Modern Christianity
is different from Scriptures

Speaking of Religion
The Rev. Dr. Tim Griffin

Come you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me. … Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me. … You that are accursed, depart from me … for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me. … Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. (Matthew 25:34-45)

The last judgment is a very popular theme among some Christians. In fact, a popular series of novels has focused exclusively on this theme.
However, I suspect that when we think of the last judgment, we rarely consider the criteria Jesus establishes in Matthew’s gospel cited above. Such an omission is not surprising, really, because on the basis of Jesus’ criteria, most of us do not fair very well. Indeed, according to Jesus our salvation depends on our being mindful of and charitable to those who we would prefer to ignore.
Isn’t that strange? The very people we spend our lives shunning and avoiding are the people upon whom our salvation ultimately depends.
Of course, as I say, we rarely focus on this aspect of Jesus’ teachings. It is too controversial really and, let’s be honest, too radical. Since so many of the demands Jesus makes upon us are uncomfortable and, quite frankly, contrary to the attitudes of the dominant culture, it is easier to adjust Jesus’ demands than to adjust our behavior to meet his demands.
Thus we hear about family values and the condemnation of same-sex relationships despite the fact that the way in which these matters are framed is clearly contrary to the attitudes expressed by Jesus in the gospels.
For example, Jesus identified as his family those who do God’s will, not those in his blood lines (Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:33-35; Luke 8:19-21), which is not to say that family is unimportant, but it is subordinate to other considerations.
Similarly, Jesus has nothing to say about same-sex relationships, and even Paul’s apparently negative comments cannot be rightly understood without considering the context in which they were made — a context radically different from our own.
But there is a more fundamental point here. The values that we so often substitute for the gospel values are divisive whereas Jesus’ values are inclusive. That is to say, Jesus only condemned those who used religion as a means of separating people rather than uniting them. And so much of what passes for Christianity today involves separating and marginalizing rather than uniting. In other words, much of Christianity today is contrary to the attitudes Jesus expressed in the gospels.
This brings me back to the topic at hand — our treatment of the marginalized. Jan. 11 marks the fifth anniversary of the first prisoners being sent to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In protest of this inhumane facility and what it stands for, Jan. 11 is being heralded as "International Day to Shut Down Guantanamo." As part of the protest, an international delegation will travel to Guantanamo Bay to protest and call for the closing of this scandalous institution. In addition to the protests being carried out in Cuba, there will be events around the United States and in other parts of the world.
The aim of the protest is to raise awareness of the atrocity that is Guantanamo Bay as well as to lobby Congress to shut down the facility (and all such facilities), to restore habeas corpus, to repeal the outrageous Military Commissions Act and to provide the detainees with a fair trial or a speedy release. Surely such a protest counts as working on behalf of the Lord because it is working on behalf of the least of these. I urge you to take part in this movement.
For interviews with the delegates, you may contact Medea Benjamin by phone (415-235-6517) or by e-mail (medea@globalexchange.org). For more information about events being held on Jan. 11, contact www.witnesstorture.org or Matt Daloisio (201-264-4424).
By caring in this way for the least of these, we are caring for the Christ. ••
Father Tim Griffin is priest-in-charge at the St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, at 1946 Welsh Road in Bustleton.