Reprinted from the June-July 2013 Post Script of Church & Life.
America! God prosper thee!
May here the race be won
For culture, peace and liberty,
For justice and equality;
Enough for all, too much for none,
Good will to everyone"
The last verse of Adam Dan’s poem quoted by Ralph Andersen from his dissertation in this issue is a timely postulate for our July 4th celebration of the 237th birthday of the United States of America. “America! God prosper thee! May here the race be won for culture, peace and liberty, for justice and equality, enough for all, too much for none—Good will to everyone”
America! God prosper thee!
May here the race be won
For culture, peace and liberty,
For justice and equality;
Enough for all, too much for none,
Good will to everyone"
The last verse of Adam Dan’s poem quoted by Ralph Andersen from his dissertation in this issue is a timely postulate for our July 4th celebration of the 237th birthday of the United States of America. “America! God prosper thee! May here the race be won for culture, peace and liberty, for justice and equality, enough for all, too much for none—Good will to everyone”
Adam Dan quoted what may be the most controversial aspect of N.F.S. Grundtvig’s philosophy. It comes from his comment about an ideal society where “Few have too much and fewer too little.” It is the basis of what can be called socialism, although it is the precise opposite of “iron curtain socialism” where most of the people in Poland and Russia had way too little and a very few had much too much!
Today Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries are criticized for their “socialism” even though as a group they rank the highest in the world for health care, education (literacy), democratic involvement in elections and even the happiness index. When Oprah Winfrey did a TV show on Denmark, she asked one of the contented women she interviewed, “Isn’t this socialism?” to which the young Danish woman replied, “We like to call it civilized.”
While there are problems in Denmark and other Scandinavian countries which need considerable adjustment they don’t seem as staggering as those we are confronting in healthcare, education and in our economy. In our individualistic-bound United States, I don’t think we could adopt their style of government. What is crucial is the statement preceding “enough for all” in Adam Dan’s poem. “May the race be won for culture peace and liberty, for justice and equality. “
Without justice and equality, the divide between the have’s and have-nots becomes an increasingly cavernous separation. Too much power resides with too few until the scales suddenly become disastrously tipped. When a few have way too much and masses of people have way too little—all are bound for trouble. It has happened repeatedly in history—revolution after revolution, long before 1776.
John Dominic Crossan makes a strong case for justice in his book, God & Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now. Justice is what the Hebrew Bible is all about. Justice is what the life of Jesus was all about—and it is what Christianity is all about. Social justice and individual salvation are totally intertwined, interdependent.
This is not a plea for social “give away programs.” It is a plea for a level playing field, for fairness in the structure of society. Government is not the tool of the few who have too much to use at the expense of those who have very little. Nor are social programs the tool of those who have too little to take unnecessary advantage of the system for their own benefit.
We all need to understand that we are all in this together. It isn’t a matter of your having less so I can have more. A good education for your children and grandchildren benefits me! It benefits all of us. A healthy society is an advantage to me. Do not ask for whom the bell tolls! It tolls for thee! We are one organism.
These days I am aware of how easy it is to have too much—my husband and I just moved from a roomy eight room house with attic, basement and garage to a significantly less roomy cabin, with a garage not yet built. We are still digging out. To move us took a village and our wonderful children who came literally thousands of miles. We had way too much “stuff.” Without my daughter, my two sons, my stepson, a legion of neighbors and friends who helped, and the Trout Creek Fire Department who moved us (for a charitable donation), we would never have made it! If any of you have seen “the Jerk” you know the scene where Steve Martin plays the rich guy who goes from poor-to rich-to poor again—and as he leaves his mansion, he says something like “I don’t want anything. Things aren’t important. I’m taking nothing with me. Nothing!... Except maybe that lamp. But just that lamp. Nothing else. I don’t want anything else. Except maybe…maybe my golf clubs. Yes, I’ll take my golf clubs… ” and on he goes until he is staggering with the weight of it all. Accumulation of stuff, fondness of stuff is a human foible and it has its place in our enjoyment. Poverty is not a great thing. I have a renewed regard for adopting a simpler way of life. Wish me success!
When I see how smothering it can be to have too many things, how managing it all chokes off creativity and takes up valuable time that could be better used for enjoying each other and admiring sunsets, I truly have sympathy for those who over-accumulate, whether rich or poor. As Grundtvig said, “Give me a simple life, a merry heart, and kings may keep their pomp and garments splendid.”
Happy Fourth of July!
Joy Ibsen
Today Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries are criticized for their “socialism” even though as a group they rank the highest in the world for health care, education (literacy), democratic involvement in elections and even the happiness index. When Oprah Winfrey did a TV show on Denmark, she asked one of the contented women she interviewed, “Isn’t this socialism?” to which the young Danish woman replied, “We like to call it civilized.”
While there are problems in Denmark and other Scandinavian countries which need considerable adjustment they don’t seem as staggering as those we are confronting in healthcare, education and in our economy. In our individualistic-bound United States, I don’t think we could adopt their style of government. What is crucial is the statement preceding “enough for all” in Adam Dan’s poem. “May the race be won for culture peace and liberty, for justice and equality. “
Without justice and equality, the divide between the have’s and have-nots becomes an increasingly cavernous separation. Too much power resides with too few until the scales suddenly become disastrously tipped. When a few have way too much and masses of people have way too little—all are bound for trouble. It has happened repeatedly in history—revolution after revolution, long before 1776.
John Dominic Crossan makes a strong case for justice in his book, God & Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now. Justice is what the Hebrew Bible is all about. Justice is what the life of Jesus was all about—and it is what Christianity is all about. Social justice and individual salvation are totally intertwined, interdependent.
This is not a plea for social “give away programs.” It is a plea for a level playing field, for fairness in the structure of society. Government is not the tool of the few who have too much to use at the expense of those who have very little. Nor are social programs the tool of those who have too little to take unnecessary advantage of the system for their own benefit.
We all need to understand that we are all in this together. It isn’t a matter of your having less so I can have more. A good education for your children and grandchildren benefits me! It benefits all of us. A healthy society is an advantage to me. Do not ask for whom the bell tolls! It tolls for thee! We are one organism.
These days I am aware of how easy it is to have too much—my husband and I just moved from a roomy eight room house with attic, basement and garage to a significantly less roomy cabin, with a garage not yet built. We are still digging out. To move us took a village and our wonderful children who came literally thousands of miles. We had way too much “stuff.” Without my daughter, my two sons, my stepson, a legion of neighbors and friends who helped, and the Trout Creek Fire Department who moved us (for a charitable donation), we would never have made it! If any of you have seen “the Jerk” you know the scene where Steve Martin plays the rich guy who goes from poor-to rich-to poor again—and as he leaves his mansion, he says something like “I don’t want anything. Things aren’t important. I’m taking nothing with me. Nothing!... Except maybe that lamp. But just that lamp. Nothing else. I don’t want anything else. Except maybe…maybe my golf clubs. Yes, I’ll take my golf clubs… ” and on he goes until he is staggering with the weight of it all. Accumulation of stuff, fondness of stuff is a human foible and it has its place in our enjoyment. Poverty is not a great thing. I have a renewed regard for adopting a simpler way of life. Wish me success!
When I see how smothering it can be to have too many things, how managing it all chokes off creativity and takes up valuable time that could be better used for enjoying each other and admiring sunsets, I truly have sympathy for those who over-accumulate, whether rich or poor. As Grundtvig said, “Give me a simple life, a merry heart, and kings may keep their pomp and garments splendid.”
Happy Fourth of July!
Joy Ibsen
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