The historical Jesus, Christianity’s future

I believe something very important is taking place across the Christian landscape. Hans Kung, renegade Catholic priest, summarized it by writing, “Without a concrete and consequent return to the historical Jesus Christ, to his message, his behavior and his fate … a Christian Church, whatever its name, will have neither true Christian identity nor relevance for modern human beings and society.”

This is what “Jesus Goes to Washington” by Douglas J. Miller is all about. I have read the book and made my best attempt to digest its message. It is an excellent book. Its influence is now dependent on who reviews it, who interviews the author and the marketing ability of the publisher, Wipf & Stock of Eugene, Ore. I can only hope columnists like myself, bloggers, emailers, Facebook practitioners and Internet users of all kinds will spread the word.

Miller is clearly targeting American Evangelical churches and believers. He himself is an Evangelical and has excellent Evangelical credentials. He is a graduate of Wheaton College and Fuller Theological Seminary. His Ph.D. was earned at Claremont Graduate School.

Early in the book he put a new and useful term into my vocabulary: ecospirituality. The word is not hyphenated. It is one word. I contacted Miller and asked if he coined the word himself. The answer was no. The word was already in some dictionaries. However, he has every intention of making the word widely used among Christians. The word speaks for itself. One’s spiritual life cannot be separated from everyday life, even in the rough and tumble of political life in Washington, D.C.

The author never disavows his Evangelical roots. He has become an ardent student of New Testament scholars such as N.T. Wright, who wrote, “Attempts to make Jesus nonpolitical were always bound to fail.” Miller embraces the current push to know and understand the Jesus of history. In that historical Jesus, Miller finds a Jesus who is passionately engaged in fighting poverty, hunger, low wages, oppressive taxation and disease. The historical Jesus warns of the dangers and obscenity of extreme wealth and teaches that war and violence lead only to loss of hope.

I like the book especially because of its Bible base. It is more Bible study than theology. His chapter on political compassion as a true expression of holiness and his exposition on the significance of the Old Testament laws of hospitality are special challenges to those who like to study the Bible with depth. These chapters should be a challenge to Evangelicals who claim the Bible as the great authority for faith and practice.

Add to these themes the Leviticus teachings about Jubilee. Jubilee has long caused heartburn for wealthy Christians. Jubilee calls for the redistribution of wealth, land in particular. The poor people with whom Jesus grew up and ministered had been cheated, robbed and maneuvered out of their land ownership and reduced to poor day laborers struggling just to survive. Jesus from the beginning of his public leadership called for an immediate Jubilee. “The Kingdom of God/Heaven is at hand” was a clear call for redistribution of land in particular and of wealth in general. Jubilee was his most direct challenge to both Roman and Jewish leadership. Jubilee is at the heart of Miller’s argument.

The last chapters of the book zero in on a neglected topic. I have not read anything that does a better job of associating sustainability with spirituality. This is where ecospirituality meets its most severe test. Does a profoundly Spirit-based politic have the power to clean up the mess that we have created through wealth disparity and war? Can justice roll down like floods of water, heal the earth and restore love of neighbor? Miller’s answer is a hopeful “yes.” However, for that “yes” to be realized, Christians must pay attention to the Jesus of history, what he taught and what he did.

There is one element of the book that causes me great concern. Throughout the book Miller uses the words liberal, conservative and progressive as though they have specific meanings. He spends significant time defining each. He is especially hard on conservatives. Doug Miller has set out to create needed dialog. The words liberal, conservative and progressive do not create dialog; rather, they are barriers to dialog. In my own ecospiritual journey I have been called a liberal. I reject the label. I have been called a conservative. I reject the label. I participated for several months in a group that called themselves progressives. I dropped out because whatever the group was, I was not.

Words do not have meanings. They have only uses. When the uses of certain words cease to be helpful, I try to stop using them. I would love to see “Jesus Goes to Washington” sell millions of copies. I hope readers will get past Miller’s labeling of fellow Christians as liberal, conservative and progressive and hear his message. The book will serve Sunday School classes very well as a discussion starter and a life changer. The world needs a lot of Christians who love God and neighbor, do justice and heal wounds. Hit the “purchase” button immediately.

The Rev. Howard Bess is a retired American Baptist minister, who lives in Palmer. His email address is hdbss@mtaonline.net.

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