A Response to What?
Someone asked me what I thought the Christian Agrarian “movement” was a response to. Was it industrialism, modernism, capitalism, just what were we reponding to. I’ve been thinking about it and I’m not sure there is an easy answer. It seems we have a very diverse “movement”, so much so, I’m not sure you could call it one. The reformed folks have one school of though and more independent evangelicals have another one. While our theological bends would seem to divide us, for some reason they don’t. I think that the Christian Agrarian “movement” is more of a responce to the Church catholic playing harlot to the world. It is this “stop comprimising with the world” attitude that brings high church calvinists and low church baptists to the same table. It has postmil, amil and premil christians putting down the eschatological hatchets and finding common ground. The infection of worldly comprimise has spread to all branches of the church and people are sick of it. This “movement” seems to be some people who are taking what the bible says about certain things for face value and not trying to explain them away. These are just some thoughts, what do you think?
September 19th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
Christian agrarianism is not a response or reaction to anything, per say, but the answer of good conscience towards the commandments of God, a proactive response to God’s word, which leads to repentance and reformation, not only of the individual but also the culture. It is not just another “alternative lifestyle” in reaction to others, but a way of life clearly set forth in God’s word . . . man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. All people practice some form of agrarianism, as everything they do ultimately affects the land around them, be it the lawless agrarianism of fallen man which defiles the earth, as we are experiencing today, or biblical agrarianism, which God blesses throughout the generations
September 19th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
Thanks Pastor Tom
I agree with your assesment. My Chritian agrarianism is a result of my comitment to a robust covenant theology. “A proactive response to God’s word” as you put it. Being obedient to God’s Word sets us at odds with modern pagan culture. The world sees this as us “reacting” to it, when in truth it is us “reacting positively” to God’s commands and “responding” to God’s commands with obedience.
September 20th, 2007 at 4:56 am
There is no way I can match Missouri Rev for eloquence. He said it beautifully!
We didn’t even know the term “agrarian.” We just started out here on our little place and tried to raise our children, livestock, pets and garden in a manner that glorified God, recognized His control of creation, and recognized the patterns and characteristics that He built into His creatures.
Later we found Wendell Berry and other agrarian writers. Then we said, “Aha! It has a name.”
Kim
September 20th, 2007 at 5:59 am
Yes, the Missouri Rev has a gift for eloquence. I wholeheartedly agree!
I guess the fact that I tried to answer the question in those terms, means that I played right into our critics hand. The lines get kind of blured becouse we do spend a lot of time defending the biblical position against a lot of worldly positions. If we are not carefull, we can begin to look at agrarianism in an abstract way and forget why it is we are doing what we are doing. The funny thing is, I’ve warned of others of this right here on my blog and then turn around and do it myself. Take economics for example. Those who call themselves the Christian agrarians say that bible teaches us how we are to act “economicly”. It is capitalism, socialism, facism, ect that are reacting negatively toward God’s economic plan. They can “do it better”, so they think.
September 20th, 2007 at 8:14 am
There is an antithesis between God and mammon, and our actions could be called a ‘REsponse’ or a ‘REaction.” But I do like Tom’s words better: ‘REpentance and REformation.”
September 20th, 2007 at 3:06 pm
Could you explain this in greater detail:
“I think that the Christian Agrarian “movement” is more of a responce to the Church catholic playing harlot to the world.”
I have no idea what you are talking about.
September 20th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
The Church catholic (in this case I refer to the visible church here on earth, in all its sects and traditions, from baptist to reformed to roman to the “no creed but Jesus types”) is not at all conserned with obeying God’s word. They are…..well…..playing the whore to pagan culture. Just like the OT children of Israel, the church is chasing after idols and false gods. They try to “christianize” all sorts of wickedness instead of leaving it behind.
September 21st, 2007 at 8:22 am
Thanks for your reply. There is a dichotomy concerning Christianity, we are expected to live together, but yet live the faith, and this is tough sometimes. But we have to be careful that we don’t reject the world too much, as I think many in the Amish community have. Christ said that we must cloth the poor, feed the hungry, visit the imprisoned. If we turn our backs on the world then we run the risk of turning our back on Christ.
But I do understand that Christian churches have become too imbedded with the secular world. But I wonder if is the not the result of American way of life that has resulted from our march toward centralization and big government. Prior to the 20th Century this didn’t really happen (I would refer you to Alexis DeTocqueville’s DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA as good example of faith based community life in America). But after much of the wave of “populism” in this country, I simply call it socialism, folks, to include the churches, turned to government to provide the assistance that Christ called us to.
Scott, my belief is that we can only return to a more faith centered life when the citizens, especially all faiths, turn away from centralized government and return to the limited republican form we had prior to the 1900s.
September 21st, 2007 at 10:01 am
You can see much of the same thing with the embracing of government by many of the top evangelicals. Roberts and Dobson come to mind first. They seem to think that “Christians” can ride the dragon of government better than the secularist. The truth is that no one can ride the dragon for good. The dragon must be cut up into pieces and returned to the states.
September 21st, 2007 at 10:49 am
Hi Ben
I’m not advocating any kind of retreatism, as a biblical postmilenianalist I’m very much about subdueing the earth and replenishing it. We are most certainly called to cloth the poor and feed the hungry, and truth is the church as whole hasn’t been downing that. They have been to caught up in mammon worship and materialism to bother with Christ’s commands to be a light to the world and a godly example to the lost. The fact that most of us are pleasantly suprised when aren’t “screwed and cheated” by christian businessmen is a fine example. I also agree that limited Localized republican government is very much needed.
Hi Steve
“You can see much of the same thing with the embracing of government by many of the top evangelicals”
Oh man, don’t get me started on that
American evanjellyfish seem to have sold their souls to the neocons. I don’t think most of them realize what they done, but it its not an exuse. We live in a world turned upside down. What are known as “christian conservative” political veiws are not Christian nor conservative.
September 21st, 2007 at 11:17 am
Scott;
This has been an interesting thread. Getting back to your original post, maybe the Christian Agrarian movement can be the re-seeding of this country that is necessary to produce new and fruitful families. Hopefully, by their example others in the suburbs, and maybe someday the cities, will see the need to be good stewards of the land and live with Christian fellowship, and they will in turn live in a harmonious way. With God all things are possible.
September 22nd, 2007 at 10:23 am
Hi Brian
That is certianly part of it, brother. It is quite amazing and encouraging to see how many of God’s people are starting down this path. When the colapse of the hyper-consumer pagan economy finaly happens, we will be in a very good position to rebuild much of what has been lost. We will also be in a good position to show christian love and charity to those who are suffering. Now thats something to think about. As we struggle to learn how to feed and cloth ouselves in a sustainable fashion, we also must think of how we are going to react to our starving brothers who are still “betting the farm” on the risky game of fiat money and easy credit. Something to think about. Someday, a lot of “long lost realitives and friends” are going to show up wanting help and refuge from the farm. Yes, the same folks who make fun of us now are going to need our compasion in the future.
September 26th, 2007 at 11:17 pm
Living on the fringe brings one into contact with so many past fringe dwellers. It seems that they come in waves. Most of the ‘ agrarians’ in our locality are pagans, and they have been here for ages. Leaving the city has been going on for years indeed millenia perhaps. I think what may be unique is that it is the builders who are leaving this time. Fleeing material excess and moral egress to find freedom from the tyranny of both will be the natural response of anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear., and that freedom brings us into contact with those from the past who fled us or rather who they thought us to be. Strange days indeed when the church up the road talks of the world and the neighbour down the road talks of the moon.
Supernatural [spirit] and natural have been with us since God breathed on us . We are now moving into the realms of the unnatural, devoid of spirit and those realms have never been encountered before. Our reaction to the unnatural[ motivated as it is by the spirit] is therefore the most natural thing in the world.
Colin