Part 274. Call to action.

A challenging statement:

"The great enemy of justice are those moderates who feign outrage at societal injustice, but whose outrage conveniently disappears when real change threatens their status. These moderates are more comfortable leaving unchallenged the assumed moral authority of certain institutions, traditions and practices that are the purveyors of injustice rather than confronting their own role in maintaining these institutions. The hard truth is that the comfort of the status quo is always preferable to pursuing the demands of justice."

Martin Luther King Jnr 

John Kenneth Galbraith argued that the USA had the resources to tackle the causes of poverty but the better-off lacked the will to elect politicians who could effect systemic economic change. Indeed political parties would not contest elections on such a manifesto: a certain vote loser.

For many, self-interest triumphs over altruism. Jesus railed against the systemic injustice presided over by religious and political leaders. He demanded change. A key element of Liberation Theology enunciated by Gustavo Gutierrez and Leonardo Boff is a call to radical action to redistribute wealth. Oscar Romero stated that when he fed the poor he was called a saint: when he called for wealth redistribution he was called a communist. For his stand for the poor he was murdered.

Here in the UK Christians individually and collectively should ask: 

Are we too polite in our campaigning?

Is civil disobedience justified?.