Christian left
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The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (August 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) |
The term Christian left refers to a spectrum of left-wing Christian political and social movements that largely embrace viewpoints described as social justice that upholds a social gospel. Given the inherent diversity in international political thought, the term can have different meanings and applications in different countries.
Contents
- 1 Terminology
- 2 History
- 3 Christian left in the United States
- 4 Approach to issues such as homosexuality
- 5 The Consistent Life Ethic
- 6 Differing views
- 7 Liberation theology
- 8 Notable Christian leftists
- 8.1 Argentina
- 8.2 Australia
- 8.3 Austria
- 8.4 Belgium
- 8.5 Brazil
- 8.6 Canada
- 8.7 Chile
- 8.8 China
- 8.9 Colombia
- 8.10 Cuba
- 8.11 East Timor
- 8.12 Ecuador
- 8.13 El Salvador
- 8.14 France
- 8.15 Germany
- 8.16 Greece
- 8.17 Haiti
- 8.18 Ireland
- 8.19 Italy
- 8.20 Japan
- 8.21 Netherlands
- 8.22 Nicaragua
- 8.23 New Zealand
- 8.24 Peru
- 8.25 Philippines
- 8.26 Poland
- 8.27 Russia
- 8.28 Slovenia
- 8.29 South Africa
- 8.30 Spain
- 8.31 Sri Lanka
- 8.32 Sweden
- 8.33 Switzerland
- 8.34 United States
- 8.35 United Kingdom
- 8.36 Vatican
- 8.37 Venezuela
- 9 Parties of the Christian left
- 10 See also
- 11 References
- 12 External links
Terminology[edit]
As with any section within the left and right wings of a political spectrum, a label such as "Christian left" represents an approximation, including within it groups and persons holding many diverse viewpoints. The term left-wing might encompass a number of values, some of which may or may not be held by different Christian movements and individuals.
As the unofficial title of a loose association of believers, it does provide a clear distinction from the more commonly known "Christian right" or "religious right" and from its key leaders and political views.
The most common religious viewpoint that might be described as "left-wing" is social justice, or care for impoverished and oppressed groups. Supporters of this trend might encourage universal health care, welfare provisions, subsidized education, foreign aid, and affirmative action for improving the conditions of the disadvantaged. With values stemming from egalitarianism, adherents of the Christian left consider it part of their religious duty to take actions on behalf of the oppressed. As nearly all major religions contain some kind of requirement to help others, various religions[quantify] have cited social justice as a movement in line with their faith.[citation needed]
The Christian Left holds that social justice, renunciation of power, humility, forgiveness, and private observation of prayer (as opposed to publicly mandated prayer), are mandated by the Gospel (Matthew 6:5-6).[citation needed] The Bible contains accounts of Jesus repeatedly advocating for the poor and outcast over the wealthy, powerful, and religious. The Christian Left maintains that such a stance is relevant and important. Adhering to the standard of "turning the other cheek", which they believe supersedes the Old Testament law of "an eye for an eye", the Christian Left often[quantify] hearkens towards pacifism in opposition to policies advancing militarism.[citation needed]
While non-religious socialists sometimes find support for socialism in the Gospels (for example Mikhail Gorbachev citing Jesus as "the first socialist"),[1] the Christian Left does not find that socialism alone as an adequate end or means. Christian faith is the core of their belief, which in turn demands social justice.
History[edit]
Early years[edit]
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For much of the early history of anti-establishment leftist movements such as socialism and communism (which was highly anti-clerical in the 19th century), established churches were led by a reactionary clergy who saw progress as a threat to their status and power. Most people viewed the church as part of the establishment. Revolutions in America, France, Russia and (much later) Spain were in part directed against the established churches (or rather their leading clergy) and instituted a separation of church and state.
However, in the 19th century, some writers and activists developed a school of thought, Christian socialism, a branch of Christian thought that was infused with socialism.
Early socialist thinkers such as Robert Owen, Henri de Saint-Simon based their theories of socialism upon Christian principles. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels reacted against these theories by formulating a secular theory of socialism in The Communist Manifesto.
Alliance of the left and Christianity[edit]
Starting in the late 19th century and early 20th century,[citation needed] some began to take on the view that genuine Christianity had much in common with a Leftist perspective. From St. Augustine of Hippo's City of God through St. Thomas More's Utopia major Christian writers had expounded upon views that socialists found agreeable. Of major interest was the extremely strong thread of egalitarianism in the New Testament. Other common leftist concerns such as pacifism, social justice, racial equality, human rights, and the rejection of excessive wealth are also expressed strongly in the Bible. In the late 19th century, the Social Gospel movement arose (particularly among some Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists and Baptists in North America and Britain,) which attempted to integrate progressive and socialist thought with Christianity to produce a faith-based social activism, promoted by movements such as Christian Socialism. In the United States during this period, Episcopalians and Congregationalists generally tended to be the most liberal, both in theological interpretation and in their adherence to the Social Gospel. In Canada, a coalition of liberal Congregationalists, Methodists, and Presbyterians founded the United Church of Canada, one of the first true Christian left denominations. Later, in the 20th century, liberation theology was championed by such writers as Gustavo Gutierrez and Matthew Fox.
Christian left and campaigns for peace and human rights[edit]
Some Christian groups were closely associated with the peace movements against the Vietnam War as well as the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. Religious leaders in many countries have also been on the forefront of criticizing any cuts to social welfare programs. In addition, many prominent civil rights activists (such as Martin Luther King, Jr.) were religious figures.
Christian left in the United States[edit]
In the United States, members of the Christian Left come from a spectrum of denominations: Peace churches, elements of the Protestant mainline churches, Catholicism, and some evangelicals.
The Christian Left does not seem to be so well-organized or publicized as its right-wing counterpart.[2] Opponents[who?] state that this is because it is less numerous. Supporters[which?] contend that it is actually more numerous but composed predominantly of persons less willing to voice political views in as forceful a manner as the Christian Right, possibly because of the aggressiveness of the Christian Right. Further, supporters contend that the Christian Left has had relatively little success securing widespread corporate, political, and major media patronage compared to the Right.[citation needed] In the aftermath of the 2004 election in the United States, Progressive Christian leaders started to form groups of their own to combat the Religious Right - such groups include The Center for Progressive Christianity (founded 1996) and the Christian Alliance For Progress.[3]
Members of the Christian Left who work on interfaith issues participate in building the Progressive Reconstructionist movement.
Approach to issues such as homosexuality[edit]
The Christian Left sometimes approaches issues such as homosexuality differently from other Christian political groups. This approach can be driven by focusing on issues differently despite holding similar religious views, or by holding different religious ideas. Those in the Christian Left who have similar ideas as other Christian political groups but a different focus may view Christian teachings on certain issues, such as the Bible's prohibitions against killing or criticisms of concentrations of wealth, as far more politically important than Christian teachings on social issues emphasized by the religious right, such as opposition to homosexuality. Others in the Christian Left have not only a different focus on issues from other Christian political groups, but different religious ideas as well.
For example, all members of the Christian Left consider discrimination and bigotry against homosexuals to be immoral, but they differ on their views towards homosexual sex. Some believe homosexual sex to be immoral but largely unimportant when compared with issues relating to social justice, or even matters of sexual morality involving heterosexual sex. Others affirm that some homosexual practices are compatible with the Christian life. Such members believe common biblical arguments used to condemn homosexuality are misinterpreted, and that biblical prohibitions of homosexual practices are actually against a specific type of homosexual sex act: pederasty, the sodomizing of young boys by older men. Thus, they hold biblical prohibitions to be irrelevant when considering modern same-sex relationships.[4][5][6][7]
The Consistent Life Ethic[edit]
A related strain of thought is the (Catholic and progressive evangelical) Consistent Life Ethic, which sees opposition to capital punishment, militarism, euthanasia, abortion and the global unequal distribution of wealth as being related. It is an idea with certain concepts shared by Abrahamic religions as well as Buddhists, Hindus, and members of other religions. The late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of Chicago developed the idea for the consistent life ethic in 1983.[8] Currently, Sojourners is particularly associated with this strand of thought. Adherents commonly criticize politicians who; identify as pro-life while simultaneously oppose funding for pre-natal vitamins, child nutrition programs, or universal health care.
Differing views[edit]
Jim Wallis believes that one of the biggest problems that faces the left is to reach out to evangelical and Catholic religious voters.[9] (Note however that Jim Wallis denies that his Sojourners organization belongs to either the right or left.[10]) Catholics for a Free Choice has responded that these progressive evangelical and Catholic pro-life people have difficulties dealing with the implications of feminist theology and ethics for Christian faith.[11]
Liberation theology[edit]
Liberation theology is a theological tradition that emerged in the developing world, especially Latin America. Since the 1960s, Catholic thinkers have integrated left-wing thought and Catholicism, giving rise to Liberation Theology. It arose at a time when Catholic thinkers who opposed the despotic leaders in South and Central America allied themselves with the communist opposition. However, it developed independently of and roughly simultaneously with Black theology in the US and should not be confused with it.[12] The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith decided that, while liberation theology is partially compatible with Catholic social teaching, certain Marxist elements of it, such as the doctrine of perpetual class struggle, are against Church teachings.
Notable Christian leftists[edit]
Argentina[edit]
- Movement of Priests for the Third World
- Humanist-Catholic figures of the Argentine military
- Other figures
Australia[edit]
- Frank Brennan, Jesuit and advocate for Australia's indigenous peoples
- Ben Chifley, former Prime Minister of Australia
- Tim Costello, former Baptist pastor and CEO of World Vision Australia
- Jock Garden, founder of the Communist Party of Australia
- Brian Howe, AM, Australian politician, Deputy Prime Minister in the Labor government of Paul Keating from 1991 to 1995
- Kevin Rudd, former Prime Minister of Australia
Austria[edit]
Belgium[edit]
Brazil[edit]
- Frei Betto, writer, political activist, liberation theologist and Dominican friar
- Leonardo Boff, academic and social activist
- Sister Maurina, Roman Catholic nun who was tortured during the military dictatorship
- Sister Dorothy Stang, Roman Catholic nun murdered for helping the landless and poor
- Frei Tito, Roman Catholic friar who was tortured during the military dictatorship
- Dom Hélder Câmara, Roman Catholic archbishop
Canada[edit]
- Richard Allen, politician and historian of Christian socialism
- Charlie Angus, writer and politician
- Bill Blaikie, United Church minister and politician
- Andrew Brewin, politician and author
- Lorne Calvert, United Church minister, politician, former premier of Saskatchewan, and president of theological seminary
- Bruce Cockburn, singer and songwriter
- Cheri DiNovo, minister and politician
- Tommy Douglas, voted the "Greatest Canadian"; leader of the first avowedly socialist government in North America in Saskatchewan; introduced universal medicare; former Baptist minister
- Brent Hawkes, minister and LGBT rights activist
- Stanley Knowles, United Church minister and politician
- Jack Layton, former Leader of the Official Opposition, former leader of the NDP
- James Loney, peace activist
- Desmond McGrath, priest, trade union organizer and activist
- Bill Phipps, church leader and activist
- Frank Scott, poet and constitutional expert
- Bill Siksay, politician, former theological student, partner of a minister
- William Horace Temple, politician, and trade union activist
- J. S. Woodsworth, minister and politician.
Chile[edit]
- Clotario Blest, trade union and human rights activist
- Fernando Flores, engineer, entrepreneur and politician
- Manuel Jacques, politician
- Eugenio Pizarro, Catholic priest and politician
China[edit]
- Nora Lam,Protestant Minister,Anti-Communist
Colombia[edit]
- Camilo Torres Restrepo, liberation theologian and guerrilla
Cuba[edit]
East Timor[edit]
- Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, Nobel Peace Prize-winning Archbishop linked to East Timorese independence
Ecuador[edit]
- Rafael Correa, incumbent president and former finance minister
- Leonidas Proaño, liberation theology bishop
El Salvador[edit]
- Mauricio Funes, former President of El Salvador, journalist
- Rutilio Grande
- Archbishop Óscar Romero, archbishop
France[edit]
- François_Chabot, Capuchin friar and Hebertiste
- Bishop Jacques Gaillot, Roman Catholic Bishop of Partenia, social activist
- Henri Grégoire
- Abbé Pierre, Roman Catholic social activist
- Jacques Roux
- Personalism (Emmanuel Mounier, etc.)
Germany[edit]
- Christoph Blumhardt, Lutheran theologian
- Alfred Delp, Jesuit involved in resistance to Nazi Germany
- Eugen Drewermann
- Ulrich Duchrow, theologian, global justice movement theoreticist
- Rudi Dutschke, student protest leader
- Emil Fuchs, Quaker theologian
- Helmut Gollwitzer, Lutheran theologian
- Johann Baptist Metz, Catholic theologian
- Thomas Müntzer
- Uta Ranke-Heinemann
- Johannes Rau, German President
- Hans Scholl, Youth Leader,Student involved resistance to Nazi Germany
- Sophie Scholl, Student involved resistance to Nazi Germany
- Dorothee Sölle, Lutheran theologian
Greece[edit]
- Stelios Papathemelis, lawyer, former Minister of Interior, leader of "Democratic Revival", a minor Christian-Socialist party
- Christos Yannaras, theologist, philosopher
Haiti[edit]
- Jean-Bertrand Aristide, former President of Haiti
- Gérard Jean-Juste, liberation theologian
Ireland[edit]
- Bono, leader of U2, singer-songwriter
- Ciaron O'Reilly, Catholic worker, Christian anarchist
Italy[edit]
- Beniamino Andreatta, economist and former Minister of Treasury, of Foreign Affairs and of Defense
- Rosy Bindi, former President of the Democratic Party
- Pierre Carniti, trade union leader and co-founder of Social Christians
- Danilo Dolci
- Dario Franceschini, Democratic Party minister in Letta Cabinet
- Giovanni Franzoni
- Ermanno Gorrieri, trade union activist, economist and co-founder of Social Christians
- Rosa Russo Iervolino, politician, former Minister of the Interior, Mayor of Naples
- Enrico Letta, former Prime Minister
- Boris Pahor, writer, prominent public figure of the Slovene minority in Italy
- Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italian film director
- Romano Prodi, former Prime Minister
- Matteo Renzi, former Prime Minister
- Pietro Scoppola, historian and politician
Japan[edit]
- Isoo Abe, politician and Unitarian minister
- Kunikida Doppo, novelist, poet
- Toyohiko Kagawa, activist and theologian
- Tetsu Katayama, politician and former Prime Minister (1947-1948)
- Naoe Kinoshita, activist, author, journalist, lawyer
Netherlands[edit]
- Huub Oosterhuis, theologian and poet
- Andre Rouvoet, former leader of the centre-left Christian Union
Nicaragua[edit]
- Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann
- Ernesto Cardenal, liberation theologian
- Rosario Murillo, First Lady and Vice President of Nicaragua
- Daniel Ortega, President of Nicaragua
New Zealand[edit]
- David Clark
- Lloyd Geering, theologian
- Walter Nash, prime minister
- Arnold Nordmeyer, minister and politician
- Michael Joseph Savage, prime minister
Peru[edit]
- Gustavo Gutiérrez, founder of liberation theology
Philippines[edit]
- Gregorio Aglipay, Supreme Bishop of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente Aglipayan Church
- José Burgos, Filipino priest and independence activist
- Alberto Ramento, Supreme Bishop of the Aglipayan Church and advocator of human rights and humanitarian law
- Jaime Sin, cardinal, leader of the Catholic Church in the Philippines and pillar of the People Power movement
Poland[edit]
- Stanisław Adamski, Polish priest and workers' activist
Russia[edit]
- Leo Tolstoy, writer and social reformer
- Sergei Bulgakov, Orthodox Christian theologian, philosopher and economist
- Nikolai Berdyaev, Russian religious and political philosopher
Slovenia[edit]
- Bogo Grafenauer, historian
- Vekoslav Grmič, Slovenian Roman Catholic bishop and theologian
- Edvard Kocbek, poet, essayist and politician
- Boris Pahor, writer and essayist
South Africa[edit]
- Allan Boesak
- Dennis Hurley, former Catholic Archbishop of Durban, anti-Apartheid activist and advocate for reform within the Catholic Church
- Beyers Naude, anti-Apartheid Dutch Reformed minister
- Alan Paton, author, politician and anti-Apartheid activist
- Desmond Tutu, former Anglican Archbishop of South Africa
Spain[edit]
- José Bono, speaker of the low house of Parliament
- Joaquín Ruiz-Giménez, former ombudsman and leader of the Democratic Left
Sri Lanka[edit]
- Tissa Balasuriya, civil rights activist, theologian
Sweden[edit]
- K. G. Hammar, former Archbishop of Uppsala
- Lukas Moodysson, film writer and director
Switzerland[edit]
- Karl Barth, neo-orthodox theologian
- Hans Küng, Catholic theologian
- Hermann Kutter, Reformed theologian
- Leonhard Ragaz, Reformed theologian
United States[edit]
- Ralph Abernathy, civil rights activist
- Martin Luther King, Jr, civil rights Leader
- Fred Shuttlesworth, civil rights activist, Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Leaders (political)[edit]
- Walt Brown, ex-Oregon state senator, Socialist Party USA
- William Jennings Bryan, three time presidential nominee
- Jimmy Carter, former U.S. President
- Bob Casey, Jr., current U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania
- Robert Casey, former Pennsylvania governor
- Nick Clooney, Roman Catholic activist and Congressional candidate
- Howard Dean, former Governor of Vermont, 2004 presidential candidate, and former DNC chairman
- Eugene V. Debs, co-founder of the Industrial Workers of the World and Socialist Party of America candidate for President
- Peter DeFazio, U.S. Congressman from Oregon's 4th district
- Robert Drinan, Congressman and Roman Catholic Jesuit priest
- Diane Drufenbrock, nun, Socialist Party USA
- Frank Ford, farmer
- Dick Gephardt, former Congressman and Democratic presidential candidate
- Al Gore, environmentalist, former Vice President of the United States, Tennessee senator (1985-1993), and Democratic presidential nominee (2000)
- Thomas J. Hagerty, founding member of the Industrial Workers of the World
- Ammon Hennacy, "Wobbly" (Industrial Workers of the World member)
- Hubert Humphrey, former Vice President of the United States
- Jesse Jackson, politician and civil rights leader
- Martin Luther King Jr., civil rights activist
- Dennis Kucinich, former Congressman and past Presidential candidate
- John Lewis, U.S. Congressman and civil rights leader
- Eugene McCarthy, former Senator from Minnesota and presidential candidate
- Walter Mondale, former Vice President of the United States
- Brian P. Moore, Socialist Party
- Barack Obama, President of the United States
- Hillary Clinton, former United States Secretary of State and Democratic presidential nominee (2016)
- Tim Ryan, U.S. Congressman
- Norman Thomas, Socialist Party of America presidential candidate
- Frank P. Zeidler, ex-Mayor of Milwaukee, Socialist Party USA
Leaders a/o activists (civil)[edit]
- Jay Bakker, pastor of Revolution Church
- Joseph Bernardin, Cardinal Archbishop of Chicago
- Father Daniel Berrigan, Catholic priest (Jesuit) and peace activist
- Philip Berrigan, former Catholic priest (Josephite) and activist
- Kim Bobo, founder, Interfaith Worker Justice
- Leonardo Boff, liberation theology activist [13]
- Father Roy Bourgeois, Catholic priest and peace activist
- Peter Boyle, actor, studied to be a De La Salle brother
- Everett Francis Briggs, POW and labour activist
- Tony Campolo, Baptist evangelist and sociologist
- César Chávez, Mexican American labour and social activist
- Sr. Joan Chittister, Catholic nun and feminist theologian
- Forrester Church, Unitarian Universalist minister, author
- William Sloane Coffin, Jr., UCC minister and peace activist
- Stephen Colbert, host of The Colbert Report and Sunday school teacher
- John Cort, writer, editor for Commonweal, Peacework, Religious Socialism
- Jerome Davis, labour organizer and sociologist
- Dorothy Day, Catholic Worker Movement co-founder, "Wobbly" (Industrial Workers of the World member)
- Father John Dear, Catholic priest and peace activist
- Rev. Robert Drinan, former U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts
- Jane Fonda, actress and activist
- James A. Forbes, minister at Riverside Church
- Rev. George Foreman
- Laura Jane Grace, Anarcho-Catholic and punk rock icon
- Jeannine Gramick, Roman Catholic nun and founder of New Ways Ministry
- Rosey Grier
- Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, Roman Catholic Bishop of Detroit and social activist
- Charles Kekumano, activist Hawaiian priest
- Helen Keller
- Angelo Liteky, former priest, soldier, activist
- Ava Lowery, peace activist
- Rev. Joseph Lowery, civil rights Leader
- Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State
- Pauli Murray, first female Episcopal priest and co-founder of the National Organization for Women
- Mike Papantonio
- Rev Richard Penniman, aka Little Richard
- Father Michael Pfleger, Catholic priest, social activist, pastor of Saint Sabina church
- Georges Pire, "Peace University" and Nobel Peace Prize for work with refugees [14]
- Sister Helen Prejean, anti-death penalty activist; author of Dead Man Walking, adapted for the film of the same title
- Monsignor Charles Owen Rice, Catholic priest, labour leader, and civil rights activist
- Fred Rogers
- Frank Schaeffer
- Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church
- Cindy Sheehan, peace activist
- Martin Sheen, Roman Catholic activist/actor
- Ron Sider, president of Evangelicals for Social Action
- Mitch Snyder, convert, advocate for the homeless
- Charles Toy, online and social media activist[15]
- Carmen Trotta, Roman Catholic pacifist
- Jim Wallis, editor of Sojourners Magazine
- Barry Welsh, Congressional candidate and minister (United Methodist Church)
- Rev. Jeremiah Wright, former pastor of the Trinity United Church of Christ
- Rev. Lennox Yearwood, veteran and anti-Iraq war activist
Thinkers[edit]
- Peter Agre, awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry
- Miguel A. De La Torre, scholar-activist and author of numerous books on Hispanic religiosity
- David Ray Griffin, theology professor and 9/11 Truth author
- Chris Hedges
- Anne Lamott, author
- Peter Maurin, Catholic Worker co-founder
- Brian McLaren, Emerging Church Leader
- Charles Clayton Morrison
- Troy Perry, founder of Metropolitan Community Church
- Walter Rauschenbusch, social gospel thinker
- Anthony Paul Kennedy Shriver, son of Sargent Shriver, member of the Kennedy family, holds a degree in theology
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of the Special Olympics
- John Shelby Spong, retired bishop and liberal political activist
- Paul Tillich
- Kathleen Kennedy Townshend
- Randall Wallace, Academy Award nominee, holds a degree in theology
- Cornel West, theologian, academic, activist
- Jim Winkler, leading member of the United Methodist Church
Promoters[edit]
- Art Alexakis, leader of rock band Everclear, has referred to himself as a left-wing Christian
- Ray Boltz
- Johnny Cash, singer/songwriter, has promoted Christianity in a number of songs and public appearances
- John Fugelsang, comedian
- Dan Haseltine, singer-songwriter
- Dwight Howard, Atlanta Hawks basketball player
- Val Kilmer, has done promotional videos for his denomination
- Lecrae, Christian rapper
- Jeremy Lin, Brooklyn Nets basketball player
- Pete Maravich, Hall of Fame basketball player
- Barry McGuire, singer-songwriter
- Michael Moore,[16] documentary filmmaker
- Alonzo Mourning, Hall of Fame basketball player
- Bill Moyers, journalist and public commentator
- Larry Norman, Christian rock singer-songwriter, advocate of the Jesus Movement
- Pauley Perrette, actress and LGBT rights advocate
- Ed Shultz, television and radio host
United Kingdom[edit]
![](http://web.archive.org./web/20170113080417im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Larry_Sanders_1559.jpg/220px-Larry_Sanders_1559.jpg)
The medieval Lollards, particularly John Ball, took up many anti-establishment causes. During the English Civil War many of the more radical Parliamentarians, such as John Lilburne and the Levellers, based their belief in universal suffrage and proto-socialism on their reading of the Bible. Other people on the Christian left include:[citation needed]
- Martin Bashir, journalist
- Hilaire Belloc, Anglo-French writer and historian
- Tony Benn, former Labour MP
- William Blake, poet, painter, Christian mystic
- Chris Bryant, Labour MP and former priest
- David Cairns, Labour MP and former priest
- George B. Chambers, writer and Anglican priest
- Charles Dickens, writer
- Gwynfor Evans
- William Everard
- David Ford, leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
- George Fox, Quaker
- Giles Fraser, Anglican priest and writer
- Dave Gahan, lead vocalist of Depeche Mode
- William Ewart Gladstone, Prime Minister
- Charles Gore, Anglo-Catholic
- Keir Hardie
- Stewart Headlam, Anglo-Catholic
- Christopher Isham, scientist
- Hewlett Johnson
- Kenneth Leech, Anglo-Catholic theologian
- John Lewis, philosopher
- Frederick Denison Maurice
- Florence Nightingale
- Conrad Noel, Anglo-Catholic
- Maurice Reckitt, writer
- J.K. Rowling, author
- R. H. Tawney, economist and historian
- William Temple
- Bishop B.F. Westcott, Anglo-Catholic and spiritualist
- Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Gerrard Winstanley
Vatican[edit]
- Sister Rose Thering, during Vatican II helped in exonerating Jews from Christ's death; social and human rights activist
Venezuela[edit]
Parties of the Christian left[edit]
- Democratic Party (Italy)
- Christian Democracy (Greece)
- Christian Social Party (Switzerland) (Catholic)
- Evangelical People's Party (The Netherlands)
- Christian Democratic Party (Uruguay)
- Christian Democratic Party (Chile)
- Christian Left Party (Chile)
- Sandinista National Liberation Front (Nicaragua)
- Christian Socialist Movement (United Kingdom; the Christian wing of the UK Labour Party)
- Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (merged into the secular New Democratic Party of Canada)
See also[edit]
Early Christianity[edit]
Movements[edit]
A number of movements of the past had similarities to today's Christian Left:
- Anabaptists
- Fifth Monarchists, Diggers, Quakers
- Heretical movements such as the Cathars
- Liberation theology
- Lollard
- Old-Catholicism
- Peace churches
- German Peasants' War
- Role of Christians in the Peasants' Revolt in England, see Lollard priest John Ball
- Waldenses
- Jesus movement
- Unitarianism
- Universalism
Groups[edit]
- Anglo-Catholicism
- Congregationalists
- Episcopal Church (United States)
- Progressive National Baptist Convention
- United Church of Christ
Other[edit]
- Christian democracy
- Christian libertarianism
- Christian pacifism
- Christian politics
- Christian socialism
- Evangelical left
- Homosexuality and Christianity
- International League of Religious Socialists
- Jewish left
- Liberal Christianity
- Pacifism
- Political catholicism
- Populism
- Progressive Christianity
- Progressive Reconstructionist
- Religion and abortion
- Religious left
- Religious Society of Friends
- Spiritual left
- Social Gospel
- Contrast: Christian right
References[edit]
- ^ "Mikhail S. Gorbachev Quotes". Brainyquote.com. Retrieved 23 February 2007.
- ^ Compare: Blow, Charles M. (2 July 2010). "The Rise of the Religious left". New York Times.
On the other hand, the religious left is not the religious right. The left isn't as organized or assertive.
- ^ Utter, Glenn H. (2007). Mainline Christians and U.S. Public Policy: A Reference Handbook. Contemporary world issues. ABC-CLIO. p. 230. ISBN 9781598840001. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
The Christian Alliance for Progress. composed of individuals from various denominations and religious viewpoints, strives to emphasize the core beliefs and values of Christianity in response to the contemporary involvement of Christian groups in the search for political influence and power.
- ^ Why TCPC Advocates Equal Rights for Gay and Lesbian People
- ^ Equality for Gays and Lesbians
- ^ Bible & Homosexuality Home Page. Pflagdetroit.org (1998-12-11). Retrieved on 2013-08-24.
- ^ [1] Archived 21 May 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Bernardin, Joseph. Consistent ethics of life 1988, Sheed and Ward, p. v
- ^ "And there are literally millions of votes at stake in this liberal miscalculation. Virtually everywhere I go, I encounter moderate and progressive Christians who find it painfully difficult to vote Democratic given the party’s rigid, ideological stance on this critical moral issue, a stance they regard as "pro-abortion." Except for this major and, in some cases, insurmountable obstacle, these voters would be casting Democratic ballots." from Make Room for Pro-Life Democrats, Jim Wallis, Sojourners Magazine, hosted on beliefnet
- ^ Wallis, Jim (2005). God's Politics--Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It. HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 978-0-06-083447-0.
- ^ Reframing Social Justice, Feminism and Abortion
- ^ http://koinoniarevolution.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/prophets-of-a-modern-era-an-introduction-to-liberation-theology/
- ^ http://www.leonardoboff.com/
- ^ http://nobelprize.org/peace/laureates/1958/pire-bio.html
- ^ https://www.facebook.com/TheChristianLeft
- ^ Amira, Dan. (2013-01-15) Michael Moore Is a Better Christian Than You - Daily Intelligencer. Nymag.com. Retrieved on 2013-08-24.
External links[edit]
- American Socialist Voter Educational and interactive networking (non-partisan)
- Anglo-Catholic Socialism
- CrossLeft: Balancing the Christian Voice, Organizing the Christian Left
- The Christian Leftist: The 'Religious' 'Right' Is Neither
- Religious Movements Homepage: Call to Renewal: Christians for a New Political Vision
- Epochalypsis.org: Reforming Insights for a 21st Century Christianity
- NOW with Bill Moyers:The Christian Left?
- Points of Unity for Social Democratic Branches within the USA
- Religion and Socialism Commission of the Democratic Socialists of America
- Socialism and Faith Commission of the Socialist Party USA
- Sojourners Magazine
- Social Redemption
- Turn-Left.com - Religious Left Goods
- The Center for Progressive Christianity
- The Christian Alliance for Progress
- The Christian Left – An Open Fellowship of Progressive Christians
- The Living Hour & Lord's Prayer Christian Left Meditations
- Totalitarian Daydreams and Christian Humanism At the Crossroads
- Known Author - discussion forum for liberal Christians
- The Bible on the Poor: Or Why God is a Liberal