How Now Shall We Live?

Charles Colson & Nancy Pearcey

1999

C&P Chapters 36-39

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There Goes the Neighborhood (Chapter 36)

Crime and DisorderDemographic shift of baby-boomersBad policies of 1960s and ’70s

Poverty causes crime (?)Insufficient number of police (?)(p. 361)

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There Goes the Neighborhood (Chapter 36)

Crime and DisorderBad behavior as a “Civil Right” “In the 1972 case, Justice William O.

Douglas waxed colorful about the rights of ‘rogues and vagabonds’ to roam the countryside as ‘loafers or litterers,’ as if drunks and panhandlers were merely romantic wanderers” (p. 362)

From vagrant and drifter to a persecuted minority social class

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There Goes the Neighborhood (Chapter 36)

Crime and DisorderCivil Liberties: the mentally ill are “oppressed” “…result was a massive movement to de-

institutionalize the mentally ill, unleashing a flood of mentally unstable, disoriented people onto the streets of the nation’s cities” (p. 363)

civil liberties defined “in excessively individualistic terms, denying the right of communities to promote their values or to insist on standards of behavior” (p. 363)

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There Goes the Neighborhood (Chapter 36)

The Broken-Window Theory George KellingJames Q. Wilson early 1980s

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Real Shalom Shalom:

peace in a positive sense the result of a rightly-ordered community reduce crime by discouraging it St. Augustine (4th c.): peace = “the tranquility

produced by order” (tranquillitas ordinis)

Biblical basis: the doctrine of creation created for community “as long as we live in the ‘City of Man’, it is morally

imperative for us to work for the peace of that city” (p. 365)

“Converting chaos into the tranquillitas ordinis, one house at a time, one block at a time, one community . . . .” (p. 372)

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Creating the Good society (ch 37) What is the good life?

The life of virtue “Without virtue, a society can be ruled only be fear, a

truth that tyrants understand all too well” (p. 373)

Relativism “Relativism provides no sure foundation for a safe

and orderly society. If all people are free to choose for themselves what is right, how can a society agree on, and enforce, even minimal standards?” (p. 374)

“Can man be good without God?” (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)

“marching toward moral oblivion [saying] . . . ‘I Did It My Way’” (Richard John Neuhaus)

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No virtue, no self governance Why does virtue matter?

“A nation without virtue cannot govern itself” (p. 377)

Loss of virtue leads to loss of self-government, which leads to tyranny and the death of liberty

Biblical Worldview:Creation: we are created by a holy God

who is the standard of morality (Lev 19:2)Fall: we are prone to evil and need moral

restraints for society to function (Mark 7:20)Redemption: gives us the power to

overcome the rebellious human will

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Change the world?

Today: change the world, not yourself

Result: changing the world for the worse “Moral crusaders with zeal but no

ethical understanding are likely to give us solutions that are worse than the problems” (p. 378)

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The importance of integrity “Integrity of character runs through large and

small matters, through public and private actions” (p. 378) Luke 16:10: Whoever can be trusted with very little can

also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much

Integrity comes from the verb “to integrate” = “to become united to form a complete or perfect whole”

“But the very idea of right and wrong makes sense only if there is a final standard, a measuring rod, by which we can make moral judgments” (p. 379)

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What is conversion?

Conversion is when the will is transformed and turned around “At the heart of Christianity is a

supernatural transforming power that enables us not only to know what is right but also to do it – to become virtuous” (p. 381)

Natural Virtue = conscience (Rom 2)Even non-Christians have thisConscience belongs to our created selvesSo, Christians should cultivate ethical

knowledge among non-Christians

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The Work of Our Hands (ch 38)The biblical view of work

Creation: “all work has dignity as an expression of

the divine image” (p. 384)Gen 2:15: work the earth and take care

of itFall:

Work is fraught with pain and difficultyRedemption:

“Enables us to restore the original meaning and purpose of work” (p. 385)

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The Economics of the Bible The right to property

“is not a defense of material things per se, but rather the dignity of human creativity, ingenuity, and inventiveness” (p. 385) Commandments: Do not steal (#8) Do not covet (#10)

“private property is a gift from god to be used to establish social justice and to care for the poor and disadvantaged” Isaiah 1:17: “Seek justice, encourage the oppressed.

Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow”

“Ultimately, of course, we do not own anything; we are only stewards of the things God has entrusted to us” Ps 24:1: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”

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The Economics of the Bible

The poor in the BibleThe able-bodied are required to work

in exchange for benefitsOT Law: leave margins unharvested so

the poor can glean enough to eat (Lev 19:9-10)

“The poor are to retain their dignity as competent and responsible people who are capable of helping themselves” (P. 386)

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Secular Work is Sacred

Greek worldviewThought the material world is evil and

chaoticDevalued manual laborValued the “nobler” pursuit of culture &

philosophy

Biblical worldviewThe material world is God’s creationBut . . . sacred/secular dualism

Eusebius (4th c.): “the perfect life versus secondary piety”

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Adam Smith’s “Invisible Hand” Adam Smith

Founder of Capitalism (late 18th c)Defined work “solely as a means of fulfilling

one’s self-interest” (p. 389)

Self-interestTurned the vice of self-interest into a virtue

for the “good of society”Self-interest is a great motivator in a fallen

worldPaved the way “for a new ethic of ambition,

aggression, and self-advancement” (p. 389)

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Critique of Adam Smith’s “Invisible Hand”The economy is NOT an

autonomous mechanismIt depends on a juridical framework

Government is the refereeIt depends on a sound moral culture

“Morality in the marketplace depends on the decisions made by each individual economic agent”

Bottom line: “Economic success depends on morality”

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The Value of Work Today Problems:

The workplace as the primary social environmentWeakened ties to family and church

Work is reduced to a utilitarian function: a means of attaining benefits for this world, this life

The Biblical WorldviewWork is fulfilling only when it is tied to moral

and spiritual moorings “Work is still a gift of God that imparts a sense

of personal fulfillment and useful service” (p. 395)

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The Ultimate Appeal (ch 39) Two types of laws:

The just and the unjust “One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to

obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that ‘an unjust law is no law at all’” (MLK Jr.)

Civil Disobedience Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego:

We will not bow down. Martin Luther:

“Here I stand; I can do no other. God help me” John Bunyan:

“I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience”

Thomas Jefferson: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are

created equal”

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The Law and Biblical Principals A transcendent law above human law

“The government is not simply a social contract between the people and those who govern, but a social contract made under the authority of a higher law” (p. 400)

The higher law is critical to the preservation of liberty and justice

Even the king stands under the law (Samuel Rutherford)

Limited Government Catholic theory: subsidiarity

The higher social institutions exist to help subordinate institutions (like the family)

Reformed theory: sphere of sovereignty State is ordained by God yet limited by other divinely

ordained social institutions

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The Law and Biblical Principals Separation of powers

Based on the doctrine of the Fall: Since everyone is prone to sin it is a fatal

mistake to entrust too much power to any one individual or group (p. 403)

No Direct DemocracyThe electoral college system is where “the

will of the people is sifted”The founders did not want a system where

“the voice of the people is the voice of God”

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Judicial Imperialism

Pragmatism: truth is the hypothesis that works

best

Deconstruction: language does not reveal meaning

(which would imply that there is a transcendent realm of truth); rather, language is a social construction

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The Results of Losing Transcendent Authority 1. There are no restraints on individual

behavior. 2. Government is reduced to utilitarian

procedures. Procedural republic = the laws are procedures for

helping people get what they want (Michael Sandel) 3. We can no longer engage in moral debate. 4. We have forfeited the rule of law and

reverted to arbitrary human law.

“If no appeal to transcendent authority is permitted, then the justices themselves become the supreme authority” (p. 406)

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How can the chaos be reversed? Persuasion Modeling

Christians must be good citizens.Christians must carry out their civic duty in

every walk of life.Christians must be engaged directly in

politics.The church must act as the conscience of

society, as a restraint against the misuse of governing authority.

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Coming up . . .

December 6: C&P chs 40-44

Brown-bag lunch in the classroom from 1 to 2 pm.

December 13: Final Exam