In Tenacious Solidarity: Biblical Provocations on Race, Religion, Climate, and the Economy, biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann offers this definition of totalism:
By “totalism” I mean a system of signs and symbols that make a claim of validity that is all-encompassing, that will allow no challenge or competition, and that will not countenance an act of imagination outside the control of that system of signs and symbols. Such a totalism characteristically has a monopoly on technology and control of the media, so that it sets limits on what can be imagined. It claims to contain all imaginable possibilities and rules all others out of court. Such a totalism, moreover, exercises an invisible authority, so that it is not recognized or acknowledged by those who adhere to it, and in any such case including our own, we are all to some extent subscribers to that totalism that commandeers our imagination and that is inimical to the “image of God” and its practices of holiness, forgiveness, love, peace, and thanks. (pp.210-211)
In this final article on totalism, I want to focus on how it affects us as individuals and as unique children of God. Brueggemann writes that a totalism committed to the bull of gold “yields an anthropology of happy consumerism and a theology of vigorous commoditization. It is no surprise that this totalism, so grounded and expressed, contradicts what we know of a gospel of the ‘image of God.’” We all pay a heavy price for living in such a ruthless form of totalism. Its effects are seen both at the macrolevel of our whole culture and at the microlevel of the individual. A society so heavily based on the primacy of greed, production, and consumption scarcely can be bothered with issues of justice, compassion, and neighborliness. Too many men, women, and especially children must be sacrificed on the altar of profits for the few at the expense of the many. Our pitifully funded “safety nets” allow millions to fall through its deviously crafted holes. In such a society it’s difficult for any of us to discover and live out our identity as beings created in the image of God.
Brueggemann focuses on three aspects of what it means to be created in the image of God which pose threats to the totalism of our society. I will comment on each of these aspects. (The quotes in bold print below come from pp. 213-214 in Tenacious Solidarity.)
- “The image of God is a vocation of freedom: the totalism does not want freed people but only those who have situated their lives within the totalism.” Authentic freedom perhaps poses the greatest threat to any form of totalism. Creativity is the natural sister of freedom. Freedom and creativity are among the first casualties in all types of fascism. The paranoia and violent persecutions associated with fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism in the last century are chilling reminders that all societies embracing totalism can tolerate only that which accepts or does not oppose its agenda. Acceptance and acquiescence are the only responses allowed by the powers that be in such societies. Anyone who chooses not to play the game of totalism will suffer dire consequences. In a supposed democracy like the U.S. the form of totalism is more subtle and the damage resulting from such totalism is not as apparent as one might find in dictatorships. However, the toll taken on millions in our form of totalism is staggering. The rat race so many people in our society are running, either out of necessity to survive or out of greed and ambition, threatens to destroy the freedom necessary for our identities as children of God. And, as Lily Tomlin reminds us, even if we win that rat race, we’re still rats—not emancipated children of God.
- “The image of God is a vocation of truthfulness; the totalism does not want such honesty but prefers a practice of denial that is often served by a code of euphemisms that mislabel and misconstrue.” All forms of totalism depend on lies and propaganda. Dangerous euphemisms abound in our society. Some examples include the following: economically disadvantaged for poor; substandard housing/economically depressed neighborhood/culturally deprived environment for slums; enhanced interrogation for torture; collateral damage for the deaths of innocent women, children, and the elderly; neutralized or depopulated for masses of people killed; law and order as a dog whistle for racist policies. In addition to such euphemisms, we have outright lies. Politicians dismiss inconvenient truths as “fake news.” The “truth” varies from day to day depending on what is advantageous to the powers that be. George Orwell’s novel 1984 is about a society infected by a most insidious form of totalism. Truth is sacrificed for the sake of powers who demand total control and possession. Here are some quotes from 1984 which speak to the ways truth is distorted or dismissed in our culture today:
- The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command. (Does this quote remind you of the Republican responses to the Jan. 6 insurrection or the anti-vaccine politicians?)
- In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.
- War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength
- And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth. “Who controls the past,” ran the Party slogan, “controls the future; who controls the present controls the past.” (Revisionist history, anyone?)
- “The image of God champions mercy that is rooted in forgiveness; totalism allows for no forgiveness but insists on a right quid pro quo of accounting for any violation of ideological requirement. Thus, notice that in Exodus 34:9-10, YHWH forgives Israel at the behest of Moses and begins again. The entire future of the covenant is based on that act of forgiveness.” Totalism sees compassion, mercy, and forgiveness as practices of weakness. When primary goals are achieved through ruthless competition and frenzied efforts to amass more, the focus is on those individuals who seek and want to maintain wealth, status, and power. “Give” is the most important part of the word forgiveness. Giving implies a sharing and a sacrifice, a letting go of one’s perceived rights for the sake of another. Compassion requires empathy, effort, and time—a willingness to put ourselves aside at least long enough to enter the world and suffering of another. This is a foolish expenditure among those committed to the principles of totalism. They live in a world of one. The most totalism will allow is quid pro quo, tit for tat. The kind of extravagant, unconditional, indiscriminate, and self-giving love incarnated and proposed by Jesus can find no place in the agendas of totalism. One reason why totalism has plagued our world for over 5000 years (the beginning of kingdoms and empires) is because it is not open to any variation from its fundamental nature. Such rigidity explains the truth behind the saying “The more things change, the more they stay the same” Methods and madness may change, but the primary goals which define totalism can never change. Greed promotes more greed, arrogance more arrogance, and violence more violence.
Brueggemann goes on to relate how pastors can be faithful in their ministry in the totalism which can be found not only in the society as a whole but also in congregations. I am a part of a denomination which affirms all followers of Jesus as ministers with their unique gifts and graces. What Brueggemann says about pastors can also be applied to all contemporary disciples.
- He warns that we must not allow ourselves to be talked out of freedom to say and be our true selves. Needless to say, vigilant intentionality and deep grounding are required to resist the temptation to surrender that freedom in a society which wants “ticky-tacky all in a row.”
- He warns that we may be talked out of honesty and must be “endlessly vigilant about what can be said and what must not be said.” Truth and freedom are intimately connected. “The truth will make you free” (John 8:32). Truth is also organically related to love. We must speak the truth in love, but we must speak the truth. True love cannot flourish in an atmosphere of lies and deceit.
- Finally, he warns that we will be tempted to “cringe from the public implications of mercy in the face of a hard quid pro quo system of regulation.” Mercy and compassion have little place in a world driven by greed, materialism, and ruthless individualism. Self-interest can take many forms in our world and in our churches. Congregations with a fortress mentality and which tend to look out only for their own (and such can be done in so many subtle and seemingly admirable ways) can be utterly indifferent to the suffering and injustice around them. Deep compassion and sacrificial sharing make no sense to our profit driven culture. Christ does not call us to charity. Christ calls us to solidarity, compassion, and sharing what belongs to God. And if the psalmist is correct, everything belongs to God. (“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” Psalm 24:1)
Perhaps the Apostle Paul best sums up the radical alternative Jesus presented to this world’s totalism: “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). Such transformation requires deep trust, unfailing vigilance, and the support of a community of followers who are courageously committed to a different way in this world.
Living the Jesus alternative has never been easy in this world.
Living the Jesus alternative has never been easy in this world. Today we have our own struggles in trying to follow the One who claims to be the way, truth, and life. However, if we look carefully at these struggles, we will find them to be very similar to those faced by previous generations of followers who have striven to be faithful. The temptations which would lure us into a compromised discipleship and a cheap grace are all camouflaged forms of greed, arrogance, and anxiety. Emancipation from the enslavement of totalism requires a deep trust in and vigilant fidelity to this One who calls to follow him into his radical alternative of cosmic shalom. Only then can we live as free children of God.
