Mar 09 2007
Presidential Politics, The Church and The Culture War
The other day at work, I listened to two hardened leftists, liberals, Vancouverites talk about recent speculation out of the States that Rudy Guiliani’s presidential campaign is going to off the rails after some prominent Evangelicals commented on the circumstances of Mr. Guiliani’s past divorce flies in the face of all that is holy (my words, not theirs, exaggerated for effect). There was talk that the result of this would be that the religious right which saw Bush into the White House for 8 years would abandon perhaps the most electable candidate the GOP has yet fielded.
The two gentlemen both expressed joy at the thought that the Republicans would have a much less chance of winning the next presidential election with such a high profile and popular candidate knocked out. I felt compelled to speak up at this point, and explain to them that the words of a couple of loudmouths are not going to result in a mass exodus of support. Christian supporters of the GOP are not going to abandon the party because Guilani didn’t follow the Biblically prescribed reasons for divorce - heck, the divorce rate amongst Christians is still virtually identical to that of non-Christians! They didn’t believe me.
I was just reading over at Jollyblogger about a link posted by the Internet Monk to an atheist’s comment about what he experienced after having visited 30 some churches. He found that of these churches, all he found was an orientation of confrontation - that there is an “us against the eeevil world” mentality that is pervading in Christian churches. The fact of this trend is a major problem, because the atheist rightly points out that it means the church is turning away from the message of Christ. Jolly makes a good point that yes, the message of love that the atheist does not find but expects is not really the message of Christ, but it is the method of communicating the true message of redemption.
What does this have to do with presidential politics and a couple of my co-workers? It is about perception. The reason my co-workers thought that the Guiliani divorce would sink his chances at the presidency was because they think that the religious right is a monstrous force in American politics, and its sole motivation is to judge and condemn all the unrighteous and force America (and the world by extension) to conform to their onerous morality.
They may be right.
If what this atheist observed is really prevalent in the churches of the USA then I am afraid Christianity is really venturing into shark-infested waters south of the border. The Church was never meant to tie itself so closely to politics. When it happens, it is a recipe for disaster. Social change is not effected by getting “our man” into the White House (and I doubt if any Christian can really look back on GW’s 7 years in office and say categorically he really was “our guy”.) Social change, the kind we really desire, will only come about by winning hearts, one at a time, in our circle of friends, in our workplaces, in our schools, in our communities, and only THEN in our states and nations. That work is done by Christ, not by the President.
Yes, we must speak up, speak truth into the world. We don’t have to do it through our most favoured party apparatus. But we also need to love the people of the world, love them into the Kingdom. We can’t do that when we are perceived as manipulating, coercing, and co-opting political process. We must vote informed by our faith, but we mustn’t let our politics to become one with our faith. What does this lead to? Judgementalism, division, acrimony.
I’ll be the first to admit that at times, I have focused too much on evils of secularism and railed against culture’s slide into the gutter. I have not always allowed love to loom as large in my posts as perhaps I should have. I am challenged by this, and I plan to do better.
In the meantime, please as far as it concern you, don’t let your fellowship focus too much on the negative.
Reach out.
Keep reaching out.
If the evil of the world causes you to turn in protectively, the world has won. Jesus never said following Him would be easy.
In fact, he said the opposite.
2 Responses to “Presidential Politics, The Church and The Culture War”
Hi Shane,
Excellent post. I could’nt agree with you more. We, the church, should not concern ourselves with the darkness but rather major on the Light - Jesus.
His love,grace and mercy is what the world needs to know of. As Christians we should ourselves be continually soaked in His love.
Eph 3:14 - 21 “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”
Phil 1:9 - 11 ” And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.”
Phil 2:14 - 16 “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out[c] the word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.”
Be blessed,
Jack Viljoen
The Church in the Father’s Heart.
http://www.tcitfh.co.za
Thanks! Where is co.za again - is that South Africa?