Can religion in our 21st century be a servant of justice rather than an enemy? It remains a vital question, one that religious people in America dare not neglect.
November 5, 2014 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
My predecessor president of Union Theological Seminary, in the 1960s, was John C. Bennett, also a professor of Christian Social Ethics. That era of the 'sixties was rife with political talk among Americans hostile to Soviet communism. Bennett believed that, even if one defines communists as enemies of democracy and religion, dialogue between communists and American Christians was necessary for human pursuit of peace and justice globally. Bennett was a leading critic of America's involvement in the Vietnam war. He never flagged in his conviction that we Christians must listen to the criticisms of religion by Marxists. He was sure that Christianity and Marxism had a proper common concern for how capitalism often harms the world's poor. He was sure, with the Hebrew prophets, that religion without justice is bad religion.
Can religion in our 21st century be a servant of justice rather than an enemy? The dialogue of Cornel West and Bob Avakian is sure to focus on this question. It remains a vital question, one that religious people in America dare not neglect.
Donald W. Shriver, Jr.—President Emeritus,
Union Theological
Seminary,
Host Committee for the Cornel West/Bob Avakian Dialogue
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