I’m not necessarily thinking about politics. It’s a serious error for either Democrats or Republicans to claim Jesus as their own, and it’s just as disingenuous for any movement or philosophy to do that, however much we may strive to base our worldviews on him and his teachings.
But it is the nature of conservatism to hold onto what was, and to resist change; and the Kingdom of God intrudes on the order of things as it moves us inexorably toward a greater future.
In the Parable of the Mustard Seed, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a small seed that, when planted, germinates and grows by degrees until it ultimately transforms a garden into a bird sanctuary. That’s a progressive view. The original purpose of the cultivated area is lost, and in its place stands something new.
We see this progression in the march of Scripture. Humanity is exiled from the Garden of Eden, and barred from ever returning. In the end we receive the vision St. John of Patmos: not a return to the garden, but an epochal arrival in the City of Eden. This is a story of redemption that does not punish us for straying until we have earned our way back; it is redemption that builds on what we have, and moves us ever onward, ever forward to a redemption unimaginable in scale greater than what was lost.
That Jesus embodies and advances this sort of progress also should say something about the Torah, when he claims that he has not come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it. The Torah itself was intended as a vehicle of mercy, to set a limit on punishment. Under the Torah,a criminal would not lose his life for an eye, a killer’s family is not executed along with him, and debts do not last forever.
To follow Jesus is, by default, not to be a conservative and simply to hold onto to what was past. It is to bet everything on the progressive views of Christ, on human dignity, on compassion, and on social justice. These are the values expressed in his life and teachings, and 2,000 years later they’re still more progressive than contemporary norms/
Faced with a woman caught in the very act of adultery, he refused to shame her. Asked about the death penalty he opposed it even when it was prescribed. In a time of violence, he advanced pacifism. In a land torn by ethnic strife, he upheld people for the virtues they regularly were held to lack.
Compare that to conservatism, where the Law is meant to punish lawbreakers with the goal of maintaining order. And when it comes to the more radical aspects of the Law like feeding the hungry, the Jubilee and debt forgiveness, we claim that such efforts are impractical, or lie beyond the scope of governmental responsibility.
We can differ over details on how we pursue the Kingdom of God, but ultimately our views on taxation, race relations, abortion, women’s rights, education and voting rights all should be rooted Christ and what he promises in the back of the book.
Jesus equated religious piety with mercy and guarding the dignity and welfare of others, and considered the redistribution of wealth to be act of worship. These are shockingly radical notions, not old-fashioned ones.
Jesus was progressive and put the value of other people first, always. Dare to be like him.
Copyright 2014 by David Learn. Used with permission.
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