Stephen L. Bloom, author of "The Believer's Guide to Legal Issues," is a Christian attorney with more than 21 years experience in private practice. He is a frequent media guest and speaker, a Lecturer in Management and Business at Messiah College, and a Consultant to the United Methodist Stewardship Foundation of Central Pennsylvania. He is a columnist for Crosswalk.com, the former host of the “Practical Counsel – Christian Perspective” radio program, and the founder of the Estate Planning Council of Cumberland County. Steve has been actively involved in the leadership of numerous community and ministry organizations, including his church, where he serves as a Certified Lay Speaker. He is a longtime member of the Christian Legal Society.
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Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord builds the city, the guard keeps watch in vain. - Psalm 127:1
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Will She or Won’t She? The Prenuptial Blues
By Stephen Bloom | May 11, 2009
Topics: Features | No Comments »
Bankruptcy for Christians Facing Financial Meltdown?
By Stephen Bloom | April 23, 2009
I don’t handle bankrupcty cases in my law practice, but in this struggling economy I get calls and questions from people in financial trouble seeking a Christian perspective on bankruptcy.
In my view, filing for bankruptcy protection can be a legitimate option for Christians facing personal economic meltdown. But bankruptcy should be a last resort, used only to provide a fair and orderly process for partial repayment of creditors. And when the bankruptcy is over, a Christian still has an ethical obligation to repay each creditor in full, even if it takes years.
As a lawyer and author, so many folks tell me their real life stories of how blessed they’ve been after repaying every last debt.
I have a full chapter on bankrupcty in my book, The Believer’s Guide to Legal Issues. If you’re reading this post because you’re facing an immediate financial crisis, you probably aren’t in a position to buy a book right now, but you can call or stop by your local public library and request them to acquire a copy, and then borrow it when it arrives. Most libraries are delighted to honor acquisition requests from patrons.
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Isn’t it okay for Christians to shade the truth a little when it comes to paying taxes?
By Stephen Bloom | April 8, 2009
What about taxes? Since the government uses so much of our tax money for immoral purposes, isn’t it okay for Christians to shade the truth a little when it comes to paying taxes? Aren’t we actually honoring God if we hide some of our income from the IRS?
I tackle these tough issues in my latest legal Q&A column at HeartBeat the Magazine.
Topics: HeartBeatTheMagazine Columns | No Comments »
New Christian “Blawg” for Lawyers, Future Lawyers, and Wannabe Lawyers
By Stephen Bloom | April 4, 2009
While Is There a Lawyer in the Church? will remain focused on providing a vital biblical Christian legal perspective for non-lawyers facing real life legal situations, my new blawg offers a forum for “Ideas and Conversation on the Integration of Christian Faith and the Law” geared more toward legal professionals and students. Check it out! Tell your legal friends, family members, and acquaintances! Spread the word!
Topics: Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
What is Christian Lawyering? Radio Interview
By Stephen Bloom | March 17, 2009
Allan D. Sobel, Director of The Adams Center for Law and Society, hosts Justice for All?, a weekly 30 minute talk radio show on WQSU-FM, 89.9, at Susquehanna University. A few months ago, I was Dr. Sobel’s guest for an interview exploring what it means to practice Christian lawyering. We also discussed tips and resources for clients seeking to find a Christian lawyer, and questions prospective clients shouldn’t be afraid to ask. Click here to listen to the full interview.
Topics: Features | 1 Comment »
Good News on the Law: More Laws or More Freedom to Cure the Great O-pression?
By Stephen Bloom | March 11, 2009
If Adam Smith were here today to witness our economic debacle, this “Great O-pression” which seems to be consuming our wealth with an unprecedented fury, would he support the idea of massive government intervention to “fix” the problems we face?
I tackle this question in my latest Good News on the Law column at GoodNewsDaily.net.
Topics: Good News Columns | No Comments »
Christian Lawyer: Not an Oxymoron
By Stephen Bloom | March 4, 2009
Here’s the teaser for a new feature article on Stephen Bloom in the March 2009 issue of A Time to Love magazine: “A secular attorney is assumed to strictly be a zealous advocate for the client, no matter what the situation, no matter what the morality of the client’s cause. But Stephen Bloom wasn’t happy working for causes that were detrimental to his Christian faith.” Click the link above to read the full article.
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Google Gives Glimpse of Legal Struggles Christians Face
By Stephen Bloom | February 5, 2009
By Stephen L. Bloom, Esq.
(Stephen’s latest Good News on the Law column from Good News Daily)
If the eyes are a window to the soul, then Google Analytics is a window to the struggles of that soul.
About a year ago, I launched my website, www.IsThereALawyerInTheChurch.com, as a helpful place for Christians seeking biblical counsel on the real life legal situations they face. It’s not a site offering specific legal advice or soliciting clients. Instead, it’s intended to be a connection point to various Christian legal resources and organizations, as well as a forum to share information from my book, “The Believer’s Guide to Legal Issues” (Living Ink Books, 2008), and my related ministry of spreading the good news that Christ offers hope and peace to those caught up in legal complexities.
When I set up my site, I registered it with Google Analytics, an amazing free tool for monitoring and analyzing web traffic. I knew it would be enlightening to learn something about the people visiting my site, but I had no idea how revealing some of the Google Analytics data would be.
And while statistics on the raw numbers of visitors, their geographical locations, and the sites that refer them are interesting, it’s the ability to see the actual search terms used by the anonymous people landing on my site that I find most intriguing. Each search term suggests its own story, and often it’s not a pretty one.
For example, my heart sinks at the thought of what unfortunate experiences must have inspired searches like “how lawyers cheat clients,” “how not to be cheated by attorney,” “ways lawyers cheat their clients,” “should Christians continue to try and find honest lawyers,” and the grammatically challenged but starkly poignant “lawyer and there skeems.”
How were these searchers being victimized by their attorneys? What professional misconduct and schemes generated such fear and suspicion? And how tragic that any lawyer anywhere would be treating clients in such a way as to make inquiries like this necessary.
And then there’s the other side of the coin, clients seeking retribution against their attorneys. Searches like “how to get even with your lawyer.” While this angry searcher surely left my site without gleaning useful ammunition for the implementation of his or her vengeful plans, the rest of the Internet is not so kind and I have no doubt some frightening answers were found. And I can only pray that God’s spirit of forgiveness would intervene before someone gets hurt.
Perhaps the person seeking revenge against a lawyer would be delighted to learn that somewhere, a lawyer was searching “lawyers cheated by clients.” Would that be comfort enough? Maybe not, but I’m betting that those of you who’ve ever reluctantly paid a lawyer’s bloated invoice are smiling at least a little at the image of this poor attorney haplessly searching the web for insight on what to do after being ripped off by his or her devious client!
And maybe the next best thing to cheating your lawyer is finding a way to avoid the need to pay for legal representation at all. The search for “Christian lawyers who work for free” reflects the surprisingly common misperception that if a lawyer is a Christian, then he or she should, of course, be willing to work pro bono for other Christians. Never mind that Christian lawyers have to feed their families and pay their bills just like everyone else! I don’t know if this misperception is as common in other professions: Is the Christian dentist expected to clean the teeth of follow believers for free? Must the Christian car mechanic do free oil changes for every brother or sister in Christ who pulls into the service bay? Why, I wonder, do so many expect their Christian lawyer to work for free?
But at least the person looking for a free Christian lawyer does seem to recognize that there are, in fact, Christian lawyers. Others are not so convinced. Hence doubt-filled searches like “are there Christian lawyers,” “can Christians be lawyers,” and the assumption-laden “why lawyers don’t go to church.” I am happy to announce that yes, there are Christian lawyers! Lots of us, actually. We have national and international organizations, conferences and training sessions, books and websites, even a number of fully accredited law schools turning out hundreds more freshly minted Christian lawyers every year! And, believe it or not, yes, many of us even go to church!
On the other hand, there is this ominous search inquiry: “lawyers who take on churches.” Unfortunately, there are plenty of those too, and I am saddened to know that the end result of a search like that will probably be a local sheriff knocking on some parsonage door and serving the pastor with a lawsuit against his congregation. Maybe the lawsuit will be justified, maybe it will be frivolous. But either way, damage will be done.
As the Apostle Paul pleaded with the Corinthians, “I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to decide between one believer and another, but a believer goes to court against a believer – and before unbelievers at that? In fact, to have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? But you yourselves wrong and defraud – and believers at that.” 1 Corinthians 6:5-8. A lose-lose situation, to be sure.
Meanwhile, other searchers are asking “can Jesus save you from legal issues?” It may sound like a naïve or desperate question, but my answer would be yes, He can. In my twenty-plus years of law practice, I’ve come to realize that following God’s counsel on legal matters can, in fact, save you from much grief and heartache. I’m not claiming that God will help you win your case or avoid the consequences for your actions. But if you are willing to take the bold step of being a peacemaker in the circumstances you find yourself facing, God can and will deliver you from the miserable cycle of greed, retribution and destruction that accompanies most legal action.
Sometimes, the searches are more mysterious in nature. I can only wonder what the person searching “a lawyer representing Jesus in court” is trying to find. Perhaps the searcher perceives that a lawyer who represents the least of these (orphans, widows, the poor, the oppressed – the potential list gets quite lengthy) is truly representing Christ? Perhaps the question is whether Jesus had an earthly advocate in the sham trial that sent Him to the cross? It’s a fascinating question. But in the final analysis, really it is Christ who becomes our lawyer (our advocate), not the other way around. Christ is the one who redeems us from the harsh judgment we would surely face without Him at our side.
And then there’s this search: “I’m confused and tired.” Why this forlorn query led someone to my legal website, I have no idea. But it is fitting. The scripture quote on my sidebar leads right to the answer, from Psalm 127:1: “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord builds the city, the guard keeps watch in vain.”
And if the searcher would turn to the Bible and open that passage, they would see the next verse, Psalm 127:2: “It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives sleep to his beloved.” It’s my hope and prayer that this unknown searcher, and all those others seeking help for the challenging situations they face, would turn to God and find clarity and peace.
Topics: Good News Columns | 3 Comments »
The Madoff Scandal and Three Essential Questions on Wealth
By Stephen Bloom | January 16, 2009
By Stephen L. Bloom, Esq.
(Stephen’s latest Good News on the Law column from Good News Daily)
As a Christian lawyer, I’ve had the privilege of presenting my advice and counsel to thousands of individuals over the past 20 years. A primary emphasis of my law practice is estate planning, which I see as an important aspect of Christian stewardship. And a primary emphasis of my estate planning is to encourage those I serve to maintain a healthy Christian perspective on the whole subject of wealth: What is it? Whose is it? Where is it going?
News about the unfolding scandal involving prominent Wall Street investment guru Bernard Madoff and his epic Ponzi-scheme, a swindle in which $50 billion has vanished into thin air and many “wealthy” investors have been completely wiped out, reminds me of the truth of God’s clear answers to those three essential questions on wealth.
As Christians living in a fallen world, a world where moral meltdowns like the Madoff rip-off are all too common, it’s vital for us to seek biblical wisdom on those questions, to know God’s answers, and to live like we trust those answers.
So, what is wealth? Our materialistic culture tells us wealth is the path to pleasure and power, the way to satisfy our wants and fulfill our desires, a goal worth striving for with everything we can muster. But is wealth really meant to be lavished upon ourselves? Did God design us just so we could accumulate things and then use those things to indulge our own whims and fancies? Is a life spent chasing and clinging to wealth a life well lived?
In Proverbs 10:22, the word of God says, “The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it.” It seems then, first of all, that wealth is something arising from God’s blessing, not something we need to be consumed with pursuing in the strength of our own efforts. Intriguingly, in Mark 4:19, Jesus even describes “the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things” as factors that may “come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.” Wealth, unless it arises from God’s blessing, can be harmful to us in our Christian life! And Proverbs 3:9 says “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops.” The purpose of wealth isn’t our own comfort, it’s to help us honor God! So, in Christian perspective, a working definition of wealth might be “A blessing from God to be used to honor God.”
And whose wealth is it? Obviously, the world teaches that our wealth is, well, ours! We make a big deal about protecting “our” wealth, securing “our” wealth, insuring “our” wealth, spending “our” wealth. We engage the most sophisticated advisors and consultants, searching high and low for the best places to invest “our” wealth, seeking the highest rates of return, hoping to increase “our” holdings. This is precisely what drove so many people to invest with Madoff. But what if the wealth isn’t ours?
Scripture reveals the absurdity of the notion that we actually own and control “our” wealth. Isaiah 45:8b says, “Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the LORD, have created it.” In Psalm 50:10-12, God proclaims, “for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.” And Psalm 39:6 says, “Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.” So not only is wealth a blessing from God to be used to honor God, it’s God’s wealth anyway! We don’t truly own it or control it, we are merely stewards of it for God, temporary beneficiaries of God’s generosity.
And where is the wealth going? We’ve got an entire investment and estate planning industry built largely on perpetuating the appealing belief that we can and should, through the proper vehicles and techniques, maintain wealth for our own lifetimes and beyond for our chosen heirs. While certainly sound planning for the future, done with a strong measure of faith and humility, is an essential element of good stewardship, the self-centered arrogance that forms the foundation of many of our prevalent investment and estate planning strategies goes beyond stewardship into the realm of greed and audacity. And this mindset of greed and audacity is what enables and empowers the Madoff’s of the world to perpetrate their grandiose frauds.
But despite all our expensive schemes, complicated devices and outright hubris, one thing is absolutely clear from God’s word: We don’t get to keep the wealth! Most of us realize we can’t take the material trappings of this world on to the next (“Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.” Proverbs 11:4), but do we realize how fleeting wealth is?
Proverbs 23:5 says “Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.” I Timothy 6:17-19 says “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”
And Revelation 3:17 says, “You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” These are but a few of many passages with similar warnings about the transient nature of wealth. Where is wealth going? Away! Were the people who invested with Madoff and lost everything surprised? Maybe, but perhaps they shouldn’t have been.
For Christians, maintaining a solid biblical perspective on wealth is essential. Wealth is a blessing from God to be used to honor God, it’s God’s wealth, and it’s going away. When we accept the reality of these principles and make our decisions accordingly, we can live in freedom and joy. And no financial scandal or economic disaster, no matter how big or shocking, can take that from us.
Topics: Good News Columns | 2 Comments »
The Litigation Trap and the Christian Conciliation Alternative: Christianity 9 to 5
By Stephen Bloom | January 7, 2009
The latest issue of Christianity 9 to 5 Magazine is featuring a piece entitled ”The Litigation Trap and the Christian Conciliation Alternative.”
From the article: “In our litigious society, it’s become a cultural norm for people to turn to lawyers and the courts to settle their conflicts. But when should a Christian litigate? Under what circumstances should we rely on the judicial system to resolve our disputes? And what alternatives, if any, are there for those with legitimate claims? In this pair of chapters from his book The Believer’s Guide to Legal Issues, Stephen Bloom provides some clarifying perspective.”
Topics: Features | No Comments »
