Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Politics in the Pulpit

Lately I've heard questions about whether a preacher should endorse a presidential candidate from the pulpit. The general consensus seems to be that this is bad taste. Some people hold this opinion because they feel that sermons shouldn't deal with politics, but I disagree—Jesus himself was a highly political figure. However, I think there is a point embedded in here about how the church should think about the upcoming election.

An issue that seems to me to go along with this question is that of having an American flag on display in the sanctuary. This could probably take up a whole post on its own, but I am in the camp that just doesn't want stars and bars as a backdrop when I'm in worship. The rationale behind that conviction is lengthier than this, but one of the major things is that the church, the body of Christ, is so much bigger than anything the American flag represents. I love the song "King and a Kingdom" by Derek Webb. Here's part of the chorus: "My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country or a man; / ... / It's to a King and a Kingdom." The truth that lies in those words is that the Christian church is intensely political, but that our first allegiance is not to Old Glory but to the cross.

The second verse of that Derek Webb song goes like this: "There are two great lies that I've heard: / The day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die / and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class Republican / and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him." These lines may evince a certain political bent, but the point is much broader than that: Jesus was not a Democrat or a Republican. He wasn't even American. Sometimes I feel like we domesticate Jesus so much that we forget that basic fact. Jesus was particular in that he was an individual Israelite, but he was and is universal in that he died for the sins of all. That alone should strike Christians as a command to recognize a power beyond temporal authority, a power that should shape the way in which we conceive of that authority, a power that in a perfect world would be mirrored, though dimly, in human leaders.

The politics of Christ are not about political parties or individual presidential candidates. This does not mean that Christians should not talk about whether they are registered Republicans or Democrats, or whom they favor in the primaries. Too often the American vote is jealously guarded as a personal decision when really there are endless issues surrounding elections that should be talked about in communities whose concern is not for the supposed sanctity or autonomy of each individual's vote but for the greater good. These days it has become very difficult to talk politics with people whose views differ from your own. However, the church should be a place not of fear or dissent but of honesty, respect and love. We are challenged by our communal life in Christ to live out our faith in front of one another, willing to change and improve our understanding and actions if necessary. Perhaps it is inappropriate to endorse a candidate from the pulpit, but that does not mean that all talk of politics should be left at the door when going to church. The moment the church becomes a place where politics are taboo, we forget where we came from and where we are going—we forget Christ.

0 comments:

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Politics in the Pulpit

Lately I've heard questions about whether a preacher should endorse a presidential candidate from the pulpit. The general consensus seems to be that this is bad taste. Some people hold this opinion because they feel that sermons shouldn't deal with politics, but I disagree—Jesus himself was a highly political figure. However, I think there is a point embedded in here about how the church should think about the upcoming election.

An issue that seems to me to go along with this question is that of having an American flag on display in the sanctuary. This could probably take up a whole post on its own, but I am in the camp that just doesn't want stars and bars as a backdrop when I'm in worship. The rationale behind that conviction is lengthier than this, but one of the major things is that the church, the body of Christ, is so much bigger than anything the American flag represents. I love the song "King and a Kingdom" by Derek Webb. Here's part of the chorus: "My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country or a man; / ... / It's to a King and a Kingdom." The truth that lies in those words is that the Christian church is intensely political, but that our first allegiance is not to Old Glory but to the cross.

The second verse of that Derek Webb song goes like this: "There are two great lies that I've heard: / The day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die / and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class Republican / and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him." These lines may evince a certain political bent, but the point is much broader than that: Jesus was not a Democrat or a Republican. He wasn't even American. Sometimes I feel like we domesticate Jesus so much that we forget that basic fact. Jesus was particular in that he was an individual Israelite, but he was and is universal in that he died for the sins of all. That alone should strike Christians as a command to recognize a power beyond temporal authority, a power that should shape the way in which we conceive of that authority, a power that in a perfect world would be mirrored, though dimly, in human leaders.

The politics of Christ are not about political parties or individual presidential candidates. This does not mean that Christians should not talk about whether they are registered Republicans or Democrats, or whom they favor in the primaries. Too often the American vote is jealously guarded as a personal decision when really there are endless issues surrounding elections that should be talked about in communities whose concern is not for the supposed sanctity or autonomy of each individual's vote but for the greater good. These days it has become very difficult to talk politics with people whose views differ from your own. However, the church should be a place not of fear or dissent but of honesty, respect and love. We are challenged by our communal life in Christ to live out our faith in front of one another, willing to change and improve our understanding and actions if necessary. Perhaps it is inappropriate to endorse a candidate from the pulpit, but that does not mean that all talk of politics should be left at the door when going to church. The moment the church becomes a place where politics are taboo, we forget where we came from and where we are going—we forget Christ.

0 comments:

 

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