I read it in another journal first. Kingdom-ideals in the real world.
Here's my problem.
Politically its always cast as taking care of the homeless. Helping the needy. Helping the children have a better life. It's all rhetoric. Its all based on the idea that the more you can force people to throw their money at a problem, the closer you come to a solution.
Wrong.
I've been told that before Roosevelt's New Deal, the church wasn't doing a good job. It had done its job pretty well in the past, but during the Great Depression, the church just couldn't cut it anymore. The government stepped in. Problem solved?
No.
The government fails even more than the church did. Sure, they help people, that's very true, but at the cost of no moral consequence. The government's success is based on the very idea that you can be helped with a problem without the benefits of being reminded just why you made it there in the first place.
And no, I'm not saying every hardship is caused by individual sin.
I'm not as idealistic as this all sounds. I don't believe that if you just left it up to the "people", they would solve all of the problems themselves. That is called communism. It's not like I'm saying there shouldn't be a government at all. That's called anarchy. But the problem I have here is the idea that if the state steps in, everything will be solved. The state has stepped in, and the problem is worse. And why is it worse? Because we have created a nation with no real conscience, and the only way to really fix the problems of the nation is to restore that conscience.
That is something the government can never do.
On a side note, I'm going to do something I never do, and that is publicly respond to a comment. The comment follows:
"However, if we are to tell her that she cannot have an abortion, we should then follow up with her after that baby is born and be sure that the baby is not abused or neglected. That is where I think we fall short both as a nation and as Christians. Is it worse for the baby to be aborted or to end up in a dumpster after being born in a bathroom?"
I totally agree. Totally agree. And its true that if the church were doing its job, that wouldn't happen as often. I guess that's really my point. The biggest problem in America today is that now even the Church sees the government as its savior. "Matthew 6:24 - No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. " Just who does the Church think is really going to save our nation?
Also, for those of you have never had a chance to discuss issues with the woman who left that quote, you're really missing out. She is one of the most savvy debaters I have ever had the pleasure of talking to.