Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Part V: Obama 2012?
PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE POST BEFORE RESPONDING AND IN SO DOING PLEASE USE SCRIPTURE IN CONTEXT (pet peeve)
Yes I am a Pastor, and yes I am voting for Obama again. I know that publicly announcing my presidential choice for 2012 is just one more step taken toward career suicide. However, in my ventures (which inevitably seem to piss off the entire conservative Christian world) I have made some very difficult decisions regarding my political party preference and my faith. I invite those reading this to finish the article before jumping to any conclusions or posting any hurtful comments.
There is a common misconception in this nation that states to be a Christian means to be politically conservative by default. I am in no way saying that there are not Republicans who are in deed Christian, I am simply saying that these conservatives are not the ONLY Christians in America. Regrettably there is a plethora of believers who preach that as Christians we should only vote concerning four topics and those topics are abortion, gay marriage, the war on terror, and taxes. Before I continue I should probably elaborate on my own stance for these four issues
In regards to abortion I am pro-life, however I am also anti-war because I believe all life is sacred regardless of age. Think about it. You cannot be pro-life and pro-war... it is an oxymoron. In short I believe war is a tool that is often used to generate profits and/or secure resources.
In regards to gay marriage I could care less if it is legalized. Whether you agree with homosexuality or not is irrelevant because homosexuals are not hurting anyone. If one is an advocate of traditional marriage than legalization does nothing to tarnish that interpretation. Meaning if ones interpretation of biblical marriage is between man, woman, and God how would a notarized piece of paper and a tax break change the conservative message of marriage? Does the government bind souls together or does God?
In regards to war there is nothing on earth that I detest more! I honor and appreciate all who serve/served in our military. In fact some of my closest friends are currently in service, but I am disgusted with this country's lust for blood and power. We say we want to end terror but realistically our desire does not hold water and the world sees right through our government. The war on terror extends far beyond the boundaries of the Middle East. There is genocide occurring at this very moment in country's that do not receive American assistance. As I am writing this article injustice is sweeping through Africa, Eastern Asia, and Central America and we will do nothing to stop it because these country's do not possess the wealth or resources to gain our attention or aid. I believe that as a Christian nation we should strive for peace, which means loving our enemies no matter the circumstance or how difficult the task.
Paying taxes is biblical and The Bible tells us that Jesus asks for those who have more money to give to those who do not. Democrats are in favor of raising taxes for those who make more than $250,000 annually while decreasing taxes for those who are lower to middle class. This is an approach that I believe Jesus would advocate. In brief my response to people who are angered with the idea of higher tax rates sounds something like this...
"Be glad Jesus is not president, because he would ask for everything you have!"
When I communicate that I am a democrat Christians always bring the above points to the table to prove my alleged heresy. My question is always the same to my accusers. What about the other issues?
What about the rich giving graciously to the poor, welfare and health care for the needy, fair wages for workers, clean energy, environmental protection, foreign tolerance, peaceful foreign relations, better education, equal opportunity, anti racism campaigns, regulations on corporate policies to prevent greed, battling indifference etc? The list goes on and on and they are all obviously biblical in my opinion. Jesus' heart breaks for the poor and I will vote for the party that extends grace to the suffering citizens of America because I believe Jesus wants me to give them more because He gave me ALL.
All too often I see people who vote on moral issues alone. In my opinion this is a selfish mistake. Simply put we love to cast blame or responsibility on someone else. We think that by voting on moral values that we hold dear that those same values will somehow trickle down from a handful of leaders to the majority of our country's population. The reality is that if we are not satisfied with the moral state of this country than we have only "The American Church" to blame. It is the Church's responsibility to disciple our nation in Godly values...not the governments. So if moral integrity is declining than it is because discipleship is failing, not because Obama is President. (P.S. If the American Church was doing it's job we would not need higher tax rates to meet societal needs)
The point of this post is not to sway any ones decision for voting this year. I do however want people to comprehend that you can be a Democrat and a true Christian. I know because I am one of them. The point of this post is to get you to think about politics outside what a denomination or Pastor has instructed. The question we have to ask ourselves is; who would God want me to vote for? Finding the answer is simple, what is difficult is loving our neighbors who may have been given a different instruction and then agreeing to disagree.
For the Kingdom
Yes I am a Pastor, and yes I am voting for Obama again. I know that publicly announcing my presidential choice for 2012 is just one more step taken toward career suicide. However, in my ventures (which inevitably seem to piss off the entire conservative Christian world) I have made some very difficult decisions regarding my political party preference and my faith. I invite those reading this to finish the article before jumping to any conclusions or posting any hurtful comments.
There is a common misconception in this nation that states to be a Christian means to be politically conservative by default. I am in no way saying that there are not Republicans who are in deed Christian, I am simply saying that these conservatives are not the ONLY Christians in America. Regrettably there is a plethora of believers who preach that as Christians we should only vote concerning four topics and those topics are abortion, gay marriage, the war on terror, and taxes. Before I continue I should probably elaborate on my own stance for these four issues
In regards to abortion I am pro-life, however I am also anti-war because I believe all life is sacred regardless of age. Think about it. You cannot be pro-life and pro-war... it is an oxymoron. In short I believe war is a tool that is often used to generate profits and/or secure resources.
In regards to gay marriage I could care less if it is legalized. Whether you agree with homosexuality or not is irrelevant because homosexuals are not hurting anyone. If one is an advocate of traditional marriage than legalization does nothing to tarnish that interpretation. Meaning if ones interpretation of biblical marriage is between man, woman, and God how would a notarized piece of paper and a tax break change the conservative message of marriage? Does the government bind souls together or does God?
In regards to war there is nothing on earth that I detest more! I honor and appreciate all who serve/served in our military. In fact some of my closest friends are currently in service, but I am disgusted with this country's lust for blood and power. We say we want to end terror but realistically our desire does not hold water and the world sees right through our government. The war on terror extends far beyond the boundaries of the Middle East. There is genocide occurring at this very moment in country's that do not receive American assistance. As I am writing this article injustice is sweeping through Africa, Eastern Asia, and Central America and we will do nothing to stop it because these country's do not possess the wealth or resources to gain our attention or aid. I believe that as a Christian nation we should strive for peace, which means loving our enemies no matter the circumstance or how difficult the task.
Paying taxes is biblical and The Bible tells us that Jesus asks for those who have more money to give to those who do not. Democrats are in favor of raising taxes for those who make more than $250,000 annually while decreasing taxes for those who are lower to middle class. This is an approach that I believe Jesus would advocate. In brief my response to people who are angered with the idea of higher tax rates sounds something like this...
"Be glad Jesus is not president, because he would ask for everything you have!"
When I communicate that I am a democrat Christians always bring the above points to the table to prove my alleged heresy. My question is always the same to my accusers. What about the other issues?
What about the rich giving graciously to the poor, welfare and health care for the needy, fair wages for workers, clean energy, environmental protection, foreign tolerance, peaceful foreign relations, better education, equal opportunity, anti racism campaigns, regulations on corporate policies to prevent greed, battling indifference etc? The list goes on and on and they are all obviously biblical in my opinion. Jesus' heart breaks for the poor and I will vote for the party that extends grace to the suffering citizens of America because I believe Jesus wants me to give them more because He gave me ALL.
All too often I see people who vote on moral issues alone. In my opinion this is a selfish mistake. Simply put we love to cast blame or responsibility on someone else. We think that by voting on moral values that we hold dear that those same values will somehow trickle down from a handful of leaders to the majority of our country's population. The reality is that if we are not satisfied with the moral state of this country than we have only "The American Church" to blame. It is the Church's responsibility to disciple our nation in Godly values...not the governments. So if moral integrity is declining than it is because discipleship is failing, not because Obama is President. (P.S. If the American Church was doing it's job we would not need higher tax rates to meet societal needs)
The point of this post is not to sway any ones decision for voting this year. I do however want people to comprehend that you can be a Democrat and a true Christian. I know because I am one of them. The point of this post is to get you to think about politics outside what a denomination or Pastor has instructed. The question we have to ask ourselves is; who would God want me to vote for? Finding the answer is simple, what is difficult is loving our neighbors who may have been given a different instruction and then agreeing to disagree.
For the Kingdom
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