As you probably know, the definition of an activist is someone who agitates for change in government policy. Along the way, they try to change social consciousness regarding their agenda. We might go along with changing social awareness about our faith, but government policy is off limits for us, if we take the Bible seriously.
On the other hand, nothing prevents any of us from engaging in a certain level of guerilla warfare. That is, we may well find it part of our mission and calling to engage in clandestine operations seeking to bypass government attention. As previously noted on this blog, we would certainly tend to avoid violence, if possible. There’s plenty of guerilla activity that doesn’t harm or injure anyone.
So, for example, some of you are aware that I am something of a cyber guerilla. Not a hacker; that’s too specific. It’s more about evading efforts to control our Internet activities. I try to keep track of computer security threats, censorship, and technologies that allow us to keep the lines of communications open. That means helping folks stay in control of their computers and their message. I’m generally not in the least concerned with what people do on their computers, but you can bet I’ll be more supportive of folks whose uses don’t violate my convictions.
My advocacy of Linux and BSD have nothing to do with a sense of moral superiority; Linux comes closest to the way I work. It solves more problems than it creates, though it is hardly trouble-free. I’m quite willing to track the best ways to protect Windows, too, because some of you would struggle with changing over to Linux. Linux is good for me; it may not be good for you. Or Mac, or BSD, or any number of other operating systems. I can just barely figure out Android, and I learned to hate iOS devices.
It’s the same with my food preferences, my fitness activities, etc. All Creation is just a tool for His glory. There are actually very few such choices covered under Biblical Law. There have been, and will continue to be, lots of posts on that here, but this post is about something else.
I want you to avoid being “religious” and harsh about choices of that sort that simply don’t matter eternally. We do make a lot of noise about reconnecting our bodies to the moral awareness of Creation, and how your heart should be able to answer most questions about health and medical issues. But in the end, you have to make that choice as to what God wants from you and for you. Just don’t turn that into a religious discipline in itself; that’s idolatry. The whole idea is that you connect and decide for yourself, knowing that your answer will never be precisely the same as anyone else’s answer.
We don’t declare an orthodoxy on much of anything like that. Yes, we do believe that the Bible presents certain doctrines, but you can overly analyze such things and chase the wrong ideas. What we present here in terms of Bible analysis is still not an orthodoxy, just a way of establishing what you have to tolerate in order to fellowship with us. I generally try to distinguish between solid Bible doctrine and my personal opinion when I post stuff here.
Some things are open for debate, but some things are not. Debate the wrong things too much and I’ll block your comments. Over the 9+ years on this blog, I’ve blocked something like six people, and politely asked one person to simply stop commenting.
My comments about racial tension and tribal existence arise from something written into the fabric of Creation. The words are mine, but the underlying ideas are Biblical Law for me. If we come together as heart-led people serving Christ, then race, ethnicity and culture mean very little. Without that, ethnic groups cannot and should not try to mix in this fallen world. No one has any business poking around in your daily life, and trying govern in that way, unless they are bound to you by blood or covenant. People outside of that bond cannot be anything but hostile to your needs as God sees them. They cannot promote your best interests because God won’t let them understand your needs.
That’s not clearly stated in the Bible, per se, but it’s pretty obvious if you can read between the lines. It’s pretty obvious if know anything at all about Hebrew culture in particular, and Ancient Near Eastern culture in general.
There’s nothing wrong with being kind and friendly to a different kind of folk residing next door to you, since we hardly expect to live under a government that will obey God’s Law. You can even “adopt” your nearest neighbors insofar as you can make it work out. The world needs more of that and it’s consistent with God’s character. Jesus did heal some foreigners, and the Apostles healed more Gentiles than Jews. Do what you can, because this world will barely tolerate us at the best of times.
But inside your heart you know this is not what God intended. You know that reality will eventually snap back into place from time to time when God tires of folks stretching it out of shape. So we don’t hate Muslims, but we know if you let them immigrate in mass numbers, they will eventually take over. The same goes with Latinos, blacks, and whites.
Get enough folks together in one place as a single identity group and they will flex their cultural advantages, unless you have a firm plan and procedure to prevent it, which includes stripping away most of their former identity. Some migrant groups will never assimilate, and simply move on if they can’t establish a safe enclave. The rivalry is entirely natural, and not sinful in itself.
People comfortable on the Internet are forming a new cultural identity. Keep your eyes open to this. Some attributes of Trump’s troll army will endure as a new type of ethnic identity. This whole business of virtual reality is still growing in its effects on humanity. It’s not that folks will necessarily lose their real world identity any time soon, but engaging that connection to the Net will put them in a totally different world. I’m convinced this will eventually eclipse any real world identity.
