Continuing my decision to write entries for my blog, entitled Christian anarchism, on my own experiences in my life as, first an anarchist, then a Christian, and now a Christian anarchist, I must immediately point out that my entries will not be based chronologically on experiences throughout my life. I will indicate in each entry when the experience occurred during my life, and I will leave it to readers to decide whether or not my actions were anarchical, Christian, Christian anarchical, or otherwise. Simply, I think they were experiences which have brought me to my present disposition, rightly or wrongly.
Today then, I write about a conversation I had recently with a Seventh Day Adventist. When in hospital in 2018 I read the SDA Quarterly "Oneness in Christ" and wrote at length about how their references to a universal church of Christ had so much in common with the tenets of Christian anarchism. This was not part of our conversation recently, although my conversationalist had read what I had then wrote. He is a nephew, holding an executive position in a communications technology company, and reads the Bible daily on his smart phone. He visited us on an errand for us, my wife and myself are elderly. I am completely wheelchair bound, my wife is as well as can be expected with both of us in our eighties, she takes on all household chores and shopping excursions (although we do some shopping online with a delivery). We get some support from family and friends, we do not have children of our own, and busy as our nephew is he took the occasion of his visit to spend some time with us. For us this was unusual, most family give fleeting contact and if they visit they seem only to want to be entertained as we used to do for anyone, family and friends when we were much younger; for some they want to covert what we have in the hopes of getting something when we pass on. If we ask them to do something for us they expect to be paid. It is no fun for us being old, apart from when we are on our own and try to entertain ourselves.
This extended visit by our nephew was quite welcome. My wife is not comfortable with the title Christian anarchism, for the obvious reasons of her prejudice against anarchism brought about by the pejorative use of the word by politicians, media and then the developed misunderstandings of the general population. My conversation therefore was with my nephew only, my wife left us to it, and it lasted nearly two hours. I say this now to indicate that he was willing to hold the conversation without prejudice, even though obviously he was not going to change his own position. He accepted my criticism of mainstream Churches, incuding his own, but of course claimed that for him (not us now as we are elderly and disabled) that to perhaps get things changed was to participate in the activities of the Church which he had decided to join. I immediately suggested that his efforts were falling on stony ground as the SDA Church were not going to change, their investment in money was totally establiished in this corrupt world, at which he could only shrug his shoulders. We have to live with what we have got, he said. This brought me to the great discussion in the nineteenth century between anarchists and the authoritarian socialists (Marxists), and amongst one faction of anarchism and another, that is the discussion on means to ends.
As a Christian he was willing to listen, but steeped in mainstream Christianity most of the time was taken by him as he explained why he was with the SDA Church, and also to challenge me on my view that I was inspired by God, was writing in the way it is claimed that the writers of the Bible were inspired, and therefore I was right! That of course is arrogance on my part and therefore wrong, but I feel I need to take a stance. The writers of the books of the Bible probably did not think they were inspired by God and therefore right. The suggested inspiration from God for their writings has been assigned by theologians afterwards and can therefore be questionable, as can any actions conducted by ourselves. My nephew had to agree, but then it came down to a matter of faith he said. I agreed, but said that my faith was in God, not in the actions and writings of ordinary men and women. For me the conversation was enjoyable, it took up two hours of my God-given life, and has inspired me to write this entry to my blog. God bless you all.
Today then, I write about a conversation I had recently with a Seventh Day Adventist. When in hospital in 2018 I read the SDA Quarterly "Oneness in Christ" and wrote at length about how their references to a universal church of Christ had so much in common with the tenets of Christian anarchism. This was not part of our conversation recently, although my conversationalist had read what I had then wrote. He is a nephew, holding an executive position in a communications technology company, and reads the Bible daily on his smart phone. He visited us on an errand for us, my wife and myself are elderly. I am completely wheelchair bound, my wife is as well as can be expected with both of us in our eighties, she takes on all household chores and shopping excursions (although we do some shopping online with a delivery). We get some support from family and friends, we do not have children of our own, and busy as our nephew is he took the occasion of his visit to spend some time with us. For us this was unusual, most family give fleeting contact and if they visit they seem only to want to be entertained as we used to do for anyone, family and friends when we were much younger; for some they want to covert what we have in the hopes of getting something when we pass on. If we ask them to do something for us they expect to be paid. It is no fun for us being old, apart from when we are on our own and try to entertain ourselves.
This extended visit by our nephew was quite welcome. My wife is not comfortable with the title Christian anarchism, for the obvious reasons of her prejudice against anarchism brought about by the pejorative use of the word by politicians, media and then the developed misunderstandings of the general population. My conversation therefore was with my nephew only, my wife left us to it, and it lasted nearly two hours. I say this now to indicate that he was willing to hold the conversation without prejudice, even though obviously he was not going to change his own position. He accepted my criticism of mainstream Churches, incuding his own, but of course claimed that for him (not us now as we are elderly and disabled) that to perhaps get things changed was to participate in the activities of the Church which he had decided to join. I immediately suggested that his efforts were falling on stony ground as the SDA Church were not going to change, their investment in money was totally establiished in this corrupt world, at which he could only shrug his shoulders. We have to live with what we have got, he said. This brought me to the great discussion in the nineteenth century between anarchists and the authoritarian socialists (Marxists), and amongst one faction of anarchism and another, that is the discussion on means to ends.
As a Christian he was willing to listen, but steeped in mainstream Christianity most of the time was taken by him as he explained why he was with the SDA Church, and also to challenge me on my view that I was inspired by God, was writing in the way it is claimed that the writers of the Bible were inspired, and therefore I was right! That of course is arrogance on my part and therefore wrong, but I feel I need to take a stance. The writers of the books of the Bible probably did not think they were inspired by God and therefore right. The suggested inspiration from God for their writings has been assigned by theologians afterwards and can therefore be questionable, as can any actions conducted by ourselves. My nephew had to agree, but then it came down to a matter of faith he said. I agreed, but said that my faith was in God, not in the actions and writings of ordinary men and women. For me the conversation was enjoyable, it took up two hours of my God-given life, and has inspired me to write this entry to my blog. God bless you all.