FB15 Does Forgiveness Do More Harm than Good?
Those of us who identify with the Christian Church are increasingly struggling today on many fronts.
Basically, the term Christian applies to the community of all Christ Followers, a motley collection of differing ethnicities, races, and political stripes. We are an unnatural mix, instructed to live together in harmony as a Body, under one Head, integrated and yet with differing functions and sensitivities. This community of Faith, as understood by the scriptures and teachings of Christ, is the Kingdom of God in action, serving God by serving others. Christians are to live out a way of life that is attractive, as Salt and Light, both enriching society and showing The Way.
However, Christianity in its religious form is commonly viewed as a collection of institutions under human leadership. In its interactions with society, it has frequently linked arms with political structures to force upon society a particular view of the world and way of life. The emphasis here is on power, status, and legalism. In purporting to have the wisdom to rule wisely, its more ugly history of misdeeds are on popular display; its personal and group motivations seem not so different from the rest of humanity.
Timothy Keller has emerged as one of current Christian leaders who is candidly open to accepting criticisms of Christianity. He is helping Christians and others to critique the human tendencies of religion and to reclaim the essentials of Faith as a personal response to the claim of Divine Lordship in personal lives.
In The Fading of Forgiveness: Tracing the disappearance of the thing we need most (Cardus Comment Magazine, May 6, 2021), Keller speaks first to believers, but also to cultural Christians and secularists who are questioning the wisdom of practicing forgiveness as an essential part of personal and social life. For Keller, forgiveness is an essential part of the reconciliation we all desire within community. It effectively addresses the “incompatibilities” of our togetherness.
The article is of current relevance. Recommended for personal reflection or, better, for group discussion.
The Fading of Forgiveness – Comment Magazine
First published on Facebook Page (My Reads and Views):
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First published here: 2021/12/08
Latest revision: 2022/05/24