the REFUGE

Empires Prefer the Baby and the Cross to the Adult Jesus

From Constantine to Bush, power has needed to stifle Jesus’ revolutionary message

by Giles Fraser

Every Sunday in church, many Christians recite the Nicene Creed. “Who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven; And was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary and was made man; was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried; and the third day rose again according to the Scriptures.” It’s the official summary of the Christian faith but, astonishingly, it jumps straight from birth to death, apparently indifferent to what happened in between.

Nicene Christianity is the religion of Christmas and Easter, the celebration of a Jesus who is either too young or too much in agony to shock us with his revolutionary rhetoric. The adult Christ who calls his followers to renounce wealth, power and violence is passed over in favor of the gurgling baby and the screaming victim. As such, Nicene Christianity is easily conscripted into a religion of convenience, with believers worshipping a gagged and glorified savior who has nothing to say about how we use our money or whether or not we go to war.

Christianity became the official religion of the Roman empire with the conversion of the emperor Constantine in 312, after which the church began to back pedal on the more radical demands of the adult Christ. The Nicene Creed was composed in 325 under the sponsorship of Constantine. It was Constantine who decided that December 25 was to be the date on which Christians were to celebrate the birth of Christ and it was Constantine
who ordered the building of the Church of the Nativity at Bethlehem. Christmas – a festival completely unknown to the early church – was invented by the Roman emperor. And from Constantine onwards, the radical Christ worshipped by the early church would be pushed to the margins of Christian history to be replaced with the infinitely more accommodating religion of the baby and the cross.

The adult Jesus described his mission as being to “preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives and to set at liberty those who are oppressed”. He insisted that the social outcast be loved and cared for, and that the rich have less chance of getting into heaven than a camel has of getting through the eye of a needle. Jesus set out to destroy the imprisoning obligations of debt, speaking instead of forgiveness and the redistribution of wealth. He was accused of blasphemy for attacking the religious authorities as self-serving and hypocritical.

In contrast, the Nicene religion of the baby and the cross gives us Christianity without the politics. The Posh and Becks nativity scene is the perfect tableau into which to place this Nicene baby, for like the much-lauded celebrity, this Christ is there to be gazed upon and adored -but not to be heard or heeded. In a similar vein, modern evangelical
choruses offer wave upon wave of praise to the name of Jesus, but offer little political or economic content to trouble his adoring fans.

Yet despite the silence of the baby, it should be perfectly obvious to anyone who has actually read the Christmas stories that the gospel regards the incarnation as challenging the existing order. The pregnant Mary anticipates Christ’s birth with some fiery political theology: God “has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly, he has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty”, she blazes. Born among farm laborers, yet worshipped by kings, Christ announces an astonishing reversal of political authority. The local imperial stooge, King Herod, is so threatened by rumors of his birth that he sends troops to Bethlehem to find the child and kill him. Herod recognized that to claim Jesus is lord and king is to say that Caesar isn’t. Christ’s birth is not a silent night – it’s the beginning of a revolution that threatened to undermine the whole basis of Roman power.

Little wonder, then, that influential US Christian commentator Jim Wallis created a storm earlier in the year when he penned an attack upon “Bush’s theology of empire”, helpfully illustrated with a picture of Bush made up to look like the emperor Constantine. “Once there was Rome, now there is a new Rome,” argued Wallis.

Constantine was converted to Christianity by a vision that came to him on the eve of the battle of Milvian Bridge: “He saw with his own eyes, up in the sky and resting over the sun, a cross-shaped trophy formed from light, and a text attached to it which said, ‘By this sign, conquer’ “. Soon the cross would morph from being a hated symbol of Roman brutality into the universally recognizable logo of the Holy Roman Empire. Within a century, St Augustine would develop the novel idea of just war, trimming the church’s originally pacifist message to the needs of the imperial war machine.

Like Constantine, George Bush has borrowed the language of Christianity to support and justify his military ambition. And just like that of Constantine, the Christianity of this new Rome offers another carefully edited version of the Bible. Once again, the religion that speaks of forgiving enemies and turning the other cheek is pressed into military service.

The story of Christmas, properly understood, asserts that God is not best imagined as an all-powerful despot but as a vulnerable and pathetic child. It’s a statement about the nature of divine power. But in the hands of conservative theologians, the Nicene religion of the baby and the cross is a way of distracting attention away from the teachings of Christ. It’s a form of religion that concentrates on things like belief in the virgin birth while ignoring the fact that the gospels are much more concerned about the treatment of the poor and the forgiveness of enemies.

Bush may have claimed that “Jesus Christ changed my life”, but Jesus doesn’t seem to have changed his politics. As the carol reminds us: “And man at war with man hears not the love song that they bring, O hush the noise ye men of strife and hear the angels sing.”

· The Rev Dr Giles Fraser is vicar of Putney and lecturer in philosophy at Wadham College, Oxford – giles.fraser@btinternet.com

Dear Friends, Supporters, and the Curious,

Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday’s to Everyone. I trust that the business of season has not caused us to lose focus and what it is all about. Consumerism too often suffocates the true meaning of this time. A time when Peace on Earth and Good will toward all people can be lost.
As I reflect on this time of year, I often spend time with my children trying to instill in them a sense of what it is all about. Recently, we watched the film, ” A Christmas Carol” based on the novel by Dickens. During the film, which is one of my personal holiday favorites, there is a scene where representatives of a charity ask the main characted, Scrooge, if he would contribute to their charity and he states that he must be about his business of making money and tells them to go about their business. They then state that humanity is their business. As I reflect on that and what the Christian tradition teaches about Wealth and poverty and the meaning of this season, as well as what other faith traditions teach about Greed and power, I am reminded of the fact that all of us should be about the “business” of humanity. That we should be concerned those struggling to make it. That their struggle is our struggle.
It is with that in mind, that I must be candid with you about both myself and the ministry of the Refuge. We are really struggling to make it. We have recently lost 2 donors due to the Economy. Their combined gifts amount $725 per month. This has really hurt us! We have greatly appreciated their support. And, they have expressed sincere regret at having to stop supporting us. Both of them have supported us since the begining of the Refuge, more than 16 years ago. We have truly appreciated their support. And, of course, in addition to all that, we continue to more families and individuals coming to us that are in great need. Let me just share you some of the current needs.
First of all, thanks to everyone who responded to the call for help. We were able to serve about 200 homeless on Thanksgiving. We were also able to help 32 families with complete Thanksgiving dinners. In addition, we were able to help several pay their bills, including some medication for some. Thanks for you help.
However, many families we could not help. We hope and pray that support will come in for the Christmas Season. We help anyone regardless of Race, Creed, Ethnicity, religion or no belief, marital status, or sexual orientation. At this time we have some various serious need. We need to raise about $700 to help with 3 different electric bills for 3 families. THey are facing shut off in next few days. Additional, an older gentleman, who has physical limitations is going to lose his auto insurance and it is the only way he can get to appointments. We need $100 for that.
Lastly, the Refuge is in desperate need of nonperishable food items, gift cards, a lap top and a minivan, as well as blankets for out street outreach to the homeless and for our food pantry. If you can help in any way with any of this or support us in an ongoing way, please email me at bgcwright @aol.com or go to www.refugestpete.org for paypal. Checks can be sent to the Refuge 1818 29th Ave. North, St. Petersburg, Florida33713

Sincerely, Rev. Bruce Wright MA, DMin., CPAC, MAC

PS. From a personal note. These loses in financial support have taken their toll personally. My own ability to support my family is in jeopardy. I am having a hard time making bills and at this point I am what is called “couch homeless”. Please consider supporting us with special gifts and with regular monthly support. Any amount of support helps. No gift is too small. Thank you and God bless.

TIS THE SEASON?

Consumerism too often suffocates the true meaning of this time. A time when Peace on Earth and Good will toward all people can be lost.
As I reflect on this time of year, I often spend time with my children trying to instill in them a sense of what it is all about. Recently, we watched the film, ” A Christmas Carol” based on the novel by Dickens. During the film, which is one of my personal holiday favorites, there is a scene where representatives of a charity ask the main characted, Scrooge, if he would contribute to their charity and he states that he must be about his business of making money and tells them to go about their business. They then state that humanity is their business. As I reflect on that and what the Christian tradition teaches about Wealth and poverty and the meaning of this season, as well as what other faith traditions teach about Greed and power, I am reminded of the fact that all of us should be about the “business” of humanity. That we should be concerned with those struggling to make it. That their struggle is our struggle.
We must be concerned about those who continue to struggle to make in the times we live. With the high unemployment rate and the foreclosure rate, more and more are ending up on the streets. And, it seems that the power brokers in both Government and the Corporate world seem more and more removed and unconcerned.
It is in times like this that we must pull together. Dickens in his novel, “A Tale of Two Cities”, characterized the period in which the novel took place as, “ It was the best of Times, and the Worst of times”. We live in a time like that again. It is the best of times for those with money and power as they continue to exploit the poor, but it is the worst of times for those who are at the bottom, especially those in poverty or those who are struggling with homelessness.
We must be committed to one another and to a movement that seeks human rights for all. It must be a struggle from the bottom up. It must be informed and led by those affected by the struggle. We can no longer afford to allow solutions from the top down. Most of those who attempt to solve the problem from an “Ivory Tower” have no understanding of the struggle and therefore have no vested interest in solving the problem. We can and we must work together to create a just and cooperative society. A society where those who struggle are counted and looked to for leadership. It is something that must be done. If it is not sooner or later the people must stand up and demand that it be so. We can no longer afford to allow the Rich to be bailed out at the expense of the poor and the working people of this country.
As a minister of the Gospel, I am told to preach the Gospel of the Good News to the poor (Isaiah 61). I therefore have a call towards justice for the poor. All people of Faith must commit themselves to this call. The one we call the Prince of Peace demands this. And, states in Matthew 25 that those who are part or not part of God’s Beloved Community, Dr. King called it, are judged by what they do with or for those who are oppressed in society. Dr. King stated that “the arch of history bends towards justice”. If that is true, then may we work toward that end.

By Rev. Bruce Wright MA, DMin., CPAC, MAC