Today I felt the need to speak in a bit of a
different direction after seeing some of the unpredictable political news
stories over the last few days. Election 2016 is certain to be
interesting and engaging in our country, and will be followed around the world.
This week was Super Tuesday, when many primary contests are scheduled in
the same day, but it appears as if the election cycle is nowhere near its
completion.
With this in mind, I'd like to reflect on the role of
the Christian in politics, specifically in our country (as governments and
politics vary greatly across the world and during the years). Now please
realize that many books have been written on this topic, and there is a
lot of disagreement among Christians as to how and to what degree we ought to
be involved in politics. The following will be some generalizations I
make, informed by our tradition of Scripture and our Methodist heritage.
But also know that my views will not perfectly match others' views.
1. This leads straight into my first point.
Christians do not agree on how and to what extent we ought to be involved
in politics. And that disagreement is not a deal-breaker for us.
Some Christians believe in having very little to do with politics, even to the
point of not voting. There are many Christian groups, such as Mennonites,
who disavow military service entirely, as one example. At the same time,
there are other Christians who believe it is our sacred duty to participate in
politics so as to build a world that is fertile for God's Kingdom. This
of course looks a lot different based on who you ask, but the sentiment is the
same. But I find that the Gospel of Jesus Christ can be
witnessed both inside and outside of the political arena. For some, they
love politics and get really involved in their local and national community.
For others, they cannot or will not tolerate the political scene
whatsoever, but will engage in their world through other avenues. We are
the church because each of us has been gifted a unique set of abilities and a
one-of-a-kind temperament. Let us be the salt of the earth and a light
into our world, whether we participate in the political parts of that world or
not.
2. In the democratic world, whether in a high school
contest for Student Body President or for a seat in the US Senate, there are
usually multiple candidates for whom you could vote, and for whatever reason(s)
you choose. That means that politics are inherently competitive,
where two or more people are facing off to woo the votes of their constituents.
In this way, politics are no different from televised sports--two teams, for
example, rally together, practicing for years, in order to defeat their
opponent in the same skills they have rehearsed for those years. The only
difference between sports and politics is that athletes are competing with
their physical and mental prowess, whereas politicians are competing with
speeches, organization and fund-raising!! And just like with football or
basketball, politics is a spectator sport where we cheer for our
"team" to win against the other(s)!!Since the political world is a competition, and we
voters are invested in our "team" to win, we must recognize that can
generate poor sportsmanship between people on different teams. Put in
other terms, when we participate in politics, we must be weary of our
capacity to be boastful winners and sore losers. As Christians, we
are taught by Scripture to love our neighbors, giving them the shirt off our
back if only it is needed by another. Regardless of which team we have
joined, we must respect and treat one another with loving kindness, and not
judge others whose views seem deplorable in our eyes.
3. Now even in America's two-party system, the
primaries are a time when we potentially have many choices in the presidential
race. For example, the Republican Party had no fewer than five names
listed on the primary ballot in Tennessee, and indeed all Super Tuesday states.
How do we determine whom to support? Simply put, we vote
for the candidate who best exemplifies what we imagine a president to look
like, with the characteristics, beliefs and agendas that most closely align
with our values. So far, this is a bit obvious!The problem lies when we assume that our personal vantage
point is the center of the universe!! With our limited vision, we quickly
cobble together an impression in our minds for the candidates on the ballot,
but far too often we then assume that our favored candidate is the only
"right" candidate to choose, and therefore all others candidates are
"wrong". The truth is there are no "right"
candidates and no "wrong" ones, because all candidates and all
political parties are full of human beings! No one is perfect, and yet
God loves all of us, even those who reject God. Your preferred candidate
is a preference based on your unique view of the world; that doesn't discredit
your viewpoint, but it also doesn't discredit your neighbor, who sees the world
quite differently. When we understand political preferences to be
associated with viewpoints, we no longer view one another as "wrong"
in our choices, but rather we can respect one another for having a different
perspective on life.
4. And as you may have guessed, Christians do not all
have the same viewpoint! In fact, we should view it as strange that so
many people believe that a particular candidate, or even a whole political
party, could speak for us as a faith!! Christians are too diverse to
be represented by a single politician or political party. This makes
sense, because God loves and reaches out to all of us and that
means a great diversity of viewpoints and understandings. And while that
diversity is represented right here in the United States, imagine how that
diversity is magnified when we think about the viewpoints of Christians on all
six continents around the world!!So it is important for us as Christians to recognize
that our faith is much larger and broader than any politics we could
imagine. God is much bigger than political ideology, political
parties, convention speeches, etc. And that's why most political parties
will have Christians present. Do not be deceived into thinking one party
or one person is the clear "Christian" candidate!
5. This final point I'm making (although I could
probably type all night) is about self-identification of Christian faith.
The fact is that Christians far too often judge whether or not political
candidates are Christian, when this is not something that we are at liberty to
do! Whether or not somebody believes in God and puts his or her faith
in Jesus Christ as Lord is not something anybody else can correct, judge,
determine or decide. Please let us never question someone's faith,
because professing Christ publicly is a powerful act that, in other places of
the world and throughout history, could easily be a death sentence.However, Scripture does tell us about spiritual
fruit, and how Christ as the gardener (Luke 13) is interested in helping us
bear that fruit, even if we are unlikely trees!! There are many passages
that directly talk about spiritual fruit (Galatians 5), but don't consider
these to be exhaustive lists. In fact, when we think about fruitfulness
as disciples of Jesus Christ, we look to the whole example of Christ's life and
ministry on earth. Fruitfulness is living in Christ's shoes, and being in
solidarity with the poor and poor in spirit. So if you want to think
about political candidates in terms of Christianity, your best bet is to think
about how much their lives mimic Jesus'; and odds are, you won't find much in
common, as Jesus was economically poor, politically inept, without any
political power, and lived in a world devoid of democracy.
I encourage you to vote this election season if you
are led to do so. And I encourage you to vote for whom you will vote.
In our church alone, we probably have every major candidate in this
election represented by at least one supporter, and yet we are bound in
Christian love for one another and our community. Our political participation,
unless we successfully run for state or national politics, is unlikely to cause
radical change in our world. Our perspectives will remain the same, and
others will continue to vote and see the world as they do. Among
Christians, politics all too often functions as a tool of division. I
encourage you to prayerfully consider how, in this election year, you will move
forward and encounter others in a way that does not divide, but unites through
love. With all of the issues at stake in each election, our debates can
become resentful in a heartbeat. But no matter the issues, whoever the
candidates may be, and in whatever direction our nation heads, our God
is bigger than all of it, and has the whole universe in his loving hands.
There is no politician that can save our world, for Christ has already come for
that purpose; and there is no politician who can destroy us, because we are
inheritors of eternity.
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