Thoughts of a Theophile: Surprised by Colbert

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Surprised by Colbert

I was quite surprised to see that one of my favourite authors/theologians, NT Wright was on the Colbert Report last week. Check it out:

...uh, it appears that you can no longer get the clip from Colbert's site, Comedy Central's site, or YouTube... but you can watch it here. Please do.

If only Colbert would stop interrupting!

Wright asserts in this book that (as he barely has time to explain in the clip) contrary to popular belief, our true destination after death is not heaven but a recreated earth with the New Jerusalem as a "bridge" between the New Heaven and the New Earth.

I have frequently heard people ask the question that Colbert asks: if God is going to recreate everything then why should we bother taking care of the world?

Wright is interrupted before he can develop his analogy, so I will take the liberty of expanding it:

In a normal family household situation it is the job of the parents to make sure the home is clean and in order. However, parents often give their children the authority and responsibility to take care of their own rooms. The child could refuse to clean up their room saying, "Mom and Dad will clean it all up at the end of the day," which would probably be true, but that misses the point. The point is that the parents have given the child the job and responsibility of taking care of their room.

So it is with us. God has given us the responsibility of taking care of the Earth. This requires an holistic activistm. It includes environmentalism, humanitarianism, and evangelism.

So, the question is, do we just slack off, do nothing and say, "God will clean it up in the end," or do we step up to the challenge of stewardship and begin the process of New Creation here and now?

UPDATE:
A while back ABC did a bit with Wright in which some of his thoughts are more cogently captured. It may be helpful in our discussion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AA0NLb0pXGI (YouTube wouldn't allow me to embed it...)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...: What if we had friends over and they messed up my room. Then am I off the hook? Because really it's not my fault.

Tim S.; June 24, 2008 at 11:45 a.m.
Lisa Sawatzky said...: Isn't this still connected to our rights and responsibilities discussion? I have a right to do what I want (in a manner of speaking) but I have the responsibility to act... well... responsibly. Therefore I have a huge box at the bottom of my stairs full of bottles for the day when some poor sucker, I mean some fundraising kids come by and pick them up. I'm helping the environment, while supporting others.

On the other hand, I throw out cardboard. I never used to but I can't find a recycling place close to my house.; June 24, 2008 at 12:19 p.m.
Timothy Braun said...: Tim S - I think this analogy is better served by noting that we share our 'room' with our brothers and sisters (I can relate. I had to share a room for most of my childhood and adolescent years).

We don't just have outsiders trashing our room (unless you believe in aliens), we're all in this together. If your siblings are trashing the room it's still up to us get them to help out.; June 24, 2008 at 4:30 p.m.