Political Ramblings

It’s interesting the assumptions people make. Several weeks ago I posted a Take Action item from Sojourners that took the position that God is neither a Republican nor a Democrat and that the Religious Right (i. e. Falwell and Robertson) do not speak for all Christians when it comes to politics. This post has generated a decent number of responses, both in comments and emails.

Some have been offended that I posted such a thing on my blog. If I had posted it on their blog, then they would have the right to be offended, but since I put it on mine, I’m not sure what the problem is.

Some have assumed that I must be a Democrat (I’m not) because I’m asserting that God is not a Republican. I’m asserting just as strongly that he is not a Democrat. I’m sure there is plenty in both parties with which the Holy One can take issue.

Some have assumed I’m anti-Bush because of this post. I’m not. There are a number of things about Bush that I admire. There are also some things about him that bother me. The things that bother me about Bush are not enough to make me jump blindly on the Kerry bandwagon.

There is something about all the Bush-bashing that reminds me of Ken Wilber’s assessment of just about any political protest. There will always be people protesting out of principle. Mixed in with those who protest out of deeply held beliefs will be those who are protesting for no other substantive reason than an enjoyment of protesting and a general “I don’t like Bush” mentality. If pressed on any of the issues, they won’t be able to cogently tell you why they don’t like Bush. They may say something about the war in Iraq or the tax cuts for the rich, but they’ll be parroting what they’ve heard from someone on TV or radio. It won’t take much of an interview to decipher that they really don’t know what they’re talking about. What it will come back to is that they don’t like Bush and they enjoy protesting. The same can be said for those on the other side who rail against Kerry.

My chief concern in all of this is that Christians not succumb to the temptation to domesticate God by attaching a party label to the banner of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God reaches further than the agendas of the Republicans or Democrats. It is grander than the American dream. The Kingdom of God has a global scope and universal vision.

We American Christians participate in a political process because we have a political process in which to participate. Not every Christian in the world does. Since we do, we participate with tempered optimism or maybe hopeful pessimism. We believe that while some good can come from the political process, God’s dream for his world will not be realized because we elected the right president or passed the right laws. It will be realized when more of his kingdom (reign) comes into the hearts of people all over the globe (not just Americans) so that God’s will is done here on earth just as it is in heaven.

This transformation does not start at the voting booth. It starts with the way we treat the people living next door to us.