jacques ellul law and history professor theologian

7/28/2019 Jacques Ellul Law and History Professor Theologian

1/5

obedience, Christians are just going to be homogen-ized and blended into t he culture and become just partof the act. John Wesley once wrote that making anopen stand against all W1godliness and unrighteous-ness is one of the noblest ways of confessing Christ.Be radical. Dare to be different. Dare to beChristian. Go to the world. Accept Jesus Christ, andlive for him in this affluent culture. I dare you to do it.There isn't anything else; believe me. I've tried it all.There is nothing else. And be determined in your ownminds that whatever you're going to do, you are goingto pursue it to the glory of God and make it differentfor him in an age that glories in what the Scripturescall sin. So gird your minds for action. Keep sober inspirit. Fix your hopes completely on the grace to bebrought to you at "he revelation of J ~ s u s Christ. Asobedient children do not be conformed to the formerlust which was yours i.n ignorance, but be like theHoly One who calls you. Be holy yourselves in allyourbehavior. It is written, "You shall be holy because I amholy." Let it be your choice to live that radical messagein the world today.

From a commencement address at Taylor Universiry, May 18. 1985,

~ 3 6 -

Law and History Professor, Theologia

During World Wat I I he was an active 'membe1' oFrench Unde1'lJ7'ound Resistance and later serveddistinction as Mayor ofBordeaux. In 1946 he joinedfaculty of the University ofBordeaux. He has been hihonored by the F1'ench government and the FrAcademy. He is a prolific scholarly and Christian W1and he is conside1'cd a ftre11'/.()st Christian thinker, Hemember of the Ref017ned Church.

I have few illusions on the subject on whicgoing to write. Experience has taught mthe wisdom ofthe "ancients" is no longer hby the young. Yet it may be that the new genewill be different from tbe one that precedPerhaps, like past generations, young people wilagain be ready to hear the word ofexperience acounsel of the past! IF my opini.on, there arepropositions, suggestions, observations to be cered, but I do not presume to exhaust all that couseful to a young person today.My first fundamental observation, decisive fthe others, is that of cultivating a critical spirit. Dbe negative, but always be alert, have yourconstantly open, and know tl1at no propositio

-37


2/5

Therefore, we must begin by saying, "No," not as arefusal to hear or examine things, but as a refusal toadhere to beliefs without having first understood,examined, evaluated, and judged them on the basis ofknowledge and experience. A critical spirit alwaysrejects what is fashionable. Listening to a certain typeof music or wearing certain dothes , because everyonedoes it, represents weakness and resignation. Onemust begin by analyzing and knowing where something will lead, and what it involves. One must be anonconformist in large and small things (but let uskeep in mind that in our relationships with societythere are no small things--it is as much a mistake todrink a soda without thinking about what we aredoing as it is vote republican or democrat). I mustbe nonconformist not to shock my friends, not to actsuperior to them, but because it is the only way tobecome myself. It is therefore necessary to keep a coolhe


3/5

effort at getting the information by placing thequestion in its economic, historical, and othercontexts. This will show us that large globalundertakings are deceiving and illusory. I fyou wish toact on poverty, begin by helping the poor that youmeet. As for the poor of the Third World, begin byinforming yourself about their needs, about thepossibility of getting them suitable help, bu t you mustconsider the negative effects of many humanitarianactions. Ali this is not to get you discouraged, but toavoid living with illusions and falling in the traps opento you. The same holds true for ecological actions.Focus on your action, y o u ~ country, your city, yourlandscape, not on great projects, which are quicklypoliticized. But conversely, try to know peifectly wellthe true causes of pollution, the true dangers to beavoided, without contenting yourselfwith slogans. Aglobal perspective is one that refuses ahead ::>f time toadhere to programs, and that puts into relationshiptlle spiritual and the economic, the social or thepolitical. For, humanity;s a wholc) which must not bedivided and which assumes that all aspects thatconcern humanity must be considered. Finally, thegreat political transformations always began withgeneral, global thinking, which at the inception wasexpressed in individual actions. The great defect ofcurrent political or social movements is that they arelaunched with tremendous resources and large human

-40

first aspect is that we must not believe in poaction and in the possibility of truly chasomething by way ofpolitics! In our world, theis a false pretense. Politicians in general obe"force of circumstances." Global technologicaeconomic systems are so powerful that nothingchanged through political means. The politicevery country is an actor who occupies the foregof the stage and attracts the attention of the cwhile serious things occur behind his back withocitizens' being able to really see what is going omore important to tty to change a certainrelationship, or even more important, the p i r i t uof humanity. Politics has no effectiveness whatsand its rule is over. It can, of course, modifinterest rate or a police order, but it can neithethe course of armaments, nor modify the stateThird World, nor really help those who areConcrete problems have to be approached frmore profound level than politics, that is, the spibeing of humanity. Yet there is a contradbetween the two orientations, for there i"Christian politics" conceivable or achievable.The other side of this reflection or mediconcerns the poor. The young-young Chriespecially-feel inclined to help the poor, to taside of the poor. But here again serious reflection

-41


4/5

not e poor n contemporary soc ety are un ou -tedly still the ones who are hungry, stripped, anddispossessed of their goods, bu t very often when weare told of the poor located thousands of miles fromus, it is a trap and a false pretense. For there are otherpoor who eat to their satisfaction and lack for nothingbut are in fact poor. They are poor because they arethreatened by powerful neighbors or isolated in theworld. This is very important and counts a great dealtoday in the political judgments that we make. Wetake sides with those who are obviously poor. Butsuch a question has to be envisioned globally. Whenwe take sides we have to know exactly why and wi thjustifiable reasons. We must not be swept away by ou rpassions!Finally, the last counsel that I would give is to keepcontact with the past! Our society pretends that it isoriented toward the future. Only scientific andtechnical training really counts because that is whatprepares us to enter a society of the future. But Ibelieve tllat this is a grave error. A civilization, aculture exists only as a product of history; it is a slowcreation, produced by many generations. A culture isno t invented like a new motor! But withoutcivilization, we will return to a primitive state even ifwe are brilliant engineers. In order to belong to acivilization, it is necessary to know the foundation ofthat civilization, its morality, its myths, and its history,

-42

ere s no tec n ca cu ture ecause cu ture canfabricated voluntarily or willfully in a few years.complex whole that a people build upon thsuccessive generations. An d I believe that techwitll its constant change, its incessant "progreno t able to be assimilated by a culture, and is incof producing one. If we want to be civilized abarbarous, we must enter into the history onation, into its practices developed over the cotime, into a certain morality, a certain type of hrelations. Of course, this reference to the pasgrounding or rooting into the past does not irejection of the future and the changing of sQuite tlle contracy! But it ;mplies that one (l.oaccept just any type offuture, that one Judges prand tries to build civilization on the efforts ogenerations by studying their motivations. Thno more absurd formula than tabula rasa: "start with a clean slate," for this is impossible.when we flatly reject the past, we always end upreclaimed by it. We cannot get rid of our hispast any more than an individual can getchromosomes. The new cannot emerge and sunless it is grounded in the past. Two possibilitthen open to us. We can refuse to take the paconsideration, hence a crisis will appear in theof which all new developments will be destroyethe past will reappear more "savage" than b

-43


5/5

civilization, and the innovations that we undertakewill have all the necessary chances for success. Toknow history well is the best means of preparinginnovations for integration into d1e culture.

Tr:mslated by Maria Mocuca, Foreign Language Department, Wheaton CoUegc,Wheaton, IUinois 60187.

-44

Colleen Townsend EvansChllichwoman, Writer

She is the author of eight best-selling books on Chriliving. Her life and ministry with her husband,Reverend Louis Evans} Jr. of the National PresbytChurch in Washington is cha;'acterized by untiring sto the poor. She serves on boards of internatorganizations for world needs. In 1986 she was nReligious Heritage ofAmerica Churchwoman of the

M y soul does not find itself u n l e s ~ iTherefore it must act." As anhopeless activist I naturally resonate :"::words of Thomas Merton.The issues that most concern me-huEger,problems, the suffering people of our world--mine the focus of my activities. However, inyears I have been made freshly aware that mneeds more than activity, and must not projecentirely in the outward direction. The sothrows itself outdoors in order to find itselfeffects of its own work is like a fire that has no deburn but seeks only to go up in smoke" (f!o MaIsland) Thomas Merton). The doing is necessarsee it, but the being is absolutely crucial, and

- - -45

jacques ellul law and history professor theologian

Documents