:: in.a.mirror.dimly :: A theology and culture blog with the Bible in one tab and a news feed in the other.

If I had to list some of the shortcomings of American Evangelicals, I’d name the following broad characterizations: we’re affluent and not sure how to serve the poor, we tend to separate practical Christian living from faith, we pay special attention to the wrong people, we don’t always watch what we say carefully, we’re divided and continue to divide, and we’re impatient.

You could apply many of these to Christians in general I suppose, but I’m just thinking of my own vices here and those I have observed over time and read about in the news. Of course Evangelicals do lots of really great things well, but if we have to face our darker side, then I think my list hits on some of the general contours. That doesn’t mean every Evangelical has these problems, but I think they’re kind of broad issues that touch many of us. I know I struggle with them.

So if these are our problems, how do we deal with them?

I think one solution may be the epistle Martin Luther once called “an epistle of straw.” That’s right, the book of James.

James is writing to Jewish Christians, but he’s confronting them on their spiritual maturity, the stinginess toward the poor, and the disputes they have allowed to fester. James provides a great counter-narrative to American culture when he says,

“The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business.” (James 1:9-11)

Is it just me, or is that verse a tough one to swallow?

The rest of the epistle continues to challenge the problems plaguing Evangelical Christians in America: our struggles with faith and works, our divisions, and the way we treat the poor and wealthy. It’s as if God wanted to put all of the really practical stuff for us in one place.

So I had this thought that we should have James month. A month where Evangelicals read James every day for 30 days. We could call it 30 Days of James, or something like that. Perhaps have it in January, June, of July just to keep the “J” thing going. How about “J-Days”?

I’m not really serious about all that, but I do think James deals with many of our problems. I’m not saying that simply reading this epistle is the magic wand to make our problems go away, only that it’s a good step forward. As we read James we can embrace God’s counter-narrative for our American culture and let him work on us to bring his changes.