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Is war a low Christian priority?
Re ‘Christian vote up for grabs?’ (January):
One thing the article did not mention is the subject of Canada’s
presence in Afghanistan.
I’ve seen the following items in the news:
“Canadian troops accidentally shoot foot off
teenage Afghan civilian . . . Canadian soldier dies in roadside bomb . . .
Afghan tot loses two fingers and part of hand in firefight, as collateral
damage (not clear if it was the fault of the Taliban or the
Coalition).”
Let me see if I’ve got this right. Christians are
voting for Stephen Harper (who would be American if he didn’t like
hockey).
We wouldn't vote NDP, would we? No, because same-sex
marriage is more important than war. Its seems we like war, if
there’s a good enough reason for it. Or is it just me?
Onward Christian soldiers!
Tim Garrison, Vancouver
Eckhart Tolle has his good points
Re ‘Veteran apologist tackles Tolle’s old
deception’ (January): I’ve been writing a paper on Eckhart
Tolle recently, as a follow-up to a message I gave at our church late last
year.
Some people had expressed concern about my using Tolle
as an example of a person who had some good ideas. In my paper, I set out
to document my own experiences that paralleled Tolle’s – and to
explain why I believe he has some ideas worth incorporating into our lives
as disciples of Christ.
In my message, I had called Tolle’s theology
“baloney,” and said we should be careful not to take the trip
down the Eastern religion trail. But the good stuff in his writing has to
do with ways we can stop our minds from dominating our existence.
He tells us how to focus on our bodies and our
breathing – on the space in a room, instead of things in a room. I
like his advice about waiting for a thought to come, as a means of
stopping all thoughts. It has helped free
my mind from the incessant images, thoughts and concerns which interfere
when trying to sleep or focus on prayer.
Richard Abanes said that, though Tolle is a New Ager,
he has some good teachings “about letting the past go, and staying in
the Now.” God has made us able to experience the ‘bliss’
of being in the present.
All good gifts come from the Father of lights.
James A. Sclater,
Aldergrove
The neighbourhood mission field
The issue referred to as ‘homelessness’ in
the media continues to grab attention.
After almost five years ministering in
Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, I’ve come to realize that we
have the wrong consonant in that word.
The real problem is hopelessness – and the solution is more than shelter
beds, low-cost housing or feeding programs.
The hope the people need is in Jesus Christ – the
reason for walking away from drugs, or seeking out better ways of
living, or even getting up in the morning.
Are we witnessing properly to those in our immediate
area? Many churches support missionary work in the uttermost parts of the
earth. I do not intend any disrespect at all to those who are called by God
to do that.
But what about the situation for our brothers and
sisters in our own backyard?
Drew Snider, Vancouver
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‘God’s words’ argument collapses
Regarding ‘Looking through the Bible’s
words to find the Word’ (January):
Alan Reynolds might be expecting an avalanche of mail
by horrified subscribers, all huffing and puffing to blow his exegetical
house down. Alas, it collapses on its own.
Application is one thing. Fair enough. But choosing to
dismiss Adam as an historical figure in favour of a mere metaphor for our
common experiences is what more than one New Testament writer calls
‘sleight of hand.’
This may seem clever stuff to the uninitiated, but on
even a cursory exam, it collapses.
How? Consider the whole biblical view and context, in
which Adam (if you’ll excuse the expression) figures.
If he were not a concrete individual historically,
neither he nor Eve, his mate would be mentioned in the New Testament
precisely the way they were. (Look up all the references, from the gospels
through Jude.)
Furthermore, the genealogy in Luke 3 is a crisp example
of common historical date, part of the Messianic proof. Sleight of hand,
for a teacher, means making something disappear from view. Such as the
foregoing.
Now, to address those of you at BCCN who choose material for your
paper (presumably for constructive and instructive ends). Let’s bring
up the word ‘history’ again.
Look into the history of the church in the West, and
you find that this ‘word of God but not the words of God’ issue
was a mainstay of neo-orthodoxy – notably German – in the 19th
century.
If Reynolds’ article is nothing more than a
recrudescence of it, how can your editorial people miss it?
If this is merely the thin end of the proverbial wedge,
spare us the big bit.
C.B. Holm, Victoria
Joseph was a servant, not ‘liberal’
I must take issue with Alex Posoukh’s letter
(‘Go back to true biblical economics,’ January).
To suggest that the Old Testament’s Joseph
is “an economic liberal” is ridiculous. Firstly, the term did
not exist back then.
Secondly, we cannot suggest that he was liberal by his
actions during the famine.
He was a servant of God, who had compassion on others;
that in itself is not strictly – nor only – a liberal
trait.
Consumption, in that period, was simply survival
– not consumer-oriented consumption, which is market-defined and
driven.
Paul Martin is hardly worthy to be mentioned in the
same sentence as Joseph, as far as I am concerned.
Martin is a rich man who, as far as I can see, cares
not a whit for poor people – nor for being responsible to
God.
Patrick Longworth, Surrey
February 2009
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