“Christianity – Is it Authoritarian?”

Christian Authority

The argument goes something like, because Christians claim the one true faith and the Bible they feel little or no reluctance in using force and manipulation to impose Christian values and behaviors on others.  It is suggested that this is to the point of intruding into the personal lives of other people to include non-Christians.  Supposedly then this invalidates the Christian faith.

General Trends of Authority

The simple truth is that to live in any culture or sub-culture involves some kind of an authority structure and such a structure requires there to be roles and roles are totally invalid unless accompanied by some other things. Among them are responsibility, authority, and accountability.  

This would be true of culture in general and as well of a sub-culture such as a company or even a loosely organized group such as a gang of anarchists.  Without some form of authority structure the group simply does not function toward any agreed upon goal.  So authority is a necessity even for those groups who vehemently oppose it.

Intrusive Authority

Cited as problematic is the Church or a portion thereof that seeks to influence government and culture.  This supposed imposition is seen as intrusive.  Among the issues referenced as problematic are a woman’s supposed right to abortion, mandated abstinence education, creation education (actually it is intelligent design theory), and others similar issues. 

What is not understood is the push-back effect.  That is to say, if government would not have intruded into matters of faith and conviction, these and other matters would never have become issues.

PC Authority

Therefore, what one can readily see in all of this is that for government to intrude into matters of faith has become morally acceptable and therefore viewed as correct.  Someone observed accurately that what had been a legal issue is now a moral issue, that is the one way relationship between government and the faith community.

Where is the Ethical Authority?

What about ethical standards?  People of Christian faith at the very root formulated and today formulate ethical standards based upon Judeo-Christian Scripture.  Historically and at one time, the government looked to the Church and churchmen for the ethical compass, but no longer. 

Then there was a period of isolation.  It was then that it was acceptable for the Church to establish and maintain ethical standards but only as long as they remained within the confines of the faith community.  It was in that period of time and following that the government began its drift deep and deeper into secularism. 

Now however, there is a sense that not only should people of faith not seek to influence culture and government but culture and government may now influence the church.  An example of such is the 1950s law which restricted political speech from the pulpit.

Effects of Authority

Has there been excessive over-reaches by the Church but such does not end in the Christian Church but can be found in many other entities.  Of course, history is filled with examples.  Again one should not assume that all such expression to be the property of the Christian church, for there are many others from which to choose.

Leave the Divine out of the argument for just a moment.  Christianity in all of its various forms then becomes a philosophy.  How does that philosophy fare when historically compared to other philosophies throughout history?  Is the christian philosophy intrusive and oppressive because of its extreme authority?

Take one area, that of free speech.  The notion that Christianity suppresses free speech pales in comparison to Marxism as expressed in Communism.  The numbers of the oppressed are not even close which is most interesting since Marxism is relatively new on the stage of human history. 

Higher Expectations

Once again one finds that those critical of the Church hold the church to a higher indeed unique standard than other institutions.  Such only reinforces the thought expressed in previous essays that such suggests the unique place of the Church even in the minds of her critics.

Outcomes

Consider the point that unless authority is anchored to an ethical base and thus restricted in its expression and practice, it expands.  Such expansion flows and follows the moral compass of the culture.  Such is true of government as well as other institutions. 

That being the case, then one should not expect his free speech criticism of Christianity that is so freely expressed now will not be viewed differently in the future.  It would not be the first time that such speech comes to be viewed as a threat by a secular government. 

Background

To see the list of subjects to be discussed in this series see my blog (Christianity – Is it a Faith Driven by Fear?).  Contained within that blog is a reference, 20 Reasons to Abandon Christianity and in that reference is a list which is the springboard from which this subject has been discussed.