In todays world, the terms liberal and conservative are considered to be so far apart and so different from each other. This is because of politics. But the term liberal in it of itself is not necessarily a bad thing like conservatives think. The word liberal can simply mean generous. I wouldn't think any conservative would say this is a bad thing.
When Aristotle is talking about the liberal man, he is not talking about democrats in todays government. What he is referring to is the same type of man found in the Bible in the book of Proverbs. Proverbs 11:25 says, "The liberal soul shall be made fat" (KJV). This means that someone who is generous or liberal will be blessed beyond measure or be made fat.
Aristotle says that the liberal man is praised for his actions. When we as Christians are liberal in our giving in our tithes and offerings, we are, in essence, praised by God and rewarded by Him.
I am a conservative in my political stance, but I try to be liberal when it comes to giving and what God says about it. So in essence, I am a Liberal Conservative.
I commented on Haylee Lynd's and Jamie Peters' post
Hi Braylan! You made a unique comparison in your blog post. I find it interesting that Aristotle's definition of liberality is so close to the Biblical definition. Politically, the term means something totally different. This goes to show how skewed a meaning can become over time when taken out of context.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't expecting your blog post to say what it said, but after reading it, I truly agree with you. It's amazing that words become polarized and stigmatized, when in the end, we should strive to be conservative in some things, liberal in others, and loving in all things. I like your blog post and how it's straight to the point. Good post!
ReplyDeleteNice comparison to bring up the opposing political parties in paragraph one, I think we often get the sense that opposing parties means opposing definitions of everything and that is simply not the case in U.S. politics. Sometimes I wonder why we should not just abolish the political party system and look to what God says like you did here. Good post!
ReplyDeleteOh boy, do I love talking about politics! (that's sarcasm by the way, please don't talk to me about politics). All notes aside though, I did find it odd that Aristotle's definition of the word 'liberal' was so different from the modern connotation of liberalism. While it certainly is strange, in a way, the word liberal is actually quite similar to liberalism, though not exactly the same. For example, liberalism is all about the wealthy giving to the unfortunate, which according to Aristotle, is what a liberal man should do. It's interesting to see how much the meanings of words can change.
ReplyDelete