{"id":3234,"date":"2014-11-07T02:49:25","date_gmt":"2014-11-07T02:49:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dminlgp\/?p=3234"},"modified":"2014-11-07T02:49:25","modified_gmt":"2014-11-07T02:49:25","slug":"from-social-theory-to-christian-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/from-social-theory-to-christian-action\/","title":{"rendered":"From Social Theory to Christian Action"},"content":{"rendered":"

Anthony Elliott\u2019s book,\u00a0Contemporary Social Theory: An Introduction[1]<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>provides a solid\u00a0overview of theories on\u00a0how societies have changed and developed over time. Elliot looks at the relationships between individuals and societies, and themes such as gender and race. A wide range of popular theories is covered, seeking answers to how and why society and societal norms have developed from WWII to where they are today. Studying popular social theory helps one to better understand social concerns and disparities, such as between rich and poor or black and white. It raises our awareness on how circumstances influence a person\u2019s interactions or engagement within society. After reading Elliot\u2019s book I was left asking, \u201cwhat do I do with this information?\u201d It seems that I have a responsibility to understand the underlying drivers for societal structure and change, yet I must also balance this by viewing social theory through a Biblical context. Social theory can give me a sense of where my community and the greater global society\u00a0is headed, which allows\u00a0me to analyze\u00a0how Christianity is or is not engaging in the same direction that society is moving.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve never considered myself privileged, as I believe that God created everyone equal. Yet, I\u2019ve grown up in a Midwest American bubble having little experience outside of the culture in which I was raised. It wasn\u2019t until I stepped out of my own surroundings that I could see how my own circumstances, opinions, and station in life have been molded by the world in which I was born. I was born in the same town and same hospital where other children of different races and socioeconomic backgrounds were born. From birth, the norms of society dictated where I lived, attended church, went to school, etc. Although my family wasn\u2019t wealthy I attended what was considered a high income, predominately white school district. The educational standards were very high, and most students graduated and went on to college and successful careers. During a recent trip to Cape Town, South Africa, I was frequently confronted by the fact that I was born with \u201cwhite privilege\u201d. \u00a0My life is a testimony to this fact. I attend a predominately white church, filled with people just like me. \u00a0My children\u2019s educational upbringing is much the same as my own. In many ways, I\u2019ve contributed to the current situation by going along with the \u201cnorm\u201d.<\/p>\n

Many of the churches within my community are socially segregated and serve only a small subset of the community. If they do reach out to diverse groups, it is typically in the form of \u201coutreach\u201d versus building relationships. Since returning from Cape Town, I have realized that I am missing out on the blessing that comes from having strong relationships with the different groups of people that live within my own community. There is a racial divide that exists, and until people start crossing this divide we won\u2019t be able to have unity and peace within our communities. Christians and church leaders need to take the lead to reach out and start building relationships with those in their own communities that are different from themselves.<\/p>\n

I am encouraged that people are starting to pay attention to social injustice, as just this week I heard Christian leaders from diverse backgrounds dialog about cultural issues and social justice at #nines2014. Leonce Crump specifically called out\u00a0the fact that systemic racism exists in America.[2]<\/a>\u00a0We have a long way to go in order to create a society with a Christ-centered dogma. \u00a0\u201cAt the cross of Jesus where love and justice meet, diverse cultural identities are redeemed, celebrated, and unified.\u201d[3]<\/a>\u00a0People are suffering and I cannot live in complacency, as if I don\u2019t see the division and disparity within society. I\u00a0will<\/em>\u00a0step out and be a change agent for Christ, and I hope others will join me…<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a>\u00a0Anthony Elliott,\u00a0Contemporary Social Theory: an Introduction<\/em>, 2 ed. (New York: Routledge, 2014).<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a>\u00a0See also: http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/edstetzer\/2014\/august\/its-time-to-listen-saved-and-silent-will-white-evangelicals.html<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a>\u00a0Oosthuizen, Leon & Xola Skosana.\u00a0Roads 2 Bridges<\/em>. (Paarl, South Africa: Emmaus Media, 2013).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anthony Elliott\u2019s book,\u00a0Contemporary Social Theory: An Introduction[1],\u00a0provides a solid\u00a0overview of theories on\u00a0how societies have changed and developed over time. Elliot looks at the relationships between individuals and societies, and themes such as gender and race. A wide range of popular theories is covered, seeking answers to how and why society and societal norms have developed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[482,196,483],"class_list":["post-3234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dawnel","tag-elliot","tag-volzke","cohort-lgp5"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3234"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3235,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3234\/revisions\/3235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}