Jesus taught turning the other cheek primarily as a personal response to personal insult. Christian teaching does not recommend a passive response to evil at the social level. Quite the opposite. In fact, the most vigorous opposition to the left right now is coming from all those who get that stealing from a productive person to pay off an unproductive person is a moral wrong. Christians, Jews, and anyone else that gets natural law, are the front line of the resistance movement.
Having said that, this whole conflict is more like Othello than chess. Personal kindness to rude individuals can seriously take the wind out of their sails. Conflict can be minimized, if no wholly eliminated. I have won back friends and successfully resolved seemingly unresolvable tangles by enduring unwarranted abuse to a point of embarrassing the opposition. It actually works, this turning of the cheek. But only in the proper context.
“Christian teaching does not recommend a passive response to evil at the social level.”
I couldn’t agree more. In fact, we are charged with protecting the innocent and cursed if we do not take care of the defenseless. (Corrie ten Boom and family are a great example.) The other day, I thought, “God, why do you allow lovely, innocent people to be abused and neglected, such as the case in Minnesota where the teenaged nurse assistants did unspeakable, vile things to Alzheimers nursing home residents in their care?” The answer came back to me clear as a bell: “It is not I who desire these things. It YOUR (collective) choice as a culture and a justice system to allow things to progress to a point where evil is called good and good is called evil.”
“Jesus taught turning the other cheek primarily as a personal response to personal insult. Christian teaching does not recommend a passive response to evil at the social level. Quite the opposite. In fact, the most vigorous opposition to the left right now is coming from all those who get that stealing from a productive person to pay off an unproductive person is a moral wrong. Christians, Jews, and anyone else that gets natural law, are the front line of the resistance movement.”
Nice post and thank you
Having said that, this whole conflict is more like Othello than chess. Personal kindness to rude individuals can seriously take the wind out of their sails. Conflict can be minimized, if no wholly eliminated. I have won back friends and successfully resolved seemingly unresolvable tangles by enduring unwarranted abuse to a point of embarrassing the opposition. It actually works, this turning of the cheek. But only in the proper context.