January 2007

Church and State pt 3: Subject to the Governing Authorities (a Christian Anarchist’s second look at Romans 13)

by Mark Van Steenwyk 30 January 2007

Today, I'll continue my examination of Romans 13. In particular, I will unpack Romans 13:1-2. In following posts, I will offer my general understanding of Romans 13, as well as the ministry implications of that understanding.
Romans 13:1-2 (NRSV)

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, [...]

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Church and State pt 2: Subject to the Governing Authorities (a Christian Anarchist’s look at Romans 13)

by Mark Van Steenwyk 24 January 2007

Today, I'll beging to tackle Romans 13:1-7, the passage most often cited to support the idea that Christians ought to not only submit to the State, but be good, active, citizens of the State. I'll probably post several times out of this passage. Before I dig in, I want to give you an extended quote [...]

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Church and State pt 1: Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s (but to God what is God’s)

by Mark Van Steenwyk 16 January 2007

Mark 12:13-17:

Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words. They came to him and said, "Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren't swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God [...]

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from “Paul’s Letter to American Christians” by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

by Mark Van Steenwyk 15 January 2007

I still believe that love is the most durable power in the world. Over the centuries men have sought to discover the highest good. This has been the chief quest of ethical philosophy. This was one of the big questions of Greek philosophy. The Epicureans and the stoics sought to answer it; Plato and Aristotle [...]

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A Definition of Christian Anarchism

by Mark Van Steenwyk 12 January 2007

Christian anarchism is based upon the answer of Jesus to the Pharisees, when He said that he without sin should be the first to cast the stone, and upon the Sermon on the Mount, which advises the return of good for evil and the turning of the other cheek. Therefore, when we take any part [...]

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What if the Kingdom of God were REALLY a Kingdom?

by Mark Van Steenwyk 8 January 2007

One of the driving ideas behind Christian Anarchism is that the Kingdom of God is a political reality. Recently, someone challenged me by saying "I don't see the stuff you talk about in the Bible." My banter about "empire" and "Christian anarchy" and my resistance of ideas like "consumerism" and "militarism" seem foreign to an [...]

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