Theological Question - Divine Wrath

Great Debates
1

Inspired in part by this thread.

Every so often, a radical fundamentalist Christian* will point to a disaster as being the wrath of God brought down on sinners, or will call down fire and brimstone on those who disagree with them, or will casually use terms like “an eye for an eye”.

Now, I’m no theologian**, but I thought that the Christian Bible had a “before” (Old Testament) and an “after” (New Testament), with the life of Christ defining the transition. I thought that Christian philosophy was that Christ’s death changed the way we should live our lives, that he died for our sins, and that revenge and wrath were no longer the appropriate responses. There seems to be a very different OT God and NT God.

And yet these very people calling for death and destruction are the first to define themselves as Christians.

The paradoxical thing that I have found is that my Jewish acquaintances, without the NT in their libraries, behave in very much of what I consider to be a NT philosophy (charitable giving, "Golden Rule, in general “live and let live”). Except when you talk about Palestine, of course :rolleyes: (And yes, I know that Christian principles sprang in large part from Judaic principles.) On the other hand, the born-again Christians of my acquaintance can be almost rabid in their beliefs, and truly believe that those who don’t follow Christ will burn for eternity in hell.

So, I guess I’m just wondering whether anyone else feels the same way and whether these vocal and venomous vipers are even Christian in the true sense of the word?

*I was raised in a Christian household, but if we can call an angry person of Islamic faith a radical fundamentalist, then I suppose that could apply to an angry religious person of any faith, couldn’t it?

**Other than some Sunday school, most of my knowlege of Christianity comes from reading C.S. Lewis, and G.K. Chesterton, whom I admire very much.

2

IANAC, but I think it goes something like this:

Not all Christians believe that the Old Testament version of God was wholly supplanted by the New Testament version. It’s a belief that is largely accepted by society at large, but it isn’t integral to the most basic doctrine of Christianity–namely, that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died on the cross for our sins, and that accepting him as one’s savior is a method by which one can gain salvation.

The idea that God could still be doling out his wrath is, in some ways, the more interally consistent belief. I don’t think that there’s anything specifically in the NT where God says, “I will never ream your asses out in any way ever again.” There is, however, an abundance of wrath in the OT. Plus, you also have the book of Apocalypse (Revelations) that (to some people) details what’s going to occur at the end of the world. And it’s pretty wrathified.

I honestly think that the idea of God’s wrath being present only during the time of the OT is a way of reconciling modern tolerance and beliefs–as well as the general lack of literal flaming swords, worldwide floods, and pillars of salt in our time–with a Judeo-Christian model of diety. As you mention, a large portion of modern Judaic thought also subscribes to this principle. Not everyone, however, embraces modern mores and beliefs–whether it’s religious pluralism, sexual openess, or what have you. These individuals are probably more likely to believe in God’s wrath as an acting force in the universe–it fits their worldview. Again, though, it’s not exactly most Christians who’re shouting about this. Most churches I’ve seen this past week seem to be more concerned with helping people down there than with pointing fingers.