People who live in true poverty have lost the ability to become fully who they were created to be: they have become so plagued by material and spiritual destitution that they can neither dwell upon the highest things nor use their gifts to serve others. Thus, it is outside the scope of the government to address matters of the heart; instead, it is the role of the church, family, and community to renew individuals, and it is through relationships that their dignity and purpose will be restored. A vibrant civil society enabled men to envision and establish a limited constitutional government. In fact, when George Washington stated, Religion and morality are necessary conditions of the preservation of free government, he was not making a radical claim, but reflecting the colonial tradition that had bound the colonist together since the beginning. In the early colonies, the communities believed that as they reflected the body of Christ, they had a duty to use their talents and blessings to serve others. John Winthrop, for example, wanted the new colonists to remember, that every man might have need of others, and from hence they might be all knit more nearly together in the bonds of brotherly affection. This sermon fulfilled Winthrop’s intention: it became a model for serving the poor in many of the newly founded colonies. Communities not only believed it was their duty to bound together to serve the poor, but also recognized the danger of government intervention...[G]overnment programs began supporting impoverished people in cities, and while the church and community were still the bedrock of society, the mentality began to shift from one of charity to one of entitlement. ~ Brittany Baldwin Ms. Baldwin has written a lengthy essay from which the excerpts above are extracted. Ive taken the time to read it and I recommend it, but the excerpts offer a general overview of the thrust of my efforts over the past two years, to encourage us to put our energies, our resources, and our hearts into civil society and our local communities, and not exclusively into politics. Ms. Baldwin begins her piece with how she initially sought an internship in Washington, DC because “that is where the important work happens and that is how people gain opportunities to effect real change.” A humbling interview experience later, she found herself working for two non-profits in her hometown of Houston, Texas, and what she learned from that experience inspired her to write this article. She not only writes comprehensively and eloquently about the true solution to poverty - us, acting in our own backyards - but has been actively involved in her own community, taking one step at a time which, when added to all our efforts, is a major movement in the right direction. Politics, especially what emanates from Washington, DC, has failed us. Its time for us to take over in our cities, towns and neighborhoods, and govern ourselves as the founders intended, and especially to care for one other. Let us, through our acts of charity and self-governance, push politics out of the sphere in which it has not only proven inadequate to the challenge of eradicating poverty, but has also suffocated the human spirit in the process. Before Im lectured about the danger of leaving the politicians to do more damage to the health of our republic, I never suggested that we should disengage entirely from the public square. Ms. Baldwin, in fact, is on the staff of Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. Not all of us were made to fight that battle, however, and this is a war on many fronts, not just the one on the Potomac. Ms. Baldwin writes: Within a community, each person has a telos, or an end, and this end creates an order in society. Some men are happiest being technicians, while others are most fulfilled being musicians, while still others are driven to be statesmen. Each has a place in society, and each contributes to the good of the community, and this leads to the happiest city. In Christian terms, when men have an opportunity to use their God-given gifts to serve their fellow citizens, they fulfill their earthly vocation and reflect God’s glory through their particular gifts.
Posted on: Mon, 09 Jun 2014 00:39:45 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015