Joerg Rieger has written, as the title suggests, a theological view on globalisation. Many titles may have appeared promising a critical or constructive encounter between globalisation, theology or ethics. However, few have delivered on the promise. But this book, although extremely short, targetted its primary thesis through the lens of Christian theology - a moral critique on the dominant forms of globalisation from the topdown to providing an alternative form of globalisation - the bottom up in opposition to the former. The author began in highlighting that theology and globalisation are “organically intertwined,” and thus criticises the extreme reductionists view that globalisation is merely and purely economic or technological, and vice versa, that globalisation is exclusively theological. The author further presents the historical trajectory of Christianity in globalisation analysing the impact of topdown form of leadership. From the Roman Empire, to Spanish Conquistador and to German Fascism - all these related to theological globalisation that have brought “dangerous memories” and troubled legacy which undeniably influenced and suppressed the propagation of the gospel. Throughout his book, the author devoted his criticism to the hard power force who benefited the few elitists but detrimental to the majority of people. He even further explores the Christian confessions in relation to the hierarchical model of the three divine persons, which he remarks that the interpretation of the Trinitarian doctrine would influence the models of globalisation whether hard power or soft power. Constantly rejecting the hard power, Rieger draws upon his Methodist background to present few points of his argument promoting the favourable outcome of John Wesley’s strategy of “from below” approach. Augmenting his position, Rieger highlights that God is the initiator of the bottom up strategy who “emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”
Critique
Base on my observation, this snippet theological view on globalisation is a progress to imposition of Christian principle giving attention to the least, the poor, democracy and human rights which is a promising step forward and is morally as well as ethically sound. However, as the author suggests that theological view is just but one facet of the multidimensionality of globalisation, we therefore need to find a way to enlarge our critical perspective to the many facets that include the economic, finance, politics, religion, culture and the like. We cannot compartmentalise each aspect or exclude the others to promote one’s ideology or theology as it reduces the interactive, multifaceted nature of globalisation, and therefore leads the reader stray and interpret that globalisation is a threat. Thus, it would be helpful if the author gave us his definition of globalisation in a wider perspective encompassing the multidimensional nature and highlighting the integrity of each facet, then narrowing it down to his theological and ethical position.
Furthermore, it is also helpful to think of the “objects” of globalisation. Is globalisation a mere movement handled by people? Is it an ideology or theology of an institution or an organisation? Does globalisation only involve between the rich (country) globalising the poor (country)? Or is it just a mere realisation and awareness in the latter period that an object is being globalised without any intention, and so on. We cannot avoid the subject of who is doing the globalisation. Why is it important to know as this question can be posed to who is being globalised. Even the poor migrant families moving to all the directions from the places of poverty to the developed world are also imposing globalisation. These migrants and refugees are often religious people e.g. Muslims, who are being feared by the Western countries because of their strong religious ideology. Thus, even the poor community, when summing up their religious and cultural background, can be also interpreted as a threat to the rich countries.
Reflection
We, therefore, cannot escape the historical reality that both strong force and soft power of globalisation came across time and I believe it is part also of God’s beauty of providence toward propagating the Gospel. And because of the ambiguities of globalisation, even the good intention of it whether by top down or bottom up, there is always the dark side of it. The challenge then to us Christians in the coming years will be how to remain first and foremost messengers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ without forerunning the process of globalisation. Nowadays, during the COVID-19 pandemic, churches are just but also being caught relying on mainly economic and technical instruments available to them which most of the poor families though cannot afford. These instruments are also invented in the spirit of globalisation from top down approach. The only hope that we need to hold on that God is at work in today’s globalising world and God is pursuing his mission of redeeming the world. We only need to play our part.
Rieger, Joerg. Globalization and Theology (Horizons in Theology). Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2010
Photo Credits: Marco Stellini (flickr) https://www.flickr.com/photos/stellini/.
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