Are We There Yet? - Chapter 2 comments

Dear class:

Please be prepared for chapters 3 and 4 next week.  I’m moving the pace up on this for chapters I’m covering because of the substantial amount of “propaganda” (in my opinion) for literalism that is embedded in the materials.  The authors blend a strange militant Christian-only-centric worldview needed for prosperity (Chapter 3) with some good insights about poverty alleviation having to do with using the right tool for the right job (chapter 4), such that while Chapter 3 is a curiosity for a class like ours, Chapter 4 is more instructive.

Some Chapter 3 gems: 

·         “Ultimately, the profound reconciliation of the key relationships that comprise poverty alleviation cannot be done without people accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.”  p. 76

·         “Second, Satan and his legions are at work in the world and have the capacity and desire to damage our relationships.  Even if all humans had the correct worldview [i.e. are Christians as authors define], Satan would still be on the prowl, attacking us and the rest of creation, thereby causing “poverty” in many manifestations.”   p. 83

·         “Third, one of the results of the fall is that the entire creation is cursed, meaning that crops fail and tsunamis happen even when our worldviews are not faulty.”  p. 84

·         “the fall really happened, affecting both Alisa and the systems into which she was born,”  and blaming a person’s poverty on their own mistakes, “ignores the comprehensive impact of the fall on both individuals and systems and blinds us to our need to bring the reality of Christ’s redemption to bear on both.”   p. 87

·         “Too often we drill wells, dispense medicine, and provide food without narrating that Jesus Christ is the Creator and Provider of these material things.”  p. 90

If others have a different view, they can manage it when they lead!  I’m for moving through this book forthwith—there is some good stuff, but in my opinion it's pretty obvious and easy to get to.  And while what's here can be boiled down to a little more than the one word we were going to boil our last book down to, it doesn't merit a lot more attention. J

Peace, Phyllis