I wrote a blog a couple days ago about receiving the Perry Saito award for work in peace and justice ministries, and I have been affirmed by all but a few. It is the few I wish to follow up with. I want to share three challenges I have received attempting to correct my thinking and educate me to the true meaning of the gospel.

“Social justice is not biblical. God’s justice is, and God’s justice judges and punishes wrongdoing. You shouldn’t be celebrated for twisting the gospel to meet your own personal politics.”

Not only have terms changed, but intention and meaning often get lost in translations and the evolution of language. From a biblical perspective, social has to do with “the way we manage and engage in relationships with others,” and politics means “the will and thinking of the people.” If God’s justice is not social it is also not justice. And what God will ultimately do with us is up to God. For now we have to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling and that depends on our ability to treat others the way we would treat Jesus the Christ (that pesky Matthew 25 again!). A very great challenge we face is clarifying when our faith defines our politics and when our politics define our faith. I asked this person to consider that a century ago Matthew 25:31-46 was lifted up by conservative Christians as the key to loving neighbor as self, so caring for the most vulnerable among us was a core conservative value that would never change. Go figure.

“Just tell me how, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength,” is a political statement!”

Well, when you conveniently drop the last half of the commandment off, it does become a bit more cloudy. The “love your neighbor as yourself,” part of the Great Commandment actually occurs in Christian scripture more than the “love God” part. Why? Because Paul, James, the gospel writers, and every decent theologian throughout history immediately understood the implications of this teaching: how we treat each other – especially those we do not know – is the clearest and most powerful indicator of our love of God. To feed the hungry, clothe the naked, provide clean water, universal healthcare, and restorative redemption for those in prison, not to mention welcome the immigrant, is to love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength. So, the Great Commandment does not absolve us of any responsibility to work for justice in our world; it mandates that we must work for justice in order to BE Christian.

“You shouldn’t make Matthew 25:31-46 a political issue; it is a personal issue. It should be the decision of each individual how they will treat others. Social justice implies politics, but to act justly is a personal decision of each person. You are letting your politics obscure your reading and understanding of Matthew.”

Thanks to this comment I sent Jesus a note that he blew it when he prefaced his comments with “gathered all the nations,” instead of “spoke to Dave and Cindy.” He really screwed up by making the context political. “Nations” caused my friends politics to obscure his reading and understanding of your teaching.

Look, I know that there is a lot of conflict and disagreement about politics and religion. I admit, some of it mystifies me since I see loving neighbor as self is a mandate, not a suggestion. Jesus even when out of his way to help us understand, “And who is my neighbor.” But what seems crystal clear to me obviously makes no sense to some others. You may love everyone but immigrants, or people of a different hue, or those who refuse to speak English the way you like it. Fine. But instead of expending your God given energy to do harm or to oppose those with whom you disagree or dislike or to condemn another’s faith, could you channel that energy into something you agree with and can do something about? Mowing the lawn of an elderly neighbor or contributing some cans to the local food bank or tutoring a struggling student might not seem like social justice, but it is doing something kind, nice, decent, and positive in a divisive and disillusioned world. Each random act of kindness is a contribution to God’s biblical justice made real on earth.

Don’t agree or disagree with me. Simply take a moment to connect the dots between doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God and allowing God to produce such spiritual fruit in us as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If you cannot make the connections, there is nothing I can say or do that will make you believe social justice is a vital outward and visible expression of the inward and spiritual grace you experience with God. Just understand, for me, there is no such thing as Christian discipleship or stewardship that is separate from social justice.