Here's one more thought about the inauguration on Tuesday. Obama's speech was remarkable in many respects and I won't repeat here what others have already pointed out as an important new paradigm for policy, including the parallels and implications for our own way of thinking and interacting within the context of the church.
There was only one section of the speech that I was not happy with - exactly because it was the only one that seemed to carry on the old paradigms and errors rather than boldly charting a new course in those areas as well. Here's the sentence I'm referring to:
"We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
Maybe I'm too picky here but it seems to me that there's plenty in the American way of life that urgently needs to change - not only for the sake of economic recovery but in terms of the renewal of mindsets as well. Whether it is all-out-consumerism or the idea that superior military power combined with unwaivering resolve eventually will crush all evil (regarding the latter, Greg Boyd made some excellent points!), a call to radical change in these areas is needed whether it is popular and politically prudent to do so or not. I understand that the American psyche is still scarred from the 9-11 events and that a new president wants to give reassurance but at the same time it doesn't help to give people just something they want to hear rather than a deeper diagnosis of what's been wrong with our way of life to begin with. If you don't understand the problem, don't expect to see a solution that is effective or lasting!
