Ben Cole has written some excellent observations about Dr. James Dobson's most recent outburst.
If I might add some material. I agree that Dobson has grown increasingly shrill over time. On the one hand, I admire him for taking a stand, on the other I despise some of what he's done for a few reasons:
1. He comports with Rome in such a way that he seemingly reduces his faith to a system of ethics. John Paul II's death serves as a prime example. Dobson was right to applaud him for his stance on abortion, but he was wrong to pretend that he was just another Christian.
2. Apropos 1, I think he has some serious theological problems, namely, he needs to get a handle on the gospel of justification by faith alone, the doctrine of sanctification, and especially start calling the churches to repent.
3. Apropos 1 and 2, I think he has so immersed himself in the world of politics that he's lost or losing sight of the fact that, while pushing against abortion "rights" and gay marriage "rights" is a laudable and worthy pursuit, anti-abortion legislation and constitutional amendments against gay marriage do nothing about the causes of abortion and homosexuality. I'm tired of churches that will literally pass a petition against gay marriage around the pews and yet they won't do anything to witness to the homosexuals in their community. Ministries like Harvest USA are struggling because of that attitude.
4. Which gets me to an observation that some of our readers may find distasteful. When all is said and done, I'm not very concerned about who is "prolife" and "anti-gay marriage" in this election cycle. I'm more concerned that the people of this nation are deeply divided because they don't feel they can trust each other, the media, and their government. What the country needs is somebody who can unite the people; I could care less about the two parties and what different factions among their leaders want. Yes, the financial problems of this nation have taken a toll on the economy, but also consider that when the morale of a company is low, productivity declines. Why shouldn't the nation be the same?
In my own state, we've had multiple officials sent to the federal prisons in the past two years because of high level corruption. I'm willing at this point to vote out anybody and put somebody new in just to purge the General Assembly of NC, the Office of Governor, and the Council of State. I can live with a pagan in office if he's honest, I can't live with men who profess Christ and turn out to be dishonest, like one of my state representatives.
a. The churches are in disarray, people. Look around us. When the SBC can't pass a simple resolution on regenerate church membership, something is wrong. We've lost or are losing the gospel.
b. The gospel, not legislation, is what this nation needs. Maybe the country is in such a hole right now morally because the church is sliding closer to apostasy.
c. I'd add that when the Lord returns, Scripture implies that one reason He returns is because the covenant community is in a sorry state, so sorry that it takes His physical presence to correct it. As a result, the world gets caught up in the judgment too. Every "Day of the Lord" in the Bible has been preceded by this. Why should the next differ?
d. The Church thrived under persecution in the early years. Maybe the American Church needs some good old fashioned persecution to weed out some of the dross and get back on mission. We're reaping what we have sowed ourselves.
"I agree that Dobson has grown increasingly shrill over time."
ReplyDeleteUm, you should talk. Look at what is put out right here on little ol' Triablogue.
Hey hey, if you look up "shrill" in the dictionary, it mentions Triablogue.
ReplyDelete"We've lost or are losing the gospel."
ReplyDeleteAnd this is the power of God that changes hearts, and then changes families, and then changes everything really. Never completely. The devil will always have his ministers of righteousness, however, the Gospel is more than a conqueror of hearts.
The Gospel is surely wartered down to a moral code of do's and don't's.
It is do's and don't's, but they are the cart, not the horse.
If the Lord would send a hunger into the hearts of the pastors/teachers in the churches for His Word, and His Gospel, then we would see fear, godliness, and thanksgiving spread throughout this land. And the Gospel would be our hearts longing, and our hearts peace.
Christ would be honored, and any dishonor of Christ would be hateful to us.
Prayer is what will bring this. Fervent prayer. Biblical prayer. Heart felt praying in faith, humbled before a sovereign Lord of the universe.
"Ask and you shall receive".
Maybe the American Church needs some good old fashioned persecution to weed out some of the dross and get back on mission.
ReplyDeleteDon't be such a bloody hypocrite. You'd be the first to start whining if any persecution, or even opposition occurred. You'd probably deny Christ and beg for mercy, if, say, John Loftus had the power to put you in a concentration camp.
Why don't you move to Saudi Arabia or even China if you're such a believer in 'persecution'? I wonder what Paul Washer would make of spineless hypocrites such as yourselves.
Maybe saying you desire persecution, while not meaning it is a bizarre outgrowth of Calvinist schizophrenia, based on God's forcing people to sin and then punishing them for it.
HAW!!1 HAW!!! So now you're a total pragmatist, Gene? If even Michael Moore were the best 'uniter', so long as he was a 'uniter' and the majority were for him, you'd vote for him?
ReplyDeleteIf you say Moore is a divider by virtue of his views, one could say the same of McCain and his milquetoast views, unless by someone who can 'unite the people' you mean a smooth rhetorician with no principles. Is that what you're supporting?
Uncle Ted said:
ReplyDelete---
"I agree that Dobson has grown increasingly shrill over time."
Um, you should talk. Look at what is put out right here on little ol' Triablogue.
---
I thought you guys thought the T-Blog Shrill Factor has always been maxed out. I mean, how could it possible be growing "increasingly shrill" if we're already at 100% capacity?
Anonymous whined:
---
Don't be such a bloody hypocrite. You'd be the first to start whining if any persecution, or even opposition occurred. You'd probably deny Christ and beg for mercy, if, say, John Loftus had the power to put you in a concentration camp.
---
I am amazed at the utter lack of shrillness coming from that comment....
On the other hand, I wonder how Anonymous is so capable at reading people's minds and predicting their behavior. Apparently, the Open Theist God needs Anonymous's help 'cuz the OTG can't even predict that.
Anonymous continued:
---
Why don't you move to Saudi Arabia or even China if you're such a believer in 'persecution'?
---
There's a difference between those who handle persecution and being a massochist looking for it. Not that you'd be able to tell the difference (those who whine and post anonymous comments usually can't).
fark us on the family = Paul Manata
ReplyDeleteSee how he put a "1" instead of a "!"? Another typical typo from the psycho.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIf I may try to steer the conversation back to a more serious vein for a moment...
ReplyDeleteI appreciate Gene bringing these topics up for discussion, as there is very little (ISTM) thinking going on the American church about her relationship with the state and responsibilities to the state, both being God-ordained authorities. Too many American Protestant Christians tend to confuse the two, or wrap the gospel in the flag, or vice-versa.
On the specific subject of James Dobson--it's helpful, I think, to recall that he is a clinical child psychologist by education and training and not a theologian or even a clergyman. His particular lay ministry has been in the field of family and child development. Over the years with the loss of a basic moral consensus in America at large he has seen issues arise that have an impact upon things about which he feels strongly. Because his ministry started and grew along with the rise of renewed political activity in American evangelicals in the late 70s and early 80s a "need" to comment on and encourage action about social and political issues on the part of his listeners. His influence grew as his audience grew. But I don't know that there has ever been any hard thinking done within the ministry about the appropriateness of all this--it was probably taken pretty much for granted that in order to get things accomplished in America one has to become involved in the political process, to the extent that is possible in a lay ministry mindful of the pertinent tax laws. Such a mindset was just part of the context of FOTF's development. It would take a veritable revolution to get them out of the practice of making such statements. And, as I have commented elsewhere, the man is also a private citizen with the right to speak his mind. The fact that many of his listeners do not or cannot distinguish between him and FOTF is largely their fault.
I don't know that a larger discussion within American evangelicalism about the church's romance with politics is possible. It's very hard to get heard above the din, even if you can get past the unquestioned presuppositions.
Petey, why are you defending Gene... On your blogue it appears you disagree about McCain! Dissension amongst the TBloggers! They'll be burning each other with 'green wood' next...
ReplyDeleteA) Gene hardly needs me to defend him.
ReplyDeleteB) T'Bloggers have never been lockstep in everything.
C) I doubt my position is all that far from Gene's anyway. I haven't asked him. I'll make sure we address this issue in our next secret meeting, after we debate whether it would be preferable to be a Marcion or a Nestorian if we were forced to be a heretic.