From the Mailbag: R2K & The ICE Protests

Dear Pastor;

What would R2K think of the protesters interrupting the Minnesota church service?

I know liberals always love the separation of church and state and even though they take it out of context, but here they seemed to meld the two.

John from Canada

Bret responds,

Hello John,

Good to hear from you. You’re one of those chaps who refresh me given how much we share in our mutual faith and worldview.

A couple options here;

They might say that Christians, as private citizens, might well do that as protesters who are Christian organized a political club opposed to ICE, while those members claim that is what Jesus would want of them.

R2K advocates have said in the past that Christians as private citizens are welcome to join Christian organizations that take up this or that cause. R2K just doesn’t want to be put in the position of having to speak on the issue of protests one way or the other. R2K might well say, “that is the common realm and what happens in the common realm is not related to the lane (grace realm) that we are obliged by God to not abandon.”

So, theoretically, in this scenario, Presbyterian Church “A” has some members (B) that belong to a political organization in favor of protesting ICE while at the same time having members (C) that belong to a political organization that protest those protesting ICE. These Christians will have no problem worshiping together in Presbyterian Church “A” because the pulpit will remain silent on the subject. Christians in groups “B” and “C” will find themselves, for example, taking communion together in the same service even though on Monday they may be in each other’s face in terms of protests.

The point is that it is possible that a R2K church and clergy would silent on the whole thing

John presses the question and asks;

But if we looked Michael Horton in the eye or that poor Pastor in Minnesota asked, hey Mike, would you be on my side that they did a terrible wrong here? What would Michael Horton say?

Bret responds;

This is the other possible option as to what R2K would say in this situation.

It might be the case that Mike Horton (or any R2K clergy advocate) would say that this would be an instance where the protesters are coming in to the grace realm (the Church’s worship service) from the common realm and as such the protesters (Christian or not) are confusing the two realms (grace and common) and so shouldn’t be there. If that is the way that R2K would consider the matter then a R2K clergy may well speak from the pulpit against the vagrancy.

However, I am fairly certain that R2K fanboys would not say the same thing if the protesters descended on a private business the way they did that church. If the protesters were descending on private property that are not churches then I can see R2K thinking … “That protesting is taking place in the common realm and therefore I will not speak to it from the pulpit,”or, “as a Pastor. I am obliged, in order to honor God, to remain silent on the subject. The two-Kingdom theology demands my silence.”

Author: jetbrane

I am a Pastor of a small Church in Mid-Michigan who delights in my family, my congregation and my calling. I am postmillennial in my eschatology. Paedo-Calvinist Covenantal in my Christianity Reformed in my Soteriology Presuppositional in my apologetics Familialist in my family theology Agrarian in my regional community social order belief Christianity creates culture and so Christendom in my national social order belief Mythic-Poetic / Grammatical Historical in my Hermeneutic Pre-modern, Medieval, & Feudal before Enlightenment, modernity, & postmodern Reconstructionist / Theonomic in my Worldview One part paleo-conservative / one part micro Libertarian in my politics Systematic and Biblical theology need one another but Systematics has pride of place Some of my favorite authors, Augustine, Turretin, Calvin, Tolkien, Chesterton, Nock, Tozer, Dabney, Bavinck, Wodehouse, Rushdoony, Bahnsen, Schaeffer, C. Van Til, H. Van Til, G. H. Clark, C. Dawson, H. Berman, R. Nash, C. G. Singer, R. Kipling, G. North, J. Edwards, S. Foote, F. Hayek, O. Guiness, J. Witte, M. Rothbard, Clyde Wilson, Mencken, Lasch, Postman, Gatto, T. Boston, Thomas Brooks, Terry Brooks, C. Hodge, J. Calhoun, Llyod-Jones, T. Sowell, A. McClaren, M. Muggeridge, C. F. H. Henry, F. Swarz, M. Henry, G. Marten, P. Schaff, T. S. Elliott, K. Van Hoozer, K. Gentry, etc. My passion is to write in such a way that the Lord Christ might be pleased. It is my hope that people will be challenged to reconsider what are considered the givens of the current culture. Your biggest help to me dear reader will be to often remind me that God is Sovereign and that all that is, is because it pleases him. View all posts by jetbrane