Art Simon is the author of Bread for the World and co-author of Grace at the Table: Ending Hunger in God’s World. He's also a retired Lutheran minister and considered a voice for the cause of "social justice".
In researching this series about the Christian message being thrown off course by what I consider to be the false concept of "social justice" I have found a large trend. It seems that this false concept has come to be identified so heavily with real parts of the Christian mission that it's hard to tell them apart. Case in point this quote from Art Simon.
“If praying for daily bread means to pray for enough, then surely the implication is that when we have more than enough we will share the ‘more’ so that others may also have enough. Such sharing is an indication that our hope in Christ is deep and true.” ~ Art Simon
If this is social justice than what Christian can argue against it? But that's just the thing. This isn't social justice. This is powerful loving third person individualism. At least until that last sentence anyway.
Up to that last sentence it is the greatest commandment, loving your neighbor as you love yourself. You have more than you need and you see your neighbor doesn't so you see yourself in your neighbor's position and act accordingly.
Perhaps one could say that last sentence is the earlier part of the greatest commandment, that we are to love God with all of our being, but I think it is more like what it says in much of John's Epistle or what Jesus says in his parable about fruits, that our faith will be evident in our actions.
Once again this is not "social justice", so why I am addressing it here? Because it is listed as a "faith and justice" quote by the Ignatian Solidarity Network.
Here allow me to quote their own description of themselves.
"The Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN) is a national social justice network inspired by the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. ISN was founded in 2004 and is a lay-led 501(c)3 organization working in partnership with Jesuit universities, high schools, and parishes, along with many other Catholic institutions and social justice partners."
They clearly believe this quote from Art Simon is about "faith and justice". And the use of the word "justice" in Christian circles has unfortunately become a short-hand for "social justice". Considering this organization's own self description I have little doubt that is how they're using it when they say this list is about "faith and justice".
Okay so people do good things in the name of "social justice". One may ask what I think the big deal is. Jesus did say "he that is for us cannot be against us" right? Well yes He did, but it was about a supposed non-believer doing good things in Jesus's name, not believers doing good things in something else's name.
Social justice is about groups of people, the rich, the poor, the groups with advantages and the groups with disadvantages. Everything about it is about groups and group action and the problem with group action is that individuals in the groups involved are either drug along or run over.
What would happen if you could drag someone against their will to the gates of Heaven? Would they enter? Would they be willing to? Would they be allowed to? It's like pulling someone out of line to buy a movie ticket and attempting to bring them into the theater with you without them having a ticket. They wont be allowed in and you'll be the reason why. Is that what we as Christians should want? Should we use group actions to pull people to places they're not individually ready to go?
And that's just the "drug along" side of the problem. What about the "run over" side. Those people who by no fault of their own are in a group deemed as having committed some injustice upon another group. They were born into it and no reasonable opportunity for choice was involved. They are innocent. Social justice would demand that everyone in the "bad" group be held back, taxed extra, or in some way diminished or punished so the "victim" group can get "justice".
What does this have to do with, "when we have more than enough we will share the ‘more’ so that others may also have enough"? Nothing, that's what. But that's the big problem here. Too many Christians call helping those less fortunate than us "justice" or even worse, "social justice".
It would be like inventing a false god that turns groups of people against each other and giving her credit for every act of kindness and mercy, and then trying to justify the idolatry by saying she's a Christian.
As Jesus said, "by their fruits you will know them", and what fruits has this false god produced? Do the poor love the rich more and resent them less? Are more and more African-Americans coming to forgive their former oppressors? Are the political activities of the champions of "social justice" empowering politicians who respect God?
Injustice seems to follow in the wake of this thing called "social justice". People are forced to surrender both property and well earned opportunity. Some even suffer imposed poverty and in extreme cases death because it is claimed to be justice that some be forced to give up what is there's to others who have less.
This is not true justice and it certainly isn't Christian.
Now what Art Simon's words say, they are powerful loving third person individualism. In other words they are part of the greatest commandment. That's not "social justice". If the Ignatian Solidarity Network understood this they would remove Simon's words from their page of "faith and justice" quotes.
The tough part of my position is telling so many of my fellow brothers and sister's in Christ how far they have allowed their minds to wander from the course. How do you tell someone who has founded an entire ministry on a false concept like social justice that that is precisely what they've done?
As Jesus once told his disciples, much prayer is needed.
In researching this series about the Christian message being thrown off course by what I consider to be the false concept of "social justice" I have found a large trend. It seems that this false concept has come to be identified so heavily with real parts of the Christian mission that it's hard to tell them apart. Case in point this quote from Art Simon.
“If praying for daily bread means to pray for enough, then surely the implication is that when we have more than enough we will share the ‘more’ so that others may also have enough. Such sharing is an indication that our hope in Christ is deep and true.” ~ Art Simon
If this is social justice than what Christian can argue against it? But that's just the thing. This isn't social justice. This is powerful loving third person individualism. At least until that last sentence anyway.
Up to that last sentence it is the greatest commandment, loving your neighbor as you love yourself. You have more than you need and you see your neighbor doesn't so you see yourself in your neighbor's position and act accordingly.
Perhaps one could say that last sentence is the earlier part of the greatest commandment, that we are to love God with all of our being, but I think it is more like what it says in much of John's Epistle or what Jesus says in his parable about fruits, that our faith will be evident in our actions.
Once again this is not "social justice", so why I am addressing it here? Because it is listed as a "faith and justice" quote by the Ignatian Solidarity Network.
Here allow me to quote their own description of themselves.
"The Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN) is a national social justice network inspired by the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. ISN was founded in 2004 and is a lay-led 501(c)3 organization working in partnership with Jesuit universities, high schools, and parishes, along with many other Catholic institutions and social justice partners."
They clearly believe this quote from Art Simon is about "faith and justice". And the use of the word "justice" in Christian circles has unfortunately become a short-hand for "social justice". Considering this organization's own self description I have little doubt that is how they're using it when they say this list is about "faith and justice".
Okay so people do good things in the name of "social justice". One may ask what I think the big deal is. Jesus did say "he that is for us cannot be against us" right? Well yes He did, but it was about a supposed non-believer doing good things in Jesus's name, not believers doing good things in something else's name.
Social justice is about groups of people, the rich, the poor, the groups with advantages and the groups with disadvantages. Everything about it is about groups and group action and the problem with group action is that individuals in the groups involved are either drug along or run over.
What would happen if you could drag someone against their will to the gates of Heaven? Would they enter? Would they be willing to? Would they be allowed to? It's like pulling someone out of line to buy a movie ticket and attempting to bring them into the theater with you without them having a ticket. They wont be allowed in and you'll be the reason why. Is that what we as Christians should want? Should we use group actions to pull people to places they're not individually ready to go?
And that's just the "drug along" side of the problem. What about the "run over" side. Those people who by no fault of their own are in a group deemed as having committed some injustice upon another group. They were born into it and no reasonable opportunity for choice was involved. They are innocent. Social justice would demand that everyone in the "bad" group be held back, taxed extra, or in some way diminished or punished so the "victim" group can get "justice".
What does this have to do with, "when we have more than enough we will share the ‘more’ so that others may also have enough"? Nothing, that's what. But that's the big problem here. Too many Christians call helping those less fortunate than us "justice" or even worse, "social justice".
It would be like inventing a false god that turns groups of people against each other and giving her credit for every act of kindness and mercy, and then trying to justify the idolatry by saying she's a Christian.
As Jesus said, "by their fruits you will know them", and what fruits has this false god produced? Do the poor love the rich more and resent them less? Are more and more African-Americans coming to forgive their former oppressors? Are the political activities of the champions of "social justice" empowering politicians who respect God?
Injustice seems to follow in the wake of this thing called "social justice". People are forced to surrender both property and well earned opportunity. Some even suffer imposed poverty and in extreme cases death because it is claimed to be justice that some be forced to give up what is there's to others who have less.
This is not true justice and it certainly isn't Christian.
Now what Art Simon's words say, they are powerful loving third person individualism. In other words they are part of the greatest commandment. That's not "social justice". If the Ignatian Solidarity Network understood this they would remove Simon's words from their page of "faith and justice" quotes.
The tough part of my position is telling so many of my fellow brothers and sister's in Christ how far they have allowed their minds to wander from the course. How do you tell someone who has founded an entire ministry on a false concept like social justice that that is precisely what they've done?
As Jesus once told his disciples, much prayer is needed.
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