personal as it can get. second the concerned entered the world alone, will leave alone, will make account and explain self alone, privately with God. now that you have explained the picture which incidentally did not have a caption and so got subjected or susceptibled to misconceptions, i can see you mean exactly what Edmund Burke said that all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that church good men do nothing. so for such a time as this do not sit by and do nothing for the church we have come to royal position for such a time as this. as for contributing, anything for the kingdom's sake. dont mention.

Bump

InesQor:
Is he not a man of God? If he slaps her and she dies he will bring her back to life".

It should not be, but is a typical Christian thinking.

The picture posted is very old, and it is faked.