A slightly tangential thread came up from a post Eugene Cho wrote recently about the Spanish basketball team and their slanty-eyed “affectionate” tribute (thank you, Pat Forde at ESPN for calling them out as buffoons not only for doing this in the first place but also for their response in your post-Olympics wrap-up; see #26) about the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation.
Certainly, the two concepts are deeply intertwined. However, in our me-first, religious consumer mentality, it is easy to reduce Christ’s work on the cross and His resurrection to being all about me and my need for forgiveness. I need to get to heaven and, conveniently, Jesus just so happens to provide a way for that to happen. In this worldview, Jesus is little more than a get out of hell free card and we are free to be the same old antagonistic, bullying, obstinate jerks we were in the first place, only now we’re holding on to that golden one-way ticket to heaven.
It is crucial to ask the question, Why did Jesus forgive us? What was His greater purpose? Simply to get us into heaven? Or is there something more, much more, at stake here?
I have appreciated Scot McKnight’s thoughts on atonement (see Your Atonement Is Too Small over at Christianity Today for more). Forgiveness leads to reconciliation. The scriptural principle is clear: reconciliation with God is the starting point for a new way of living — which is why Jesus says things like, “Follow me” over and over instead of things like, “Die as fast as you can so you can go to heaven.” We are called to be part of the ministry of reconciliation — calling others to be reconciled with God, with others and with the world. Jesus — through the fullness of His life, death and resurrection — was reconciling to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
This biblical understanding of reconciliation, though, is extraordinarily inconvenient. It’s much easier to pitch the customer service Jesus who exists to fulfill your felt needs.
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One commenter from Eugene’s blog was trying to promote this particularly disturbing idea about forgiveness:
In fact, according to scripture, we have no right to be offended at anything or claim rights to anything.
Unfortunately, this extremely harmful notion of forgiveness — basically a “blame the victim” approach — is all too common in many church circles. Did your husband hit you? Well, it must have been your fault for something you said. And, anyways, it’s your fault for being offended in the first place.
If the Bible taught this kind of thinking, then forgiveness is basically worthless — after all, if there’s no genuine offense, then what needs to be forgiven? Further, what would be the point of pursuing righteousness (or, as Scot McKnight writes in The Jesus Creed, justice) if nothing actually counts as an offense? However, the very fact that we need to forgive and be forgiven points to the inherent fact that genuine offense does indeed occur. And, in Jesus’ opening declaration of His public ministry, He proclaims that things have gone wrong and that He is the fulfillment of God’s favor and justice in the world.
This is not about promoting unforgiveness — rather, I am suggesting that we cannot have genuine forgiveness or reconciliation without deeply comprehending how we have been wronged and how we wrong others. Otherwise, it’s just lip service, banter to toss around church circles.
headsparks* 
It’s the context of that argument that really gets to me: “Suck it up soldier, you have no right to be offended, all of you minorities”. What amazes me is the absolute unyielding inflexibility of this guy to listen to common sense. From his profile pic he looked like a pretty decent guy… who woulda thought he was such a flamer?
I took a slight (carnal) satisfaction in seeing so many others pick up the initial beef I had with what this guy was saying, so it wasn’t just me trying to convince him that he was wrong but a whole host of voices. Yet he was still stubborn and unyielding. What a guy.
Wayne — I totally hear you, man. The sinking feeling I had reading this guy’s commentary is that he reflects what a lot of Christians out there are like (stubborn, arrogant, condescending, dogmatic, etc.). And yes, I felt a measure of justice in realizing that many others agreed with our perspective as well — not just because it validated my opinion, but because it confirmed that what I was saying wasn’t crazy.
“Unfortunately, this extremely harmful notion of forgiveness — basically a “blame the victim” approach — is all too common in many church circles. Did your husband hit you? Well, it must have been your fault for something you said. And, anyways, it’s your fault for being offended in the first place.
If the Bible taught this kind of thinking, then forgiveness is basically worthless — after all, if there’s no genuine offense, then what needs to be forgiven?”
Amen.
I don’t know what is more depressing – the fact that the incident with the Spanish teams happening in the first place, or the fact that despite people’s honest sharing and dialogue, a Christian brother was still 100% unsympathetic and condescending to the fact that his Asian brothers/sisters had the nerve to be “offended”.
Gar — Thanks for stopping by and commenting. While I don’t really expect much from the Spanish basketball team (although, in the age of carefully managed media images, you’d think they’d try a little harder with their PR) I think it is entirely reasonable to expect followers of Christ to live by a different standard. And so it is utterly depressing to see those who claim allegiance to Christ demonstrate such complete unwillingness to listen or empathize.