蜜芽传媒

鈥淟iberation, noun. The action of setting someone free from imprisonment, slavery, or oppression.鈥� A word used by Donald Trump, the leader of the richest country in the world, to describe his new tariff reforms. His plans have the goal of making life better in the long-run for ordinary Americans. It鈥檚 unclear what the impact might be for the rest of the world, but this isn鈥檛 the point. America First is the point.

As our own government prepares to cut benefits from some disabled people, the most economically vulnerable group in our country, and as we head into a month which we鈥檙e told will include yet more price hikes and rises, generosity feels like a dwindling resource. The urge to put ourselves first when times are hard is a strong one.

But is this true liberation? There are many times in my life when I鈥檝e been grateful for people who chose to put others ahead of themselves. When I first joined a church, as a mum of babies and young children, with very little money, a member of that church helped us out by giving us her camping gear; a large tent, cooking equipment, everything we needed to have a family holiday. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 mine is yours,鈥� she said.

This was a familiar sentiment to me. The council estate where I grew up in the 1980s was a place where people shared what little they had. Nappies, milk, cigarettes. You鈥檇 regularly be sent to a neighbour to beg a 50 pence piece for the electricity meter, and all the kids wore one another鈥檚 hand me down clothes. True scarcity creates generosity out of necessity. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 mine is yours,鈥� was a foundational value, prioritising relationship over individual needs.

This principle of reciprocity; the belief that generous deeds should be repaid with generosity, is key to a story Jesus told about a shrewd manager. It鈥檚 one of the more difficult parables in the gospels, describing a rich man鈥檚 steward who has mismanaged his master鈥檚 estate. To solve his predicament - and save his job 鈥� the steward invites his master鈥檚 tenant farmers to alter their bills to enable them to pay, but to pay less; one could say he lowered the tariffs on them. In doing this the manager sets up credit for himself with the tenant farmers, ensuring he will never be friendless. It鈥檚 an encouragement to use what we have wisely to create lasting relationships, instead of hoarding it for ourselves.

If great wealth doesn鈥檛 promote generosity, and instead creates a scarcity mindset characterised by fear and greed, then that doesn鈥檛 sound like liberty. Jesus said, 鈥渁ll I have is yours, and all you have is mine.鈥� This is the meaning of true liberation. Deliverance. Salvation. To be set free.

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