"Why is wealth such a threat...? First, wealth allows the rich to separate themselves from others--to become independent of others and isolated from the needs of others." L. Sweet
Tag: Christianity and economics
Bible Note #57: Zacchaeus #1–The Real Zacchaeus and That Terrible Children’s Song
Christians, especially American Christians, can be really good at sanitizing the gospels in order to make Jesus less offensive. We want a version of Jesus that doesn’t make us uncomfortable, one that fits with our American way of seeing things. The story of Jesus’ encounter with Zacchaeus is a case in point. One of the … Continue reading Bible Note #57: Zacchaeus #1–The Real Zacchaeus and That Terrible Children’s Song
Quote of Note #170: Repentance
"To believe in repentance is to believe there will be repentant murderers who will meet their victims in paradise, to believe there will be repentant slanderers who will meet those they slandered in heaven, to believe there will be repentant thieves who will meet those they've plundered in heaven." Leonard Sweet, Rings of Fire: Walking … Continue reading Quote of Note #170: Repentance
Bible Note #38: God’s Redemptive Havoc
“All the trees of the field will know that I am the Lord. I make the high tree low; I raise up the low tree. I make the green tree wither, and I make the dry tree sprout. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it!’” Ezekiel 17:24 [NET] What an odd verse … Continue reading Bible Note #38: God’s Redemptive Havoc
Quote of Note #72–Failing to Upset the Powers-That-Be
"If our proclamation does not upset the powers-that-be--if it doesn't 'turn the world upside down' (Acts 17:6) -- is that because our culture is friendly to the gospel? Or have we made the gospel friendly to the culture? If we aren't treated like Paul, is that because society has changed--or have we changed? Could it … Continue reading Quote of Note #72–Failing to Upset the Powers-That-Be
Quote of Note #70 — Squirrel-cage of Consumerism
"I do not think we shall ever escape from the appalling squirrel-cage of economic confusion in which we have been madly turning for the last three centuries of so, the cage in which we landed ourselves by acquiescing in a social system based on Envy and Avarice. A society in which consumption has to be … Continue reading Quote of Note #70 — Squirrel-cage of Consumerism
Bible Note #37 — Deuteronomy 23:24-25: Provision for Neighbors in Need
24 “If you go into your neighbor's vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your bag. 25 If you go into your neighbor's standing grain, you may pluck the ears with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor's standing grain.” Deuteronomy … Continue reading Bible Note #37 — Deuteronomy 23:24-25: Provision for Neighbors in Need
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 