1 Thessalonians 5:22, in the KJV, counsels believers to avoid ‘every appearance of evil.’ With even the most cursory knowledge of Church history one could be forgiven for thinking that quite a few ‘Christian’ authority figures have applied this with a peculiar literalism: what matters is not being seen to do wrong, but behind closed doors all sorts of wickedness may take place, this verse providing the requisite ‘license to spin.’ So it’s good news that – in case there was any doubt – modern translations make plain that the message is to avoid evil acts, not just the appearance of them. Sadly, modern Church history provides enough examples to suggest that a better translation doesn’t necessarily mean a better disciple. Which is why I don’t mind taking the liberty, in this post, of reflecting on the KJV wording.
Sometimes, being seen to do the right thing can actually lead to right things being done. It’s a matter of the heart, and if the KJV translation were accurate I would read it (as I expect most do) as an exhortation akin to that elsewhere from Paul to be ‘beyond reproach’. Yet I take this, I suspect unfashionably, to denote a commitment to being sensitive to the perception of others. It springs not from a desire to appear morally superior, but from a desire for relationship with others when between you there are barriers. Too little, I suspect, do we modern Christians care enough – with reconciliation and genuine human flourishing in view – about what others think of us. It is easier to settle for the relative safety of relatively homogenous fellowship. The inevitable mental and emotional effort of caring about what others think is, well, not worth the effort. Much pop-counselling would no doubt tell us it is bad for our mental health. The problem is that this ‘effort’, as far as I can tell, is part of what Paul understands to be the ministry of reconciliation. And having that ministry is, uncomfortably, part of his public criteria for true apostleship (see Moberly’s excellent chapter on Paul in his recent Prophecy and Discernment in the Cambridge Studies in Christian Doctrine series).
Filed under: Ecclesiology, R.W.L. Moberly, Reconciliation, Wycliffe Hall
