Politics & Religion

I thought about putting this post on the Journey's board, but I want to keep it more connected to the political discourse than spirituality.

PBS ran a very balanced (imo) and informative documentary last week on George W. Bush's evangelical Christianity. From this news feature and other sources, I've concluded that our President is indeed a sincere born again Christian. Although I no longer think of myself this way, I do not regret having spent many, many years of my adult life (post COG) as an evangelical, born again Catholic Christian. (Yeah, there is such an thing.)

In other words, I respect political leaders like our President when they are open about their walk with God. At the same time, I sometimes feel uneasy with evangelical language & perspectives.

There have been times in my life when I was right with God, but dead wrong about what I thought was the right thing for public policy. An example of what I mean is some simplistic thinking I once had about federal and state welfare programs that stemmed from a particular theology. When I learned more about how welfare programs work or don't work and actually create unhealthy dependency and unintentioned outcomes, I had to rethink my understanding of "feed the hungry, clothe the naked, etc."

Being a good Christian does not make someone a good social worker, brain surgeon, or political leader. I think Jimmy Carter is a sincere, born-again Christian whose life & career since the presidency are an outstanding witness to his personal walk with God. One of the reasons I voted for him in the first election was because of statements he made about his faith. Nevertheless, I did not vote for him in the second election when he was defeated by Ronald Reagan because I did not think he was a very effective Commander & Chief.

Someone commented in response to an earlier thread started by anovagrrl (that's me) that he saw a similarity between George W. Bush and David Berg on the issue of people who have a sense of messianic purpose. President Bush is a Methodist. My mother was a Methodist. I fellowshipped with Methodists for two years after I left the RC Church. Well, I honored my mother and I moved on.

Although there is a possibility that Mr. Bush perceives himself as "God's man for the hour" in the battle of good versus evil since 9/11, I have too much respect for the teachings of John Wesley and the Methodist communion to seriously countenance the notion that our President and national policy is being lead by reliance on charismatic prophesy.

But you know, I could be wrong about that conclusion. Being right or wrong in my political views has almost nothing to do with the fact that my life was irrevocably changed through a personal experience of Jesus Christ. I tend to think of politics and religion as two sides of the same coin: They both have to do with the shape and form of an individual's worldview. They both have to do with the use of power--particularly the power of ideas and deeply held convictions--to influence the attitudes and behavior of individuals, communities, and populations.

Two sides of the same coin are exactly that: Two sides. Sometimes the sides work together and sometimes they pull apart. Although I am left of center on many social issues, I am also right of center on some of the more pragmatic issues, like the need for a balance dbudget or deployment and support of the military.

Yeah, our fighting men and women do some despicable things and war is truly hell, truly the consequence of sin and the heart of darkeness. But our soldiers are also courageous, sacrificial people who quite literally lay down their lives to defend the people and ideals they serve. I am of the opinion that if you go to war, you fight that war to win it. Does that make me a hawk or a bleeding heart? I simply see no reason to waste young lives due to the ineptitude and incompetence of civilian political leaders.

This is essentially the position taken by the generals of the Armed Services. Please listen to what the field commanders are telling Congress, our political leaders. As things currently stand, we will win the majority of the battles we fight in Iraq. That is because we have an enormous tactical advantage. But our generals are also saying that under the current deployment and war plan, we cannot win strategically. We are putting the finest and best of a generation in a situation where they cannot meet the objective of their mission to defend the people of the United States. In my opinion, this is a huge injustice to our soldiers.

That said, I am not offering any quick and easy solutions about what to do. Be lead by your own conscience, but as St. Thomas Aquinas said, be aware that you a duty to do develop a well-formed conscience. Please take the time to read widely, think deeply, listen carefully, examine the evidence dispassionately, and respectfully dialog with your fellow citizens in a way that opens your mind to all sides of a very complex issue.