The Globally Aware Christian

I’m gonna go ahead and say that Christians are generally less aware of what’s happening in the world around them than other people. That’s my experience at least. You may have a different experience, and if so, I’d love to hear it. I would say this also true of my generation in general. Part of it is simply the environment of college. It’s kind of inherently this bubble of ignorance that shields us from the reality of the world. Now that I’m out of that, I’ve discovered how necessary it is for all people to be aware of the news.

Maybe it’s the journalist in me, but I don’t think so. Shane Claiborne has said that Christians should be a people who hold the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. We are to be a people who respond to the events happening around us. During the great plague in Europe, Christians were known as the people who stuck around with those who were quarantined, even at the high risk of death. They cared for the masses, and became known as the people who saved. This is actually where the term “saved” comes from. Those Christ-followers saw a need, and responded. They did not just share the Gospel with the sick, they did the Gospel with the sick.

What are the events happening in the world right now that we must respond to? Immigration? It’s bound to be one of the hottest topics for debate in the next five years. The Bible tells us all over the place to welcome the foreigner and the stranger as one of our own. I don’t want to start a debate here and now, but how are we to respond? The Catholic church has responded beautifully, I think, and has made it known that their churches in the south will be open as sanctuaries for those who need it.

What about the oil spill? How are we to respond? What about the fact that more oil is spilled in Nigeria nearly every year than was spilled in the Gulf of Mexico? Clearly this is not what God had in mind for His creation.

There are countless other examples that I could point to. What if we spent less time with our heads down and nose pointed in our Bible and more time responding to the news with our Gospel in hand? (Don’t turn this around and say I don’t think it’s good to read the Bible. If you know me, you know that’s not true.)

Personally, I’ve semi-committed to just reading the news for a half hour or so every day. I make sure to not just scan CNN, but world headlines. America, contrary to popular belief, is not the center of the world. Awareness is the first step. In order to respond, we must first know what’s happening around us.

Will you join me in making an effort to be more globally aware?

Love and Peace,
Jeremy