I'm trying to figure out if the Christian theologian H Richard Niebuhr book I'm reading [The Responsible Self] was ahead of his time, or whether the winds of change of the 60's just blew right over him. If only people would just be able to describe themselves and label themselves in categories that we understand.-- like put a sign around .their neck or wear a special color hat if you have some special something that you want to called . .Not just a special interest. .like red or pink or yellow ribbons.
Everyone feels they need to generalize to describe people. The media has their labels-- demographics like Generation X, Y or Boomer. .or whatever. .
Political commentaries try to pigeonhole people in 2 camps and no one really fits in them.
Theology, I suppose, is the same. Economists have their little acronyms, I've heard. and the young swingin' crowd has labels for all sorts of people in the social arena. It's no longer just guys & dolls. .I heard one the other day: cougar-- meaning, apparently, an older single woman dating a younger man. I wonder. .I wish. .
Trouble is, no one wants to be labeled by someone else.
It seems that, the only thing that really identifies us is our actions. And, in a way--that is what Niebuhr is saying. To be responsible is to respond to something that you feel loyal to, or believe in-- in his case monotheism.. .and ethics demands that we stick our necks out and walk the talk-- put our money where our mouth is; let our actions speak louder than our words.
hmmmm. What is your responsibility quotient? LM
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