In an article in the globe today, discussed "Religious Fundamentalism" There was an interesting paragraph.
The phenomenon of "fundamentalism" has made an extraordinary impact on the world. But what is it? The scholar Gabriel A. Almond defines fundamentalism as "religious militance by which self-styled 'true-believers' attempt to arrest the erosion of religious identity, fortify the borders of the religious community, and create viable alternatives to secular institutions and behaviors." Some fundamentalists pursue openly political agendas (Northern Ireland, Israel, Iran). Some are apolitical (Latin American Pentecostalism). In war zones (Sudan, Afghanistan, Palestine, Sri Lanka), fundamentalism is energizing conflict. Most notably, the warring groups in Iraq have jelled around fundamentalist religion.
With the negative connotation that surrounds religious fundamentalism these days I found it interesting that Latin America, the only place where fundamentalism has taken an apolitical stance, is the only place where religious fundamentalism is doing more good than harm. From what I understand of Latin American religion and Liberation Theology, they aren't passive about there politics. They are infact quite vocal about where they stand. They have been able to position themselves as a prophetic voice against the government, calling them into account when they do wrong. They also position themselves with the poor, supporting them, and loving them, and speaking on there behalf. North America could learn from there example.
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Granted I am not an expert on the political situation in Latin America, nor on fundamentalism worldwise, but I find it odd to call Liberation Theology apolitical: people like Fidel Castro (if I recall correctly) were openly endorsing LT and the main proponents of LT such as Guitierrez advocated political as well as social change.
I guess you already noted the political nature of LT in your entry, but I am curious to hear how LT is doing more good (by being apolitical) than other religious fundamentalist groups?
Apolitical may not be the best terminology. As you point out LT is very political, but it is not political in they way fundamentalists are political in America or other parts of the world. LT from what I understand engages the political system by holding it accountable to its actions and calls the government to a higher standard, Gods standard. (Some would call this a prophetic stance) In places like America, Fundamentalists grab onto power and try to force the changes they want. (Like being anti gay marriage or anti abortion) In places like Iraq, Fundamentalists are openly hostile towards anyone who disagrees with them, sometimes to the point of killing them.
This prophetic stance towards politics is how I feel LT has done the most good. It is also noteworthy that Latin America & South America are also in the midst of a revival. Although I don't know everything that is going on there and what is being preached, but I would assume that it has a heavy LT slant. (LT originated there after all.)
Thanks for being the first person to post on my blog!
I wonder if these different manifestations of fundamentalism can be attributed to the differing social/political situations in North and South America. For one thing, the political system in the States already has accountability features built into the very structure of its political system (theoretically the government answers to the people already--so the people can be said to be the government). To call the government to a higher standard then involves implementing those standards into a laws that affect the people: anti-gay laws.
Again, I am hazy on the exact political situation in South America, but I think I can hazard the guess that the relation between the government and the people is less strong than in the States. Thus the need for a prophetic rather than kingly (or legal) stance.
Hey, on a practical level, I'd love to hear how you think Christians could adopt a prophetic stance towards their government, taking into consideration the specific cultural/political/social situation we operate in.
And....your blog deserves more comments. I've been reading it for a while, but my interest in LT prompted me to speak up.
I'm a friend of Evan's and three-fourths of bostonblogs, by the way. It's the Covenant connection.
Hey, on a practical level, I'd love to hear how you think Christians could adopt a prophetic stance towards their government, taking into consideration the specific cultural/political/social situation we operate in.
I meant Christians in the States, of course. I need to proofread my comments...
Great question. I have been thinking about that for the past year. I don't have an answer yet. Some things that come to mind are, first, that you are living out what you are calling others too. You can’t ask someone to do something you aren’t doing yourself. (A pet peeve of mine as you can tell by my Al Gore posts.) If I’m calling our government to, for example, give more money to poverty relief through the millennium development goals. (the One campaign) I should make sure that I’m doing that too. We need to live out the values we are calling others to.
Also, I think there is something about the arts too. When I think of the prophets they were sometimes very showman like. Ezekiel laid on his side for 390 days. God told Hosea to marry a prostitute and give his children funny names. I think sometimes God wants to get peoples attention. Shane Clayborn’s book irresistible revolution has a couple of good stories like this. You can also check out Relevant magazines podcast interview of Don Millers for two good stories.
I wonder whether the Latin American pentecostals in fact feel much affinity for liberation theology. I always got the impression LT was more of a Catholic phenomenon.
I would want to avoid generalizing about fundamentalism the way the secular media does. Though I'm not a big Dobson fan or anything, I would feel like I'm jeopardizing my own freedom to hold the moral views that I have by putting him in the same general category as Islamists.
As for how we can impact our society, I wish I knew. I think that being faithful in the little things has to be our starting point, but I do believe God calls us to pursue righteousness in the larger public sphere also. It's just difficult to do so in a society as complex as ours.
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