Tread lightly on the things of earth

Kevin counters Nicholas Kristof’s implied “liberals are not religious” thinking in NYT op-ed piece God, Satan and the Media, pointing out that “Many liberals, myself included, are liberals because of their religious beliefs.”

Amen, brother. I used to be quite conservative, identifying myself politically as Republican. But then, years ago, I started a lifetime project to plumb the depths of scripture, Christian literature, and Church tradition (to the extent anyone can plumb 2000 years’ worth in a lifetime).

Study/prayer/worship is like gathering oil for your lamp in preparation for the wedding banquet; it’s rewarding and wise to start now, not waiting ‘til later. In gathering oil for my lamp I’ve learned — to my surprise — that following Jesus with integrity requires traveling a more liberal road through life.

I expect to learn at the next turn, however, that following Jesus with integrity requires transcending conservative/liberal labels altogether.