Thursday, October 11, 2007
The Fairness Doctrine
Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not goning to talk about radio.
Paul Spears at Scriptorum Daily hits on a real pet peeve of mine.
Paul concludes his post this way:
In the wake of those changes, as is seen vividly in the mainlines, comes a lack of distinction between right and wrong, good and evil.
Is God fair? Frankly, I have no idea - BUT HE IS JUST. In that I rely and that I will accept. I cannot help but think that with the proper perspective, God's justice would appear fair to me, but that perspective is not at my disposal, for it is His alone.
My goal is not to count coup, but instead to come to understand His justice. God grant me the wisdom and strength to do so.
Paul Spears at Scriptorum Daily hits on a real pet peeve of mine.
As children mature we expect that they will outgrow this incorrect view of the world. We anticipate that they will rise above the pettiness that is part of adolescence. What we discover is that adults still have a view of the world that is largely driven an incorrect view of fairness.Fairness, measured as equality, IS NOT justice. And Paul is absolutely right, the desire for fairness reflects OUR desires. Conversely, desiring justice, as differentiated from fairness, is a desire for something higher.
Today, fairness is not thought of in terms of an overarching concept of justice, but in terms of equality. Mostly, fairness turns out to be understood in light of quantifiable methods—that is to say something is “fair” is to say that both parties have received equal amounts of a physical good. Fairness is no longer seen as a conceptual thing that falls under the purview of a transcendent ethic. Fairness is more often understood as an economic concept that has to do with the equal (measurable) distribution of property (wealth).
What is most insidious about this modern demand for fairness is that often it is just a front for our own envy and jealousy. Envy happens when we are unable to celebrate the successes of others, and often wish they were not successful at all. Jealousy wants what others have.
Paul concludes his post this way:
It is our duty as adults to model contentment and happiness to the next generation. We need to be aware of the insidious nature of our consumer culture that attempts to create a false desire for goods we don’t need. It is the pursuit of this false form of happiness that creates a life that is empty and seemingly unfair. For humanity to be truly happy God must be the object of our pursuit and service. To pursue anything else is to enslave ourselves to a system that only leads to envy, jealousy and discontentment.He is right, but I think the problem he has described goes much deeper. Think about the theological shifts wrought by many modern church trends. We no longer have a God of justice, we have a God of fairness, measured not just in materiality, but in eternity. Hell is disappearing from common view, as are substitutionary views of the atonement. We discuss "judgement" as if it were a bad thing. We substitute doctrine as a measure of fidelity to the Lord, when He looks to behavior.
In the wake of those changes, as is seen vividly in the mainlines, comes a lack of distinction between right and wrong, good and evil.
Is God fair? Frankly, I have no idea - BUT HE IS JUST. In that I rely and that I will accept. I cannot help but think that with the proper perspective, God's justice would appear fair to me, but that perspective is not at my disposal, for it is His alone.
My goal is not to count coup, but instead to come to understand His justice. God grant me the wisdom and strength to do so.
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