I was paired up this week in golf with a Presbyterian minister I did not know. He retired from full time ministry last June. He said he and his wife were having a difficult time finding a new church home. I told him Joy and I retired last April and were having the same problem. He also said his wife was about ready to give up on church. Being the wife of a pastor in a small town, she had had a very difficult time relating to members of his congregation who were much more conservative than she is. That had helped to sour her on church. I told him I understood how she felt. I also have a difficult time understanding how so many church members can have views on issues that contradict the life and ministry of Jesus.
Take healthcare, for example. How can any Christian not be in favor of the new healthcare law? This has nothing to do with politics. It has to do with simple human compassion. Under the healthcare system we currently have, forty five thousand people die annually because they do not have access to healthcare. Forty-six million have no insurance, which means if they get treatment it is at an ER, which is one of the most expensive ways there is to help people without insurance. In addition, the current system is for profit, which necessarily means insurance companies have to put money before people. That is why they refused coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, and put women in a different category than men because they can get pregnant.
The new law prohibits both of those practices. How can anyone, especially a Christian, be against that? The new law will also offer exchanges to people who cannot afford high premiums insurance companies charge. The hope is that this will lead to lower premiums overall. Again, how can anyone, especially a Christian, be against that? Insurance companies are also required to put a larger percentage of premium collections into actual healthcare instead of larger bonuses for executives. I ask one more time, how can anyone, especially Christians, be against that?
I know some people believe the new law will cost a lot of money. What they ignore is that the current system spends far more. That leaves me to think that the only reason people object to healthcare reform is that they don’t like “big government.” But we all know that is not true. The radical right that wants government to stay out of their lives supports the government telling women what they have to do with their bodies. They support the government telling people who they can and cannot marry. They support government subsidizing corporations such as big oil with tax breaks and tax incentives. They support government spending on firefighting when their house catches fire, or having police on patrol when their home is burglarized.
I could go on, but the point is clear. In this day and time, there is no such thing as “big” or ”small’ government. We may want efficient government, but we should want more than that. The question for every government is whether or not it promotes and protects social justice. That is why healthcare is a government concern. Good healthcare is a right. So is food. So is shelter. So is a fair chance. These are matters that cannot be left to the market place alone. They require government to ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect.
Which brings me back to where I began. The fact that so many church members hold views that make social justice less likely rather than more is an enigma to me. Joy and I were fortunate to be part of a faith community before retirement that was unequivocal in its commitment to social justice. We didn’t all think alike on issues, but we were of one mind when it came to compassion and seeking justice for all. It saddens me whenever I hear a minister talk about the difficulties of being in a congregation that not only doesn’t support social justice, but gets upset when he or she talks about it. I am sure these people are committed to being good church members, but I have to wonder how committed they really are to taking Jesus seriously.
