I’ve always found the parts of the Bible discussing a love of money to not relate to me. And with all my soul I wish I could care about money less, I think most of us do. But the Bible consistently comes back to the idea that loving money is wrong, it’s the root of all kinds of evil, and having money makes it harder to reach the kingdom of heaven.

On a parallel I recognize a lot of patterns in the Bible about Jesus showing up for the meek, the needy, the poor, and the smallest of the world. Verses about how the kingdom of heaven is for the desperate and  that Jesus came for them, not the righteous. Even more, using care of the poor as a judgement marker for being a good and faithful servant or not actually knowing Christ come judgement day.

These parallels, particularly the focus on a rich man’s difficulty entering heaven, makes me wonder why Evangelicalism and the nation that ‘God Blesses’ and ‘Christians Founded’ (not actually. Read a book, watch Hamilton.) is so wealthy. And not just ‘so wealthy’, but rather they are finding identification with Christ in the ability to provide for oneself and create wealth. Often granting individuals more structural or church-cultural authority and respect in the community when they have wealth. ‘Pull yourself up by your own boot straps’ is a theological conviction in the church based on action if not word.

And I’ve been wondering about this wealth identification for awhile. It’s hard for me to believe that creating wealth is not something Christians should pursue, or that it’s anti-Jesus to achieve financial success. Those who can be trusted with little can be trusted with much, the reward goes to the man who grew his lot, not just the one who kept it steady.
But it’s even harder for me to believe that identification with Jesus can be anything but identification with the poor and weakest of society. If we fail to learn, give, and identify with the poor we fail at becoming good and faithful servants. And I largely believe Jesus flips tables at most churches today because we’ve allowed the church and ourselves to not more strongly identify and connect with the poor, homeless, and needy.

I think the failure to identify with the poor, but rather the successful Christians goes largely with the beliefs about who enters the kingdom of heaven. Anyone who reads the Bible can find that heaven isn’t for the “Idolators, Sexually Immoral, Practicers of Witchcraft, etc.” and that isn’t really disputable. The good book makes it clear that sinning prevents kingdom inclusion. Christians consciously or subconsciously would agree that the poor/weak/desperate are also more likely to simultaneously be the idolators, sexually immoral, alcoholics, drug users, etc. They just don’t connect the dots that the weak/poor Jesus feeds and heals are the same as those discussed to be sexually immoral, idolators, and drug users biblically and modernly.

As the church identifies the poor, weak, and unsuccessful as being more likely to live in sin, they similarly identify the successful and wealthy as less likely to live in sin. This failure is a devastating impact to the “Universal Church’s” reach, by setting up and encouraging systems of thinking about Christianity that removes the need to care for the poor/desperate; having either completely or more closely identified them as sinner first, instead of human.

And as a disclaimer: I know you’ve washed a homeless person’s feet before, paid for someone else’s needs, or given a cold drink of water to someone in thirst.

But most of us, overwhelmingly, did not do what Jesus did. When Jesus washed feet, when He declined to throw a stone, or he hugged a tax collector: it wasn’t just to show that he loved and cared for his flock. It was to intentionally bring himself down to the level of equals with the least of society, his 12, in order to identify and empathize with their life and struggles. It was proving to his flock that he was for them, because he was one of them through sin.
-That part we didn’t do? We didn’t identify, or even try, for longer than the time we were presently serving. At best.

And my reasoning for identifying with the poor as the key component of Christianity? Identification with the poor, to the poor, is the closest we can get to achieving the power of the cross as humans. It’s the full setting aside of ourself to empathize, truly know and understand, and help those in more need than us. The rich man who gave away all his possessions was the wealthy man that proved how to reach Jesus. The wealthy man’s story should be a prescriptive Bible text, not a descriptive one.

And, Isn’t that the actual power of the cross?
Jesus dying on the cross and washing the feet of his disciples were radical examples that Jesus was the same as the poor and criminal. The circumstances were proof that he had actually taken on sin, his death was the punishment of it, and his resurrection was the example that only through Jesus can sin be beaten.

Isn’t this the fucking gospel?
That God is so powerful that Jesus became one of us fully identifiably, to prove that the nail in the coffin for sin via his death built the bridge to Heaven via his resurrection, and is therefore fully accessible to us all?

I can no longer believe that the imagery of Jesus as poor, dirty, and criminal was anything but an example of Jesus proving that his death was for the very least of the world, the crucified and homeless. For the sinners that the church chooses to abandon all but 2-4 days per year.  Death and Sin being defeated wasn’t so we could continue trying to fight it daily, it’s so we could forget about it and focus on God instead.  The power of the cross isn’t about a personal and gritty sanctification process, but instead a radical and instant moment, the sin no longer has value in your life and it shouldn’t be a shame but rather a proof of who God can use and what he has done. 

Identification with the poor then, as a human, achieves something similar. It is the most Christlike way to live and lead your life, putting yourself intentionally and consistently in the shoes and path of those worse off than you. It’s also proof that just because we’ve done better leading a buttoned-up life (or been luckier) doesn’t separate the kingdom of heaven.

The way a life is led really can’t be the judgement of who is  honorable or righteous in the church. The Bible used prostitutes and murderers to advance the kingdom of heaven. And today, I think there may be more people closer to reaching heaven outside the church. The greatest commandment isn’t to live a morally-noble evangelical life, it’s love. Failure to identify with or help the poor and weak is a failure of the most important part of the faith, a failure to love and a failure to be a good and faithful servant.

– –

I found the SNAP funding issue to be obvious proof of evangelical devaluation by way of sinner-first, human-second, identification. And even further, a perfect opportunity for evangelicals to love the community becomes a failure to achieve the Great Commandment.

And I actually do think Christians have a half-decent Biblical argument that entitlements shouldn’t be government funded. Rather they should be community driven by business, church, non-profits, and individuals. And I hardly disagree with that logic, it’s a beautiful image of how a perfect form of capitalism could be and an Old Testament accurate representation of caring for the poor. I’ve long believed the only way to fix the sinking ship of America is by cutting entitlements and raising tax revenue, encouraging and forcing policy that encourages the community-driven image of care.

Politically, that’s not what’s happening with Trump’s entitlement cuts, the deficit still goes up and the eventual future correction continues to get worse. His policy and rhetoric doesn’t encourage the community of care and unison needed for what it takes a civilization to weather a necessary economic reversal of this magnitude.
I’ve similarly believed that fixing the economy quiets down most social issues. When people can eat and provide without excessive worry a lot of social problems sort themselves out. When people can afford to place themselves in the communities they find personally rewarding, the division that drives radical policy change quiets down and the melting pot of America lives united but different.

Evangelically, that image wasn’t displayed when SNAP benefits weren’t funded to start November. The loudest and harshest critics of government entitlements and ‘food stamps’, Evangelicals/Republicans, did not step up to the plate or open up their pantry. Rather, Portland (the least godly city in America) individuals, small businesses and non-profits stepped up offering “Snap Meals”, a free meal just for saying the word ‘Snap’ or showing a SNAP Card, raising money for communities, and hosting neighborhood food pantries. Just by the places I looked up online alone I could’ve eaten 3 hot meals a day for free in Portland if I needed it (with variety).

While some churches and evangelicals (mostly progressive) did help and offer free meals too, by and large the evangelical community missed out on living out their theological belief in the Great Commandment. The political rhetoric that has taken over the church positioned SNAP-beneift receivers as being people taking advantage of the system, immigrants it wasn’t intended for, and people who should and could work harder. Evangelicals and Republicans failed to recognize that SNAP-benefit receivers were people in need by and large, first. Thats a failure to recognize the poor of the Old Testament harvesting the grain on the perimeters as todays SNAP-benefit receivers.

With Evangelicals and Conservatives devaluing those using the SNAP system by using the sinner-first and human-second identification method, it makes sense they’re anti-entitlement. Holding an anti-entitlement view can be acceptable and biblical, but it’s only biblical if the cold glass of water is sitting in your hand on the other end. And in November, the cold glass of water was provided secularly. The chance to fulfill the Great Commandment and the role of good and faithful servant slipped away because SNAP and the Left are not identified with. Instead being identified as the sinners who have positioned themselves outside the kingdom of heaven.

And I mention the Left too because that’s really the political rhetoric problem for Republicans. SNAP benefit users would probably get more help from Evangelicals if it wasn’t labeled a socially liberal issue. The Left/Liberals have been identified as enemies to the Christian life and nation, and by proxy SNAP-users-in-need get lumped into enemy territory. The story of the good Samaritan, a display of a good and faithful servant, is intentional to provoke the “enemy” status the men had with one another. Maybe that’s why  Evangelicals call themselves Christians and let Hospitals be Samaritans, one will help the enemy the other won’t.

The fear that Christian children will grow up to smoke weed, be gay, or vote socialist is a stronger spiritual warfare concern. The enemy status seems righteously appointed to The Left in order to prevent subversion of Christianity and it’s future. But I worry that a much more sinister form of spiritual warfare is the subversion of the Great Commandment, encouraged by the community, out of fear or anger that the ‘enemy’ will hurt us. I’d rather sit at the table Jesus would come to save than stand in silent or vocal support at the one he would choose to flip.

The subversion of duty to the Great Commandment isn’t just evident in SNAP, but in most of what the left does. My last post discussed it with the LGBT community, and it’s true of the immigration debate too – political open immigration (or a form of it) can be opposed easily biblically, but it comes with welcoming the outsider individually and offering them a place to stay. Trump’s Christianity would not let Mary and Joseph stay in the barn, our churches would’ve driven by them on the curb with a look of disdain.

And this isn’t a new problem for evangelicals at all, it’s been happening for years. But the Trump-Evangelcial connection has grown to a point that the Republican rhetoric is regularly struggling to be separated from Evangelicalism and calling it a struggle might be an exaggeration. Somehow a righteous looking life became the marker of evangelical holiness instead of love.  Using a capitalist society to achieve and grow personal finance and success has become a marker of a repentant lifestyle.

Ironically if the Evangelical angle wasn’t bad enough, Portland and liberals around the US did a better job displaying the beauty of the free market. Heretic Coffee Co. Raised over $100,000 in Portland from donation and portions of their sales. The ‘Snap’ meals weren’t just a display of the Great Commandment lived out secularly (proof that love is a greater theology to secularists) but also the free market working how it intended.

Maybe we owe Trump a thank you? His decision to cut SNAP the month of thanksgiving enabled and activated the free market response. In capitalism, the people should have the power (and the best kept secret is that we still do) to affect the market. Supply and Demand generally drives pricing for most products, which is based off of our own consumer habits. If we really wanted to take down Amazon or Nike, the entirety of the American consumer could if they were united.
Republicans are so hell bent on fixing the economy (albeit not the deficit) that they fail to participate in the beautiful aspects of it; the consumer building up other consumers by using their collective power.

I do mean beauty when I say it, I find it incredibly beautiful that communities used their own scarce resources to significantly help those in need. They displayed the beauty of Old Testament, Great Commandment, and the Capitalist market. I wonder which direction children who rely on SNAP and School Lunch will end up voting one day. Democrats have long been accused of buying votes with handouts, but who else are they going to vote for? The party and religion who denied them a cold glass of water when they needed it? My own childhood would’ve been much more hectic without free lunch, of which I received every year.

I don’t consider myself liberal because I want un-restricted minimum wage raises or because I want open immigration. Nor do I believe enough of the BLM movement or want Social Security to continue.

I consider myself liberal because I know the first reaction is how to love the other person best. That’s not me saying “God would vote Liberal”, but rather a personal conviction that Evangelicals and Republicans are more focused on America than love. What do Evangelicals get if they gain the America they want but fail to love? Sounds scarily close to gaining the world and losing your soul.

My last post I said “I love, love” and I meant it pretty much in any way you can interpret it. I love seeing people romantically in love regardless of their gender, I love seeing people love others platonically, I love when you feel a friend’s love, and I love when Christians love through the Great Commandment. I really particularly love when a real weirdo meets another real weirdo perfect for them, and they fall in love. If you want my most liberal belief, it’s love.

I fell in love with the church very early and at a rate that surpassed my family, the love that was offered and practiced was exactly why I showed up. But it’s also the reason I left, because I didn’t see it extending outside church walls. And you can’t convince me that a couple service projects and a few free BBQ’s is fulfilling the Great Commandment. Rather it feels like the lip-service-level of action needed to claim a theology that follows the Great Commandment. Heretic Coffee Co (the irony of the name, haha), Portland, and Liberals actually lived out the theology of love, without any need for plausible deniability.

Mr. Rogers is long beloved because he loved, how is Christ’s church not recognized the same?

I’d bet that Mr. Rogers heard the words “My good and faithful servant”.

Matthew 22:36-40

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”