It was then, as it is now, a time of profound anxiety. It was then, as it is now, a time of ominous violence and unreliable economics in which the social fabric was so frayed that all were at risk. In the face of such social reality, Paul commands having no anxiety "about anything." In the place of anxiety, Paul commands peace with God. Paul knows that being right with God is more urgent than all our strategies of self-maintenance and self-security. Paul knows, moreover, that peace with God is beyond all our categories of explanation; it surpasses all understanding.
The passage from the Letter To The Philippians refers to an unknown dispute within the Church there either between two women, Eudoia and Syntyche or, as some read it, between them and the larger Church, which in context was probably a small house-church congregation. While some of the translations clearly distorted the names to make Eudoia into a man, in some interpretations of that alteration, a husband and wife, the Greek text is clear as to them both being women. And what's interesting is that even though Paul addressed them in regard to a dispute in the Church there, he takes them seriously as his fellow ministers, "help these women, for they have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life." I'm not sure that the "Clement" mentioned in that context is the one who Catholic tradition considers the "Second Pope" the successor of Peter but it's clear that Paul considered them as worth mentioning as his equal and, at least by very strong implication, Paul's equal. What you can make of other passages in other places that assign women unequal place, I don't know. Clearly the Pauline texts are not consistent on everything, especially when he was up against social conventions and when it might be worth the trouble of going against them and when it was essential to.
For many of us the question is, how do we arrive at peace with God? the answer, already given in the testimony of Ezekiel, is to turn away from transgression. In the Ezekiel text, in verses we have skipped over, the prophet details three dimensions of the turn to God: first, reject idolatry, the worship of phony ultimates. Second reject exploitative sexuality that treats others as objects rather than persons. Third, reject economic exploitation that regards neighbors as usable commodities. In all three instances, live in the risky world of persons rather than the controlled world of things.
I have begun to try to think through an idea I had of what politics seemed to be the result of the modernistic ideology of scientism (which is certainly materialistic and almost as certainly atheistic) as opposed to be the inevitable result of taking the Gospel teachings of Jesus, The Law, etc. seriously.* I think this reading sets out three of the results of that world view, "the worship of phony ultimates," "treating people as objects rather than persons" especially popular when done through sexual use, and treating others as usable commodities.
I recently realized that talking about other people in terms of their usefulness has never set right with me. "He, or she is or they are or I am - useless" implies personal value is derived how we are set to the purpose of someone else as an object. You can contrast that with the dignity behind the idea if you replace the concept of "use" of someone else with whether or not they are helpful. Even saying it negatively, "He isn't helpful" implies that he could be if he chose to instead of "he can't be made useful". I don't know how much that will mean to anyone else but it helped me clarify my feelings about the phrase and gave a useful and more helpful alternative way of saying it.
Reading this passage, I wondered what a United States in which an effective electoral majority were at such peace through these practices would do with the various candidates running this year. I can't believe for a second they would go for the Republicans who run on all of those things that are discouraged, especially whipping up anxiety and the view that others are objects for use. I certainly don't think they'd have voted for Trump of the Hollywood Access tape and porn star payoffs. They wouldn't put the Republicans in charge of anything.
Behind these three instances is the awareness that such commoditizaion of sexuality and economics leads to the commoditization of God as an object to be controlled.
Scientism makes science into one of those gods that I mentioned atheists seem to be helpless not to invent and in the case of science it's creation was in exactly that act of commodification of all of nature, the means of controlling nature, the useful god that is used to bend nature to our ends and or profit. It might be a rather efficient artificial god but not one you will find works, in the end.
The relentless insistence of the Bible is that peace with God depends on right neighborly conduct. It is for that reason that Paul commends "whatever is true," "honorable," "just," "pure," lovely and gracious. The news is that God delights in life that flourishes, "turn . . and live!"
* The inevitable result of applying the teachings of Jesus in politics is radical egalitarian democracy. A world governed by those would inevitably be egalitarian.
Note: We're having brownouts and short blackouts here this morning, lots of wind.
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