When It Comes to Social Action, See First Then Do

Everywhere we turn — perhaps especially as election day draws closer — calls for justice echo. There are needs everywhere, and ideas about how to meet those needs abound as well. For the Christian who wants to care for the marginalized while maintaining a distinct biblical identity, navigating justice in our society can feel complicated. At the same time, to ignore the cry of the oppressed is, in itself, a form of wandering from Scripture. What, then, is the Christian way? 

It’s into these waters that Lisa P. Stephenson and Ruthie Wienk wade throughout their book, Redemptive Service: Loving Our Neighbors Well. Stephenson and Wienk teach at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee — Stephenson is professor of systematic theology and has served as director of the Benevolence Program, which offers students an introduction to various aspects of service from a Christian perspective, for over a decade. Wienk is also involved in the Benevolence Program and works as associate professor of sociology and chair of Lee’s behavioral and social sciences department. 

The two bring expertise and passion for service together in the book, with the first part, which lays a biblical and theological foundation for Christian benevolent activity, written by Stephenson, and the second, which engages in research-based, practical discussions of promoting justice, written by Wienk. The authors spoke with Common Good about the Christian calling to service, how Scripture illuminates God’s heart for the marginalized, and practical steps toward the pursuit of justice. Here is that conversation.

Reflecting on the parable of the Good Samaritan, you write, “Certainly, a main facet of the narrative is whether one does something for one’s neighbors, especially when they are in dire need. However, prior to doing is seeing.” What is the importance of seeing when it comes to engaging the needs of the people around us? 

Seeing others “rightly” (i.e., with eyes of compassion) ensures that our service to others does not emerge solely from obligation, but from a genuine love for our neighbors. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, the good samaritan does not just act; he sees the beaten man with eyes of compassion — noticeably lacking in the priest and Levite who pass by the beaten man and do absolutely nothing. Seeing others with eyes of compassion leads to a disposition of solidarity from which we begin to see our neighbors’ situation and suffering as our own; their burdens become our burdens. This, then, leads us to action. Thus, what we do for others is first dependent on how we see others; perception affects practice.

In Redemptive Service, you present several ways in which “God’s character is shown in God’s actions” when it comes to caring for the poor, widows, orphans, and sojourners. What is one such example that you find especially powerful?

God’s involvement with the Israelites in the beginning of Exodus is both powerful as well as moving in that it becomes a model that sets the expectations God expects from the Israelites as part of their covenant, and it demonstrates that God is not indifferent to pain, suffering, and oppression. In Exodus 3:7–8, Yahweh “sees” Israel’s suffering, “hears” their cries of pain, and “knows” about their oppression. The first two actions — seeing and hearing — depict God’s character as being inclined to care about and respond to human suffering. The last action —  knowing — suggests something even further. The Hebrew word for “knowing” (yada) involves more than just cognition; there is also a relationship and participation with the object that one knows. Yahweh is not just aware of Israel’s oppression but cares about it and chooses to enter, participating in their suffering. Here, God is not neutral regarding oppression; he acts on behalf of those in need. Yahweh comes down, delivers, and brings up the Israelites. 

In Chapter 6, you write, “We are all poor in some way.” How might understanding that fact help Christians better respond to poverty?

When we think about what distinguishes “redemptive service” from “service,” we see that just like our spiritual redemption in Jesus is through the relationship that we develop with him. Indeed, communion is a vital practice of the Christian faith, and communion with anyone is inherently relational. To apply this principle to redemptive service, then, is that we engage with others as Christ engages with us, we engage with others primarily through the context of relationships. For those relationships to be authentic and affirm the dignity of those we are serving, we need to be wary of unequal power distributions between those who do the helping and those who receive it. We need to acknowledge and challenge the hidden biases we might hold about the people we are trying to help. By acknowledging our own brokenness, we can better operationalize Philippians 2:3. When we are aware of our own poverty, we are more likely to serve others from the place of true humility, guarding against pride or the selfish ambition and vain conceit that so naturally will seep into the ways that we interact with people who experience poverty.   

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Which chapter was the most challenging to write and why?

Chapter 6 was actually really challenging to write. Culturally, I do not think that we have adequate language for economic marginalization and poverty. There is such a deep cultural conflation between material position and moral fitness that it is difficult to address poverty as a topic while maintaining a deep sense of solidarity with the people who experience it. This is why the notion that “we are all poor in some way” is so important. But this idea can also be dangerous. Thinking of poverty more broadly than economic isolation runs the risk of minimizing the unique violence caused by material lack. The concept that we all experience some form of poverty waters down the reality that in many cases poverty (material poverty) happens to people. These ideas are largely counter-cultural, so finding ways to present them that would be clear and compelling to a broad audience is something that I still wrestle with frequently. 

Which chapter do you find yourself still thinking about, and why?

While we might like to think that the church today is exempt from the divine criticisms found in the prophetic texts concerning Israel’s humanitarian responsibilities, I find myself alarmingly concerned that many aspects of Israel’s distorted mess we highlight in Chapter 3 have disturbing parallels in today’s church. God has called us to have open hands towards our neighbors (Deut 15:11), and even though exactly how this is to be understood and applied is different from what was prescribed in the original command, the posture is still the same. God’s concern for the vulnerable, poor, and oppressed has not diminished. And neither has the expectation that God’s people today are supposed to continue in this service to others. Too many times the contemporary church seems preoccupied with building its own kingdom instead of the kingdom of God. Thus, I find the biblical texts emphasized in Chapter 3 a haunting and holy reminder of how central loving our neighbors is to our Christian identity and mission.

As people begin to realize the magnitude of injustice, they often feel overwhelmed and unsure how to begin. How would you encourage someone to take a first step?

This is such an important question. My advice is that no one needs to reinvent the wheel when it comes to addressing injustice. Social change that addresses injustice comes most frequently when many people come together and coordinate their action around a common cause for an extended period of time. We can think of abolition or the Civil Rights Movement as social movements that took decades of collective work. For many of the injustices that we see today, there are already existing organizations or groups that are faith-based and socially engaged. A great place to start is to find what organizations are currently addressing that particular issue, build relationships, and connect with those efforts.  

What else, if anything, would you like to share with the readers of Common Good?

This work was a fruitful product of two specialists in different fields learning from each other and bringing together various ideas and approaches that ultimately formed the content of the book. It is an example of the benefits interdisciplinary research and writing can have not only for the academy, but for the church as well. It is our hope that this book will be used in classrooms and churches to help clarify our Christian calling to redemptive service and point to better ways to live it out amongst our neighbors.

I think that in much of contemporary Christianity in the U.S., key aspects of living our faith are engaging in spiritual disciplines like prayer, Bible reading, and communal worship. We clearly think that these are things that a Christian must do to fully express and experience their faith. I would hope that through reading this book, Christians would begin to understand that redemptive service is as central to a robust faith as these other spiritual disciplines. 

 

This interview has been edited for clarity. Redemptive Service is available from Baker Academic.