Marginal Christianity

    In my last post I suggested three forms of Javertism, a moralistic and legalistic version of “Christian” faith symbolized by Inspector Javert in “Les Misrables,” that afflict much of the church in our time. In this post we’ll look at the second form, a legalistic view of justice.     By “legalistic” I mean an approach to living the faith governed by a retributive view of justice.  Retributive means that we deserve what we get and get what we deserve.  If I do this, I suffer consequence X.  If I do that, I suffer consequence Y.  A tit for tat kind of justice.      Faith lived under a retributive view of God’s justice always leaves us in the dock, always under threat of accusation and judgment for any misstep.  Such a faith leaves us focused on ourselves and our performance in a way that can easily become narcissistic.  Moralism is inevitable under a retributive view of justice.  As is the pride and e...

          Here are some of my initial reflections upon viewing the stunningly magnificent film “Les Miserables.”   The two main characters are Inspector Javert, symbolizing a legal-moral approach to faith, and Jean Valjean, symbolizing a grace-based approach to faith.           It is easy to see Inspector Javert as a type present in many church’s across all traditions.   It is also easy to point to it as pathological and a chief source of the malaise of the church in our culture.   It is less easy, however, to clearly discern its roots and forms.   That’s what I want to begin to do in this post. I suggest three forms of Javertism for consideration.   The first is moralistic Javertism, the second a legalistic Javertism, and the third a psychological Javertism.   This post focuses on the first form, moralistic Javertsim. Javertism is all about moralism...