News
Social Service vs. Social Action
reporter: Jonathan, 28.6.05
Lets create an illustration to show the difference between these 2 things....There is a street corner which has no traffic lights or give way signs or any kind of traffic control systems in place. This corner has become notorious for serious accidents because of this...
Social Service would be likened to the Ambulance or other emergency services which attend the scene of these accidents. A vital thing in this situation.
Social Action would be likened to the people who petition local or central government to install traffic control systems at this intersection. Also vital.
Here is a real life situation
...Our country is falling apart because it is falling away from God...
Social Service is spreading the Gospel, helping those discriminated against, etc
Social Action is working with government to move our country back to a Biblical Moral Base.
If we Only have ambulances and never install traffic lights or if we have no ambulances and only install traffic lights then we will have big problems...
Christians as a whole need to be involved in both. And not just that, we need to work together, not criticize each other.
Social Action and Social Service are not opposites. They are different things but ultimately they leading to the same purpose. They are both nessesary.
11 Comments:
Good question... I believe I have an answer but would be curious to see other thoughts.
reporter - 
Jonathan, at 12:25 pm, June 28, 2005
I'd probadbly say you cannot separate the two.
Social service without social action is like having an ambulence at the bottom of the cliff. Why not put a fence up the top?
In fact social action can sometimes render social service unnecessary! Think of the case where abortion is criminalised. The social service of counselling women after an abortion will be used far less than it would be when abortion is still legal.
But like Jesus said - the poor will always be with us - there will always be need for social service.
reporter - Scotty, at 12:42 pm, June 28, 2005
Sorry... I was hoping to hear some other peoples ideas.
I would say they are as important as each other. As I said in my post, one without the other will not solve problems.
People have different gifts. That means that different people will be better suited to either Service or Action. I'm not suggesting that everyone should be involved with equal intensity in both. So I guess on that note, at a personal level one maybe more important than the other. But it will vary per individual.
They are two sides of a coin. Neither is more important than the other.
reporter - Jonathan, at 4:22 pm, June 28, 2005
Social Service is spreading the Gospel, helping those discriminated against, etc
Social Action is working with government to move our country back to a Biblical Moral Base.
I copied and pasted your definitions so I could read them as I right. I am not sure that I agree with the idea that the church should focus 50% of it's time on service (eg gospel and compassion works) and 50% on working with the government. Unless I have misunderstood the difference between the two perhaps?
I believe a country get the govt it deserves, surely we should spread the gospel and the people will change and thus vote in a new govt?
Anyway I haven't seen this video so I am not informed, but I would be very keen to see it.
reporter - Anita, at 4:36 pm, June 28, 2005
Anita! You are correct!! YAY tehe
The idea that the church should focus 50% of it's time on service (eg gospel and compassion works) and 50% on working with the government Is Wrong.
(I haven't really thought about this so I hope I'm right. haha)
The Church and the Government are both Ordained by God.
The Church is responcible for Social Service
The Government is responcible for Social Action.
Both of these need to be under God as they are ordained by God
What has happened is that as people have left the church it's effectiveness of doing social service has decreased and because of this the Government has assumed this role and in the process has moved away from God. So the Government we have now is outside of it's God given role of being responcible for Social Action. As Christians we need to be involved with government to encourage it to get back within it's God given role.
reporter - Jonathan, at 5:10 pm, June 28, 2005
And in addition to this:-
Christians need to work in both.
To say that the church should be separate from the state is not to say that people who are Christians shouldn't be politically involved. It is to say that the church should not take the function of the state, and also the state should not take the function of the church.
Christians must be involved in both.
reporter - Scotty, at 6:29 pm, June 28, 2005
For some individuals, the only social action required is to vote.
reporter - Nathan, at 2:08 am, June 29, 2005
So people have left the church therefore social service has decreased
Government has taken on more social service
So isn't the answer to that to get more people back to church!?
reporter - Anita, at 1:56 pm, June 29, 2005
Again you are right! :)
But it's not only that! That's one side of the coin. If as a whole Christians only focus in this area we are saying that the best way to stop people getting hurt in car accidents is more ambulances. We Still need to be involved in Social Action to return our government to it's God given role.
reporter - Jonathan, at 2:47 pm, June 29, 2005
Which is more important -service or action?
reporter -
Anita, at 12:15 pm, June 28, 2005