Dear Church,
What are the two conversation starters that are taboo? Religion and Politics, right? Anything else is fair game, but for friendly conversations, we better steer clear of conversations regarding religion or politics. I find that notion ironic since nearly every other conversation I hear or am in lately seems to be about either religion or politics. Granted, I’m a pastor by trade, so religious conversations seem to come with the territory, but I’m amazed lately how passionate conversations about politics turn out to be. I’m leading the monthly meeting of the South Holland Ministerial Association listening about the campaign of one of our former members now setting her sights on a State Senate position. I hear conversations among people on the treadmill at the Community Center talking about this candidate and that candidate. But if you really want to talk politics, well then there’s no better place than the Holland Home. You try sipping down a cup of coffee with five 80 plus year olds and just throw this question out, “so guys, what did you think about that Republican debate last night?” You get my point. Truth be told, I enjoy the political tenor of conversations. I enjoy listening to the different candidates share their views and take their stands. I enjoy listening to friends and their political takes on the whole situation. And I enjoy listening to different ideas on how to save the world.
The question then becomes, what should Christians do? The answer to that question is about as varied as their opinions on how to fix the economy or solve unemployment. Some have thought to simply remove themselves from the political sphere all together. Others have contended that if you are a Christian, then you must be a Democrat, or you must be a Republican for that matter. I think I’ve shared with you before that in the Bible’s native tongue, there really is no word for spiritual. Meaning, all of life is spiritual. All of life is covered by the handiwork of God. And thus, all of our lives take on a spiritual dimension. We can’t separate our physical life, from our spiritual life, or from our political life. All of life is spiritual. Which is to say, that how we vote is impacted by our Christian faith just like what we put into our bodies is impacted by our Christian faith, just like how we read the Bible is impacted by our Christian faith. So again, what should Christians do?
Now I’m no political strategist and I certainly have a very limited IQ when it comes to public policy, but one thing that troubles me the most is how divided we have become as a nation. It seems like we are sooooo far apart that nothing will ever really get done. Even the process of how candidates candidate is so divisive. When did it become normal to run all the negative political adds and throw your opponent under the bus to make yourself look better? I wish just once we could hear a candidate answer a question without first attacking the position of another candidate. Or maybe once we could hear a politician offer an apology when they’ve fallen short. He said, she said, they said – who in the world knows what to believe or who to believe it from anymore anyway?!
Alright, enough venting. But is there a solution in all this madness? Well, I think there might be. I think the Christian response is first and foremost an active response. Our Christian faith should impact who we put into Office. But maybe more than that, our Christian faith should impact the process of the political system and political process. Praying for people from both sides to simply come together. Praying that God would raise up a new generation of gifted and talented Christian men and women to take part in the political system. Praying political slogans would be more than phrases on billboards and actually result in something. But I’m praying today that the way we talk about politics would bring God glory.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Matt
