Comments on: The People of the Resurrection http://www.christopherlayton.org/2007/04/11/the-people-of-the-resurrection/ Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:03:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5 By: David http://www.christopherlayton.org/2007/04/11/the-people-of-the-resurrection/#comment-730 David Thu, 12 Apr 2007 05:13:38 +0000 http://www.christopherlayton.org/2007/04/11/the-people-of-the-resurrection/#comment-730 I have two comments. The first might seem like I am being picky (and I could very well be), but I am hesitant to say that the church is the Kingdom, primarily because the Kingdom seems to start long before the church and exist (possibly one things) after the Parousia. I have always felt more comfortable saying that the church is part of "the people of God" (thus part of the Kingdom) and is the "body of Christ" (and again, part of the Kingdom). Also, it seems that the Kingdom is a heavenly idea that is here and not quite here ("on earth as it is in heaven"), and to say the church is that Kingdom seems to equate it as the entirety of the Kingdom, which then eclipses both the heavenly aspect as the idea that it is also future. On the surface it seems like semantics, but I think it is important to not equate the church as the Kingdom, without the dialectical pairing. My second thought, good job. Yeah, I think you hit on a lot of good topics. I would also add race and gender, along with the affluent American lifestyle (greed, racism, and genderism? go hand in hand), is important to hit on and something the American church shies away from (and that would be me channeling Union). Oh yeah, and the church's acceptance of violence visited upon others (as opposed to solidarity) and torture. And along the systemic vein, I think the points you've brought up, while good, seem too personal. I really like what Walter Rauschenbusch has done in A Theology for the Social Gospel - namely he gives structural sins a name, The Kingdom of Evil. I think this puts well the idea of sin on both the personal and structural level, displaying the opposition between the Kingdom of Evil and Kingdom of God/Heaven. I think you start to hit on this when you mention the American Dream. But I think the points can be expanded to have both personal and systemic failures of the church. Anyways, I think this is a pretty good starting point and a lucid post. yay. I have two comments. The first might seem like I am being picky (and I could very well be), but I am hesitant to say that the church is the Kingdom, primarily because the Kingdom seems to start long before the church and exist (possibly one things) after the Parousia. I have always felt more comfortable saying that the church is part of “the people of God” (thus part of the Kingdom) and is the “body of Christ” (and again, part of the Kingdom). Also, it seems that the Kingdom is a heavenly idea that is here and not quite here (”on earth as it is in heaven”), and to say the church is that Kingdom seems to equate it as the entirety of the Kingdom, which then eclipses both the heavenly aspect as the idea that it is also future. On the surface it seems like semantics, but I think it is important to not equate the church as the Kingdom, without the dialectical pairing.

My second thought, good job. Yeah, I think you hit on a lot of good topics. I would also add race and gender, along with the affluent American lifestyle (greed, racism, and genderism? go hand in hand), is important to hit on and something the American church shies away from (and that would be me channeling Union). Oh yeah, and the church’s acceptance of violence visited upon others (as opposed to solidarity) and torture.

And along the systemic vein, I think the points you’ve brought up, while good, seem too personal. I really like what Walter Rauschenbusch has done in A Theology for the Social Gospel - namely he gives structural sins a name, The Kingdom of Evil. I think this puts well the idea of sin on both the personal and structural level, displaying the opposition between the Kingdom of Evil and Kingdom of God/Heaven. I think you start to hit on this when you mention the American Dream. But I think the points can be expanded to have both personal and systemic failures of the church.

Anyways, I think this is a pretty good starting point and a lucid post. yay.

]]> By: ian http://www.christopherlayton.org/2007/04/11/the-people-of-the-resurrection/#comment-728 ian Thu, 12 Apr 2007 01:28:14 +0000 http://www.christopherlayton.org/2007/04/11/the-people-of-the-resurrection/#comment-728 Well said! Well said!

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