We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.
Christians Should…
The American Jesus blog recently posted a series of reflections from Christians arguing for different ways of voting including, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Jill Stein, as well as an argument for not voting. It’s a little bit disturbing that each post is titled “Why Christians Should…” as this reflects the way we confuse our mission in the world with our politics. But what we appreciate about this is the awareness that thoughtful and faithful Christians can disagree when it comes to politics and have very good reasons for doing so. This is why we refuse to weigh in on any particular political position. What we have in common is so much bigger than the places where we differ, and we need to distinguish between the political realm and the kingdom of this world. In the final wrap-up post, Zack Hunt pulls it all together with some really helpful thoughts.
From the wrap-up:
All that is not to say that as Christians we can’t or shouldn’t have political opinions or that we can’t or shouldn’t voice those opinions vigorously. There is great virtue in many of the political causes we champion. I would even go a step further and argue that it is our faith which, in many cases, is the source of those causes we are so passionate about. However, no matter how noble our cause may be, as Christians we are never excused from being humble or acting with civility towards those we disagree with.
Let’s all stay humble in this season and remember where our ultimate allegiance lies.
Image by Chris barker. Sourced via Flickr.
Related Reading
A Brief History of Political Power and the Church
The history of the church has been largely one of believers refusing to trust the way of the crucified Jesus and instead giving in to the very temptation he resisted. It’s the history of an institution that has frequently traded its holy and distinct mission for what it thought was a good mission. It is…
12 Reasons for Keeping the Kingdom of God Separate from Politics, Part 1
Image by the justified sinner via Flickr Jesus came to establish a kingdom that was not of this world. This is why Jesus refused to call on angels to defend himself and why he forbid his followers to use violence to defend themselves or advance their cause. It’s also why neither Jesus nor Paul nor…
Should Christians Recite the Pledge of Allegiance?
A number of years ago I attended a basketball game at a Christian school. Just before the game everyone was asked to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance. So I stood, placed my hand over my heart, and began to recite our national creed. Halfway through, however, I began to wonder what I was…
The Life and Death of MLK and What it Might Have to Say to Us
Tony Fischer via Compfight Here is an EXCELLENT reflection from Jonathan Martin in answer to a question that was posed to him on how he reconciles his rejection of the politics of this world with the social justice work of MLK. This is a must read. From the article: So to come to the question,…
The Political Ambiguity of the Abortion Issue
José Manuel Ríos Valiente via Compfight. As an illustration of the ambiguity of the abortion question when approaching it from a political point of view, here’s an article portraying Obama as a hero of the pro-life movement. Our purpose for posting this isn’t to suggest that all of us should vote for Obama in light of…
Dear Greg: How Do You Handle Assumptions People Make About You When They Learn You Are a Christian?
Greg talks about demonstrating counter-examples in a world overflowing with assumptions and prejudices. http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0350.mp3