radical moderate

I have been listening to Eddie Izzard on Radio 2 this morning and have found it fascinating and hilarious. When asked about his political views he described himself as a ‘radical moderate’. I like that.

The meaning of ‘radical’ has its roots in agriculture (pun intended). It is about cutting a plant back to its roots to enable fresh growth. That aspect of the word has been lost over time so it means something or someone that is a bit ‘edgy’ or ‘out of the box’.

If you could hold both of those in creative tension you would have a brilliant description of Jesus. He both called people back to the roots of their heritage: to rediscover their relationship with God and strip away all of the extra bits that had accumulated; and he called people to a new way of living that pushed people to consider others how God sees them.

And moderate? Well, look at how he was with the fragile, broken, discarded people he met. Look at how he got angry at those who made it difficult for people to encounter God. Look at how he reacted when arrested.

So perhaps his followers should be radical moderates.
What will that look like for you today?

Be blessed, be a blessing.

And if you want a wonderful listen – go to the Radio 2 website and listen to Chris Evans’ breakfast show and listen to Eddie Izzard, and finish with Rev Steve Chalke’s Pause For Thought! Woohoo.