“radical” christianity
i’m getting tired of being interviewed for or asked to endorse books that are about “radical christianity.” especially when those books typically use that term to describe what should be garden variety, everyday christianity. it shouldn’t be the work of the “radical” to reach out to those who are different than them economically, racially or sexually. it shouldn’t be the “radicals” who are caring for the poor and giving a voice to those who are invisible in our culture. being “radical” shouldn’t be a prerequisite for being in the business of restoration not just of individuals but of everything that god has made, including his good creation.
and calling those who are doing nothing more than making the necessary connections between what they believe about god (theology) and how they love god and their neighbors (ethics) “radicals” only isolates this group from the populace of the confessing church all the more, giving a comfortable excuse to those who have simply made jesus easier to follow (raising some question as to what they’re really following). and to those looking in from the outside, it’s much easier to marginalize or ignore the “radicals” of a group than to identify them as actually representing the core beliefs of that group.
so let’s stop using this language, calling something great that is only good. it’s radical or nothing folks.
