Sunday, February 08, 2009

James A. Harding "got it"


James A. Harding, for whom my college alma mater was named, possessed a deep spirituality that is still reflected in many of the faculty and students of the school.

Harding certainly understood the centrality of a concern for the poor and the marginalized in his faith system. Bobby Valentine reminded me of this when he posted the following quotes on his blog:

“Christ is personified in his poor, helpless brethren. Matt xxv.40. In them, Christ appeals for help to himself. Who realizes this? . . . Let us realize that every helpless, needy one of our brethren is the personification of Christ to us appealing for help. He is our Christ, to be kindly welcomed and generously treated. Shall we cast our Christ from our doors and let him become a beggar from others? Let us be careful, ‘Verily I say unto you inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.’

“We must sacrifice our luxuries, our comforts, our wealth and pride, to relieve our brother’s distresses, just as Christ sacrificed his honors, glories, joys and possessions in heaven, to help . . . . This was the fellowship of God to man. I will give of my honors and joys to you, and take of your weaknesses, sufferings, and sorrows to myself, is the language of Jesus to man . . . Our fellowship for one another must be of this character. I’ll give of my plenty, and partake of your privations and self-denials, is the language of Christian fellowship.”

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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

preggeWhy do so many who say they are Christians not embrace these biblical concepts? I guess in Christianity as in other religions you can pick and choose and still look yourself in the mirror and sleep at night?

Stoned-Campbell Disciple said...

It is very kind of you to call attention to my short piece on Harding. There is much more on Harding's kingdom driven world view in the book I wrote with John Mark Hicks, "Kingdom Come: Embracing the Spiritual Legacy of David Lipscomb and James Harding"

Shalom,
Bobby Valentine