A Reverend has this to say about a landlord who is complaining about tenants taking advantage:
"He can afford for them to take advantage of him."
Is this the message of Christianity? If so, I'll stick with atheism.
People who "take advantage" of other people's generosity (in this landlord's case, child minding and rubbish removal) should be dumped or dumped on. It has nothing to do with power balance or material inequity.
A poor person can afford to be as fair as a rich person. Transactions between people, no matter what is involved, that aren't mutually satisfactory, will be very short-lived. Many people of means are generous. They enjoy being able to help. Often they want nothing in return. Their reward is the act of relieving a problem for someone else.
BUT it doesn't follow that when their generosity is abused they should turn the other cheek.
This reverend's attitude is at the heart of socialism and is essentially what makes socialism untenable. Values are not shared. Different rules apply to different people by dint of their economic status.
There is no excuse for abusing goodwill ever. Rich, poor or otherwise.
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5 comments:
Hi Lindsay
I find it sad and deeply ironic that a Vicar’s comments should push anyone towards atheism. Unfortunately there is far too much of this thinking in the Church to which I belong. I’m afraid the good Vicar quotes Jesus out of context and appears to have little understanding of economics or human nature.
On the other hand, Jesus through his teaching and example demonstrated that he understood both very well. Don’t push the atheist button just yet!
Being a soft touch is not the message of Christianity. The rev is preaching a social gospel that has become common as "do gooders" look to solve problems rooted in lack of ethics and poor morality by having the flock feel guilty and compensate by being endlessly more generous. My own church has plenty of people praying for fairness by others as opposed to repentance by ones self.
The theology is clear that on the last day, when the wheat and chaff get sorted, there will be no point in compiling a hard luck story.
3:16
Not surprisingly really. The socialists on blogs elsewhere claim that people are driven to crime-no free will apparently. When you protest you are told that all right-wingers (i.e. anyone right of them) are all the same and seek to put people down - especially working people-not that they have any knowledge of you anyway. If he thinks this about landlords one can only speculate that he thinks that its is perfectly ok to rip off the government since they have even more money!
Anyone can claim to be a Christian, but saying you are one, doesn't make you one. The only authority on what is Christian, and what is Christian behaviour is the Bible (sorry pope).
On the particular Bible quote, as usual vicars like this quote only 50%. The full quote is found in Matthew 10:14-15: "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city."
So the meaning is that those who do not hear, will face God's judgement (ministers have no earthly power, you can't bring someone to the inquisition if they don't hear). It doesn't mean that those who do not hear, will face no consequences.
And applying it in case you are the landlord: if a tenant does not hear what you request them to do, ask them to leave. A landlord does have the responsibility to maintain and look after their property.
"Is this the message of Christianity?"
Its not even religion but amorality.. it doesn't even reach the standards of Communism which is at least an ideology.
This guy is a predator on society.
JC
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