Freedom but not Justice

Both the abolitionist movement and the civil rights movement achieved a paradigm shift (revolutionary change, transformation) in terms of freedom, but neither movement achieved a paradigm shift in terms of justice (economic justice, jubilee justice, kingdom of God justice for the oppressed poor).  Freedom without justice is a hollow victory and often soon lost.  Slavery was quickly replaced by neoslavery (Jim Crow laws, segregation, sharecropping and incarceration).  After the victories of the 1960s, legal segregation was replaced by mass incarceration and massive economic inequality (1980-2014).

Both social movements could have used the wisdom of Kenneth Young (The Problem With Racial Reconciliation) and Bill Moyer (Doing Democracy).  Both movements needed to be grounded in a comprehensive NT theology of society based on its teaching on the social evils of ethnocentrism and oppression/injustice, and kingdom of God justice with social reconciliation.  Unfortunately, such a theology didn't exist and still doesn't exist.  Into the social/spiritual vacuum rushed unchecked social evil.

I recently learned that the famous Republican who uttered, "Extremism in the pursuit of liberty is no vice," also said "Moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."  Most white American evangelicals are weak, not even moderate, in their understanding and doing of kingdom of God justice, even in the year 2014.  What happens when white American evangelicals are not guided by a NT theology of society?

Evangelical abolitionists who zealously supported the freedom of slaves did not with equal zeal pursue jubilee justice for freed slaves.  During the civil rights movement, white evangelicals for the most part, either sat on the sidelines or actively opposed freedom and justice for blacks.  In the 1980s most evangelicals supported President Reagan who initiated the War on Drugs/mass incarceration and massive economic inequality.  Even in 2014, few evangelicals are vigorously opposing mass incarceration and massive economic inequality/oppression.

According to Isaiah 58, God despises a pious spirituality that is divorced from the doing of justice.  Hint: so does the Sermon on the Mount.  Amos 5:24 (The Message) reads: "I want justice---oceans of it."  Amos 5:24 (Noble paraphrase): "I want artesian wells of justice, constantly flowing streams of justice, in society."  Mt. 6:33 (Noble paraphrase): "I want kingdom of God justice, a jubilee justice for the oppressed poor." 

Don't try to worship both God and Money at the same time; instead worship God on Sunday and Money during the week, as most Pharisees and American evangelicals do.

To summarize, I call upon the American evangelical church to fully engage in several social movements at the same time.  Initiate and support social movements to eliminate 1) the unjust mass incarceration of young black and Latino males, 2) the unjust, massive economic inequality, the systems of political and economic/financial oppression that widen the gap between the rich and poor, 3) expose and eliminate the false concept of race, the systems of racism, racist oppression, and the racialized worldview; biblically these concepts of social evil would be called ethnocentrism and oppression, 4) pursue, do, biblical justice and reconciliation, and 5) which is tied to 4, urgently create a NT theology of society.  I state that we need social movements to accomplish the above because the status quo evangelical church and its colleges, universities and seminaries are, in my opinion, only marginally involved.  But there may be efforts that I am unaware of; please inform me of any aggressive evangelical actions that are addressing the above issues, efforts that go beyond tokenism.