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Jumpstarter 10 of 10

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Question 10

Leo Tolstoy’s critique claims the church effectively told Constantine: keep killing, lusting, executing, and living in luxury—“that can all be arranged”—and invented a Christianity where “Christ having died, Constantine can live as he likes.” In what ways could our own versions of “Christianity can be arranged” show up today (personally or institutionally), and what would it cost to bring our lives back under Jesus’ commands (“resist not evil,” “lay up not riches,” “judge not”)?

Another way to ask: How might we be tempted today to say, “Christianity can be arranged,” so we can keep living the way we want (as individuals or as churches)? What would it cost to truly live under Jesus’ commands like “resist not evil,” “lay up not riches,” and “judge not”?

Direct Answer Dean uses Tolstoy to warn that Christians can reshape faith to fit power, comfort, and sin—creating a version of Christianity that doesn’t demand obedience to Jesus’ commands. Returning would cost us the right to keep cherished patterns (violence, wealth, judgmentalism, luxury) while still calling it Christian.

Support from Transcript:

Tolstoy’s quoted charge: no one told Constantine “among you, it shall not be so,” or “resist not him that is evil,” “lay up riches,” “judge not.”
Instead they told him he could “continue to be the chieftain of the robbers… kill, burn, fight, lust, execute, and live in luxury… That can all be arranged.”
Tolstoy concludes they “carefully devised a Christianity… [so he could] live his old heathen life unembarrassed.”
Dean applies it to his passion: “how does that happen?”—how people “bought a lie” and even later “pray to this guy.”
He connects this intoxication to Constantine-era privilege: “gold robes… eating with the emperor himself.”

Discussion Follow-ups Where do we practically excuse disobedience by leaning on a “Christ died, so I can live as I like” mindset? What would we have to give up—status, security, money, retaliation—to take Jesus’ commands seriously as actual marching orders?

Jumpstarter 10 of 10