Christian left: Encyclopedia II - Christian left - History

Christian left - History

Christian left - Early Christianity as anti-establishment movement

• Early Christian anti-materialism
• Opposition to Rome

Christian left - Movements

A number of movements of the past had similarities to today's Christian Left:

• Peace churches
• Heretical movements such as the Cathars
• Waldenses
• Lollard, John Wycliffe
• Role of Christians in the Peasants' Revolt in England, See Lollard priest John Ball.
• Erasmus
• some radical Baptists of the Reformation
• William Tyndale
• Puritanism, Fifth Monarchists, Diggers, Quakers
• Methodists, John Wesley
• German Peasants' War

Christian left - Early antagonism between the Left and Christianity

For much of the early history of anti-establishment leftist movements such as socialism and liberalism (which was highly anti-clerical in the 19th century), established churches were led by a reactionary clergy who saw progress as a threat to their status and power. Most people viewed the church as part of the establishment. Revolutions in America, France and Russia were in part directed against the established churches (or rather their leading clergy) and instituted a separation of church and state.

Early socialist thinkers such as Robert Owen, Charles Fourier, and the Duc de Saint-Simon based their theories of socialism upon Christian principles. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels reacted against these theories by formulating a secular theory of socialism in The Communist Manifesto.

Christian left - Alliance of the Left and Christianity

In the late 19th century and early 20th century, some began to take on the view that Christianity had much in common with a Leftist perspective, pointing out that there is an extremely strong thread of egalitarianism in the New Testament. Other common leftist concerns such as pacifism, justice, racial equality, human rights, and the rejection of excessive wealth are also expressed strongly in the Bible. In the late 19th century, the Social Gospel movement arose (particularly among some Baptists and Methodists in North America and Britain,) which attempted to integrate progressive and socialist thought with Christianity and produce social activism. Later, in the 20th century, Mikhail Gorbachev famously said that "Christ was the first socialist".

Christian left - Christian Left and campaigns for peace and human rights

Some Christian groups were closely associated with the peace movements against the Vietnam War as well as the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. Religious leaders in many countries have also been on the forefront of criticizing any cuts to social welfare programs. In addition, many prominent civil rights activists (such as Martin Luther King, Jr.) were religious figures.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki