Okay, this may be somewhat of a controversial post. You have been warned with this preface… Sorry if that bothers you!
I’ve decided lately that with the increasing media coverage of the Republican presidential hopefuls that I should maybe start paying attention and/or thinking about how I’m going to vote next year. I don’t believe that I’ve really made much of an informed voting decision in the past (given that this will only be my third presidential voting period and for the first two I wasn’t a real adult who cared about real adult things). True story: W and I voted for the first time at 17 (scandal!) in the 2004 primaries because we were going to eventually be 18 by the time the general election rolled around. Do you know enough at 17 to be a legitimate voter? Hmm. I’m tempted to say no.
Anyway, I haven’t at all made up my mind for how I’m going to vote, and I realize that there are still many, many, many months of campaigning and propaganda and hateful TV commercials and speeches and Newsweek articles left before I need to make up my mind. That said, I have a couple of random thoughts floating around my brain regarding the subject, which I figured might be beneficial (if only for myself) to get out there. Please note that these thoughts are heavily informed by conversations, sermons, books, research, etc with friends, my dad, Andy Stanley, Philip Yancey, and The Bible. I’m not taking too much credit for any of this. Haha
Thought #1: I am intrigued by how conservatism in the south is a cultural thing.
I have attempted to explain my thoughts about this to various southern friends with little success. Probably because it’s all they know, and how are they supposed to know or understand otherwise if it’s all they know? My experience in the North has been this… people have their religious beliefs, they have their political beliefs, and they have their experiences related to both. There seems to be a general consensus that everyone is entitled to their beliefs, but these thoughts and beliefs are very rarely wrapped up in the self-definition or identity of the person. Not so here in the South. Here, religion and politics seem intimately tied to who people consider themselves to be. I think that’s part of the reason that southerners typically aren’t super forthcoming with their thoughts about it. And because religion is an integral part of that southern identity (here we are in the Bible Belt!), conservatism swiftly follows. This intrigues me. I’m not entirely sure what to do about it or how to approach it. Sometimes it seems to me that southern people are conservative "just because we’re southern"… like that’s all the justification that one needs. It’s like southern people grew up on conservatism like I grew up on Ohio State football. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s also not something that I really understand.
Thought #2: I am bothered when conservatism is marketed as being congruent with Christianity
I'm going to tread lightly on this one and attempt to stay off of my soapbox. Bottom line: Republican agenda and that of the religious right is NOT Jesus's agenda. It is not the same as the "Christian agenda" (if you can say that there is one). I'm highly bothered and concerned when political conservativism and Christianity are treated like they are one and the same. They are not. Based on my reading and understanding of the Bible, here's my guess about where Jesus "aligns" and where He doesn't with some hot-topic issues in contemporary politics:
-Jesus would agree with conservatives that we shouldn't murder babies and that marriage is between a man and a woman.
-Jesus would NOT agree with conservative thought that it's okay to murder murderers and that gun possession is a necessary and personal right.
-Jesus would agree with liberals in that we all have a responsibility to care for the poor, that humankind wasn't designed to have a handful of "haves" and nations upon nations of "have nots."
-Jesus would disagree with liberal thought that a bigger government is the answer to our worldly problems.
Hmmmm... It looks to me like if Jesus were around today, He wouldn't pick sides. He couldn't pick sides and stay true to all of His teachings. It concerns me when people are quick to pick up the flag of conservatism and carry it in the name of Jesus. It's not the same and I fear that Christianity's alignment with any political party (regardless of that party's platform) ends up doing more harm to the greater work of building the Kingdom of God than it does good.
Thought #3: The Issue of Free Will
Here's a conundrum... God is a God that believes in free will. He values humans' free will mightily; if He didn't, why would He have given Adam and Eve the choice to turn away from Him? Why would He have created them with the ability and the option to choose another way? God values free will because He wants His children to choose Him... not out of coercion, but out of love. In this vein, God gives us the option today, every day, to choose to accept Christ's sacrifice, to choose to believe what He says to be true, and to choose obedience to Him.
The conundrum is this... both of the reigning political parties in America force American citizens into some part of God's agenda. Conservativism forces Americans into a moral code that is decidedly Christian. Liberalism forces Americans to give economically for the poor, the sick, the imprisoned - also decidedly Christian. In this way, participants from either party can claim (and frequently do claim) to be acting on behalf of God...
...but God doesn't force us into anything...
So, if any political party is acting "on the behalf of God" (whether they admit to it in that verbiage or not), but they're actually acting contrary to the foundational nature of God in their pursuits, are they truly aligned with God's will or are they not? Many pastors argue that God doesn't hold non-believers accountable to the same standards of behavior that He does His children. As such, are we right to force God's standards on American citizens today? I don't know... The tricky issue of free will. Hmmmm.
So anyway, those are about all of my thoughts for the day. You can clearly see that I have many more questions than I have resolutions or answers. That's okay. Just a few things to think and pray about in the coming months! I also welcome your thoughts and comments - leave them if you have 'em!
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