Your framing is so succinct. As someone who grew up attending a Southern Baptist church in a town where the Church of Christ was particularly dominant (a major CoC university is there), I’m just now, at almost 60 years old, starting to understand how much the idea that, as you put it, God inflicts terror that Jesus saves us from has impacted my entire life. And also how much truer it is that God sent Jesus to show us how to love and protect us from our own terror!
I also wonder how much the former idea impacts the politics of the United States, particularly in the south.
*sighs* It's the whole game. Politics isn't always theology, but theology is ALWAYS politics. It's easier to hate yourself when you imagine God (apart from Jesus' blood) hates you. Of the many people I know who claim Christ while also going all in with MAGA, I suspect they all imagine God killed Jesus to not kill (and eternally torment) them.
I'm a 56-year-old lifer who grew up at Central Church of Christ, worked at Senator Marsha Blackburn's church organization for ten years, went to Vanderbilt (eventually), and discussed these matters with college students for fifteen years. I don't know when that formulation came to me, but...it could perhaps be said it took me half a century. Auden said mad Ireland hurt Yeats into poetry. I prefer poetry, but I am prepared to say crazy Tennessee hurt me into theology. Here we are now. You're welcome.
Your framing is so succinct. As someone who grew up attending a Southern Baptist church in a town where the Church of Christ was particularly dominant (a major CoC university is there), I’m just now, at almost 60 years old, starting to understand how much the idea that, as you put it, God inflicts terror that Jesus saves us from has impacted my entire life. And also how much truer it is that God sent Jesus to show us how to love and protect us from our own terror!
I also wonder how much the former idea impacts the politics of the United States, particularly in the south.
*sighs* It's the whole game. Politics isn't always theology, but theology is ALWAYS politics. It's easier to hate yourself when you imagine God (apart from Jesus' blood) hates you. Of the many people I know who claim Christ while also going all in with MAGA, I suspect they all imagine God killed Jesus to not kill (and eternally torment) them.
Abilene? Searcy? I think that idea was more implicit than explicit. Which can be worse.
Abilene.
For God so loved the world ... God knows us. He knows we are in great need of help. Hence, Jesus
Wow! Thank you David. Our thoughts are the same, but somehow I can't get the words out quite as simply, profound and succinctly as you can.
I'm a 56-year-old lifer who grew up at Central Church of Christ, worked at Senator Marsha Blackburn's church organization for ten years, went to Vanderbilt (eventually), and discussed these matters with college students for fifteen years. I don't know when that formulation came to me, but...it could perhaps be said it took me half a century. Auden said mad Ireland hurt Yeats into poetry. I prefer poetry, but I am prepared to say crazy Tennessee hurt me into theology. Here we are now. You're welcome.