Some of these people make us feel embarrassed
to admit we believe. In fact, a big reason non-partisan Christians don’t speak out more is because many people think all evangelicals are marching in lock-step with one political party (primarily the Republicans in the U.S.)
and we don’t want to be lumped in with them. But the truth is many of us are
different and view our faith differently, especially when it relates to
politics.
I used to be more conservative and sympathetic to the U.S. Republican Party and the Conservative parties in Canada and the U.K. That was back in the ’80’s, during the Reagan-Thatcher-Mulroney era. But I am no longer, especially not since these parties came to represent the Super-rich and the Far Right.
I now lean more to the Democratic or Liberal parties. To many Christians this would be unthinkable, mainly because of their stands on abortion and gay rights, but I believe there are more than just those issues to consider. I find the emphasis on these moralistic matters almost elevates them to the level of unforgivable, irreconcilable sins; which is anti-biblical. Shouldn't we be just as concerned with inequity in society and the treatment of the poor, or about rampant materialism? And I really question whether Jesus would have been actively partisan in relation to those "hot-button"issues.
When He was here, He never organized politically against the
Romans who ruled Judea with an iron fist, nor did He march
outside Herod’s palace to try to free John the Baptist (who was His cousin,
after all) after he was arrested. In fact, He said the Jews should pay their
Roman taxes without complaint.
The people He hung out with were prostitutes, tax collectors (the equivalent of loan sharks in First Century Israel) and the poor; not so-called “job-creators” (the rich) or the military most current Republicans would rather fraternize with. The people He criticized, and with considerable venom, were the ultra-religious Pharisees, who went around trying to enforce religious rules and impose a heavy moral code on the people.
I believe if He were in our midst today He would not join any party, and would condemn policies to make the poor poorer, the rich richer, or impose Pharisaic rules on the rest of us.
Jesus responded to the world by doing His Father’s work – healing the sick (for free), feeding the poor (as in the miracle of the loaves and fishes) and spreading peace and grace to as many people as possible. Never, before praying for anyone, did He ask anyone how depraved a sinner they were, or whether they had paid their tithes, or if they supported the King, the Sanhedrin or the Romans, or any part of the power structure.
Some might point out Jesus said persistent sinners should pluck out their eyes or cut off their hands, but that was only to let us know how far we would have to go to adhere to the Mosaic law's perfect standards, which He knew we could never achieve on our own.
New Testament Christianity exalts the way of truth, grace and the spirit -- not self-righteousness and rigid religious law. An honest reading of the epistles of Paul makes this abundantly clear.
Some Christians on the Right have talked about resorting to their guns or of facing martyrdom for their cause against “secular socialists”. There is also a strong streak of “Dominionism” – which advocates creating an orthodox, Christianized government based on Old Testament law, that in its' most extreme form would punish homosexuality or teenage rebellion by banishing the "condemned" to "special camps", or worse.
Thankfully there are still a few positive Christian leaders preaching grace and the fact that God is good, and so is His Son.
Most contemporary American Christians seem to have fallen into the same kind of trap many of Jesus’ followers fell into when He was on Earth; believing that it is up to them to establish a literal Kingdom of God here -- without waiting for God to do it, losing sight of His true message of grace, favour and peace.
No comments:
Post a Comment