Yes, But It’s Not Big Government…
Jordan Peterson says church is distinct from big government because the church:
- can’t tax
- doesn’t have a military
- can’t conscript you
- can’t throw you in jail
BUT it used to be able to do ALL of those things.
And don’t think for one minute that organized religion wouldn’t love to once again get in bed with government so that it can have the power to enforce its own orthodoxy!
~Andy
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Yep. No question.
I might submit that government IS actually a church of sorts in that it functions according to similar metaphysical premises. (Well, I mean the “churches” with which we are familiar.) But that’s another issue.
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Government and church (ie. “religion”) ARE the same thing.
Politics is a philosophical discipline. It has to do with how much force is needed to compel the masses to take action for good (however that’s defined). Politics are derived from ethical assumptions or values. In other words, what your values are will lead you to conclude how much or what kind (if any) of force is acceptable.
People don’t realize that “religion” is actually a kind of political force. Religion prescribes a set of rules that it’s adherents must follow in order to be moral/be saved/be righteous/et al. People disagree on religion for the same reason that people disagree on politics; because they hold different values which informs them on political force.
I would make a distinction with regard to specific kinds of government; specifically that which is tyrannical. To your point, TYRANNY operates under the same metaphysical premise as religion in that it views man as fundamentally flawed and therefore MUST be ruled and compelled to whatever action IT deems to be “good” and, as already mentioned, using whatever degree of force it deems necessary.
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The point made here about the church enforcing its rules on all citizens when it gets political power is interesting.
I had a brief faith crisis over this a while back – something I thought would never happen. I was reading part of a book online (linked on here? – I can’t remember) how Scottish Calvinists created a big government tyranny in the 1600’s that was uncannily similar to say East German communism in its control freakery. That and the behaviour of one John Calvin during his Genevan pontificate, the hounding of opponents of Calvinism in Holland, the murder of anabaptists in Switzerland made me wonder is this whole Christianity thing actually true? These were men in whom the word of Christs dwellt richly and were filled with the Spirit of God?
This mentality seems to continue amongst Calvinists of our own day, but fortunately they don’t have the power to create a theocracy. I have little doubt that if they could some of them would start imposing the penalties of the Mosaic Law, even though we are not under that law.
Perhaps I have been too protected from the darker aspects of church history, protestant history in particular – I’m not surprised at the RCC being tyrannical. Saying they were children of their age has some, but limited traction.
In the end I think if the word of Christ really does dwell in you richly, and you have been filled with the Spirit of God (the 50th anniversary of this comes up for me on 6th May!) then you will not do the things that some of our spiritual ancestors did. The true church of those who have put their faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sins has always existed if only amongst ordinary people, whilst the hierarchies of institutional Christianity-as-religion have played power politics. If you look at the modern C of E in the UK the hierarchy has ditched the bible for woke compromise and blessing sin, which does not reflect the believing remnant in the pews that is still found within it.
Ken B
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