Disclaimer, part one: I don't talk about politics here, partly because I don't like to talk politics, partly because I'm not some talk-show-radio-listening, political-blog-reading expert who has brilliant thoughts to contribute about the subject, but mostly because the topic is vicious. It brings out the worst in people. The conflict (especially between Christians) scares me.
That being said, today, I'm tip-toeing onto the frozen lake of politics. Most likely, the ice will crack, and I'll plunge into icy water and end up fighting hypothermia at the hospital. I do this because political questions have been plaguing me, and since I believe that part of the role of social media is the opportunity to hash things out and learn in community, here we go.
Let me state my issue up front:
As a Christian, how do I best love the Lord my God and love my neighbor as myself through politics? How can I best contribute to the spiritual formation of others (or, putting it another way, how can I best help others be more human), as well as my own spiritual formation, in this arena?
Disclaimer, part two: Obviously, I believe that spiritual formation (or, as I now prefer to call it, human formation, as spiritual formation is the process of making us more human, meaning more like who God intended us to be) begins in the Church. My desire is not to take this responsibility away from the Church and give it to the government.
In truth, I'd prefer to ignore the whole thing, abstain from voting, and claim "Disclaimer, part two" as my way out. I don't believe that is what God calls us, too, though. As I incarnate Christ, I do so in every aspect of my life. If I believe that Christ can transform culture, than I'm responsible to participate in his kingdom work through the power of the Holy Spirit in every aspect of culture.
Disclaimer, part three: I do not believe this means that any human government will be the government of Christ's kingdom. I don't believe we can rightfully call a nation or government "Christian," nor do I believe any nation or government (except for the Israelites) to be chosen by God. Again, I'd like to use this as my reasoning from withdrawing from the world of politics. But I say this more to assert that I'm not seeking a theocracy or a return to a Constantinian rule, nor am I looking to figure out which political party is more Christian than the other.
I pledge allegiance to God's kingdom. In other words, I'm not concerned with how I can best serve America but how I can best serve God's kingdom, specifically in the realm of politics. This means my allegiance to God's kingdom, not my allegiance to America, affects my thoughts on issues such as healthcare reform, the war in the Middle East, and abortion. It affects my ideas of justice and how, as a Christian, I am to go about working toward justice (or, I suppose, am I to go about working toward justice?).
To be fair, I believe Christians who vote as Republicans and Christians who vote as Democrats consider this in their decision-making. I also suspect that Christians who vote as Republicans and Christians who vote as Democrats don't consider this in their decision-making.
This is enough for now. On another day, I'll work up the courage to ask specific questions on specific issues. I'll perhaps even confess my struggles in the political arena (an appropriate term, conjuring up bull-fighting or rugby). Today, let's leave things here.
The only thing I know for sure, is that I need to pray for the people that are leading -- whether it be city, county, state, or nation.
I don't have a queasy feeling in my stomach yet.
The closest I've seen to civil blog comments is in JesusCreed.
Of course, I don't read political blogs, so my sample is skewed.
Good luck.
I'm a fan of Greg Boyd's "Myth of a Christian Nation," though the implications of living it fully faithfully are pretty wild.
I also don't usually blog about politics . . . also because I hate the fights that break out (also, hate that I can't use my mad karate skills in cyberspace). But kudos to you for taking it on.
Nice to have you back!
You read my mind. I hate discussing about politics and I think I blogged about something political once ... maybe twice ... because I'm afraid of the heartburn that it generates. It has such easy potential to go to such wicked and uncharitable places.
With that, I say AMEN.
It's so true. If we're going to act politically in any way (anything from voting to participating in discussions or running for office), we need to remember as you said, that our allegiance is to Christ first. I've run into a lot of similarly wicked and uncharitable tactics in blogs discussing the Protestant/Catholic issue ... Christian charity and virtue goes out the window entirely. It's as if we think the issue being an emotional one grants us exemption from Christ's commands to love one another, to be humble, and to do all we can to preserve Christian unity.
It makes me sad. They'll know we are Christians by our love, right? Or lack thereof.
Ah, politics!!
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