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Always with Us?: What Jesus Really Said about the Poor by William J. Barber II, Liz Theoharis
efmreads's review against another edition
4.0
Hard to put a "star rating" because this was the most challenging book I've ever read; yet, I feel my faith grew, I'm inspired to do my part in ending poverty, and more prayerful for what's next to come in my participation in the Christian movement to end poverty. Incredibly well done, and if you read this book, it will change your life.
drbobcornwall's review against another edition
4.0
Will the poor always be with us? Is it possible that poverty could be eliminated, or is it a perennial problem, a sort of chronic social illness, that we can manage through charitable action? What would Jesus have us do? After all, according to Matthew 26, the poor will be with us always, but Jesus would not. Should our focus be on worshiping Jesus, or continuing his mission with the poor? This is the question raised by Liz Theoharis in her book Always With Us?
Liz Theoharis is the founder and co-direcotr of the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights, and Social Justice, as well as serving as the coordinator of the Poverty Initiative at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. The book is a contribution to Eerdmans' Prophetic Christianity series, and appears to be a revision of her Ph.D. dissertation in New Testament at Union Seminary. Central to her work is the idea of "Reading the Bible with the Poor." She uses historical critical methods to engage the text of scripture, but does so in conversation with persons who poor, much like Ernesto Cardenal's "Gospel in Solemtine."
Theoharis focuses her attention on one particular story in the Gospel of Matthew, a story she believes has been improperly interpreted so as to excuse the church from engaging in structural change that would eliminate poverty. She sees Jesus as a person who was poor, perhaps illiterate, who emerged from this poverty to become a leader from among the poor. Reading the text with the poor, she invites the reader to rethink the message of Jesus, especially in this story. Instead of seeing Jesus dismiss the concerns of the disciples about aiding the poor, she sees Jesus critiquing their use of band-aid solutions instead of structural change. Jesus is portrayed here as a visionary and a revolutionary leader, who is cut down by the authorities seeking to defend the status quo, but raised up by God in the resurrection, so that he might commission the disciples to follow his lead and continue the work.
As for the woman and her breaking the alabaster jar of ointment, she sees this as an act of consecrating Jesus as the new king from among the poor. She speaks of this occasion as being the turning point in the Gospel of Matthew, even more so than the Last Supper. She writes that "Jesus is anointed as a poor person responsible for bringing God's reign of economic justice on earth" (p. 141). Thus, the message of Matthew 26 is that Jesus is a social movement leader, a messiah for and among the poor. To follow Jesus is to continue that mission. This should serve as a critique of the way the church operates today.
This is an intriguing book, with a powerful message. She challenges readings by many contemporary scholars, inviting them and us to engage in reading the text from a different vantage point, reminding us that too often scholarship is done from a privileged perspective. This is a valuable exercise, even if one doesn't come to the same conclusions at every point.
There are important questions, however, to be raised here. By focusing so closely on one particular text, which is common in academic circles, are we getting a full picture of Jesus. Can we say for certain that he was a social movement leader? Did he see himself as an agent of revolutionary structural change. It's clear that the priests and the Roman authorities feared this, but is this how he viewed himself? There is another issue to be wrestled with, and that has to do with extending the provisions of Jubilee found in Deuteronomy, which Theoharis sees as foundational to this conversation, to the modern era. There are questions as to whether these were ever instituted on a wide-spread basis. But even if they were instituted in an agrarian economy, are they transferable to our current context?
Again, this is an intriguing book that calls on the church to listen to Jesus and his message to the poor (and to those who are not poor). It serves as an unsettling challenge to middle class American Christians, who live or seek to live comfortable lives. I agree that charity is not enough, and that structural changes must happen, so that we can move toward eliminating poverty in our midst. The question is, how do we accomplish this?
Liz Theoharis is the founder and co-direcotr of the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights, and Social Justice, as well as serving as the coordinator of the Poverty Initiative at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. The book is a contribution to Eerdmans' Prophetic Christianity series, and appears to be a revision of her Ph.D. dissertation in New Testament at Union Seminary. Central to her work is the idea of "Reading the Bible with the Poor." She uses historical critical methods to engage the text of scripture, but does so in conversation with persons who poor, much like Ernesto Cardenal's "Gospel in Solemtine."
Theoharis focuses her attention on one particular story in the Gospel of Matthew, a story she believes has been improperly interpreted so as to excuse the church from engaging in structural change that would eliminate poverty. She sees Jesus as a person who was poor, perhaps illiterate, who emerged from this poverty to become a leader from among the poor. Reading the text with the poor, she invites the reader to rethink the message of Jesus, especially in this story. Instead of seeing Jesus dismiss the concerns of the disciples about aiding the poor, she sees Jesus critiquing their use of band-aid solutions instead of structural change. Jesus is portrayed here as a visionary and a revolutionary leader, who is cut down by the authorities seeking to defend the status quo, but raised up by God in the resurrection, so that he might commission the disciples to follow his lead and continue the work.
As for the woman and her breaking the alabaster jar of ointment, she sees this as an act of consecrating Jesus as the new king from among the poor. She speaks of this occasion as being the turning point in the Gospel of Matthew, even more so than the Last Supper. She writes that "Jesus is anointed as a poor person responsible for bringing God's reign of economic justice on earth" (p. 141). Thus, the message of Matthew 26 is that Jesus is a social movement leader, a messiah for and among the poor. To follow Jesus is to continue that mission. This should serve as a critique of the way the church operates today.
This is an intriguing book, with a powerful message. She challenges readings by many contemporary scholars, inviting them and us to engage in reading the text from a different vantage point, reminding us that too often scholarship is done from a privileged perspective. This is a valuable exercise, even if one doesn't come to the same conclusions at every point.
There are important questions, however, to be raised here. By focusing so closely on one particular text, which is common in academic circles, are we getting a full picture of Jesus. Can we say for certain that he was a social movement leader? Did he see himself as an agent of revolutionary structural change. It's clear that the priests and the Roman authorities feared this, but is this how he viewed himself? There is another issue to be wrestled with, and that has to do with extending the provisions of Jubilee found in Deuteronomy, which Theoharis sees as foundational to this conversation, to the modern era. There are questions as to whether these were ever instituted on a wide-spread basis. But even if they were instituted in an agrarian economy, are they transferable to our current context?
Again, this is an intriguing book that calls on the church to listen to Jesus and his message to the poor (and to those who are not poor). It serves as an unsettling challenge to middle class American Christians, who live or seek to live comfortable lives. I agree that charity is not enough, and that structural changes must happen, so that we can move toward eliminating poverty in our midst. The question is, how do we accomplish this?
swidbin's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
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