tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13055253.post112247823642104392..comments2023-09-11T10:00:59.376-05:00Comments on Matthew 12: 36-37: The GREATEST commandmentTelikahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04868259374671474546noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13055253.post-1122492232993007002005-07-27T14:23:00.000-05:002005-07-27T14:23:00.000-05:00Good post! I think that part of the reason we are ...Good post! I think that part of the reason we are constantly at odds with each other is the efforts by some leaders in the church (small "c", not necessarily the Eternal Church) to invoke God as a kind of trump card in political debates. In it's worst form it can be expressed this way: If God is with me, how <I> dare </I> you be against me?<BR/><BR/>My wife and I belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), whose leadership tends to be very far left-of-center (politically speaking). Sometimes these leaders try to impose a kind of litmus test on the laity - if you do not oppose the war in Iraq or support ordination of gays and lesbians, for example, you are not a real Christian. Similar “litmus tests” can be seen in some conservative denominations. What a spectacle we Christians present to the outside world!<BR/><BR/>This politics can be wearing! It has brought the ELCA to the brink of schism and ruin, and can swallow any church (liberal, conservative, etc.) if Christians are not careful. To paraphrase C.S. Lewis: Adding "Thus sayeth the Lord" to our merely human utterances is dangerous.<BR/><BR/>This issue of living together in Christian love is huge, and I hope you will post more on it. It's not an easy subject. I confess that I wrestle constantly with this matter. My wife is my inspiration on this, as she is on many things!Mwalimu Daudihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11579216288634469169noreply@blogger.com