Least Common Denominator Faith (Pt. 2)

In the second part of this commentary on least-common-denominator faith in America, we continue to examine how faith in America has become so diluted that it does not resemble orthodox Christianity. What has happened is the same labels and terms are being used, yet radically different meanings are being poured into them.

The following quotes are based upon a transcript of the Compassion Forum.

MEACHAM: Senator, we've heard about HIV/AIDS. Many people here are concerned about Darfur and a number of other humanitarian issues. Why do you think it is that a loving God allows innocent people to suffer?

CLINTON: Well...

(LAUGHTER)
...
CLINTON: And it's always been curious to me how our debate about religion in America too often misses that. You know, his holiness, the pope, is going to be coming to America next week, and he's been a strong voice on behalf of what we must do to deal with poverty, and deal with injustice, and deal with what is truly our obligations toward those who are the least among us.

So maybe, you know, the lord is just waiting for us to respond to his call, because this despair, this impoverishment of body and soul is what we are expected to be spending our time responding to, and so few of us do (emphasis added).

In this quote, we see two absolutely fascinating insights into Senator Clinton's theological views: (1) Evil occurs because "the lord is just waiting for us to respond to his call." In other words, it lies within the human capacity to perfect the world. In historic Christian orthodoxy of all forms (except strong Pelagianism, which is not orthodoxy and has been condemned by both Catholics and Protestants since the time of Augustine and the Council of Orange in 529), human kind is depraved. (2) God is the clockmaker God. He set up the world and sits back, "just waiting for us to respond."