Random Thoughts Against the Christian Political Right:

1. The USA was founded on Christian principles:

• Romans 13 says not to rebel against the King
• It would seem that the revolutionary was is in direct contrast to this.
• Paul wrote quite probably about Nero, a much worse king than George
• the preamble to the constitution was written for white, land owning, males, not a literal every man and woman concept of freedom

2. I find it funny how willingly Christians on the right would want to vote for John McCain

• He divorced his wife for a sordid love affair to a younger lady
• President Bill Clinton had an affair and the Christian right shouted "impeach, impeach"
• The lesser of two evils then only seems to be the republican instead of the democrat due largely to the abortion issue. Ironically, I know of at least 3 people who have been/are active in Crisis Pregnancy Centers who voted Obama, that is refreshing to me.
  
• It would only seem fitting to vote for someone whose moral life you wouldn't want to impeach, like Obama, but that would be too bad.
  

3. Too many people think that President Elect Obama is the/an antichrist

• This seems to be based largely on poor theology: a wrong eschatological framework
• This comes out of fake accusations that President Elect Obama is a muslim terrorist

4. Too many people think that the whole of the USA is going to change drastically

• New presidents rarely are able to change much.

All of this is to say that I am sick of the Evangelical Right and their complaining. I know not every person who voted McCain is like this. I just want to let this out. There seems to be an embedded understanding among Evangelicals that political activism is best fleshed out through voting republican. I think that is completely asinine and vacuous. It would be incredibly refreshing if the same people in my home state of California who voted against gay marriage, were to actually care enough about the sanctity of marriage to not get divorced. It would also be great if Christians decided that it is God who defines what marriage is and not the government. If a homosexual couple wants the same insurance rights as a married couple why shouldn't they get them? I am sickened because I rarely see any times in church history where the church actually showed the love of Christ to homosexuals. What if that happened? What if the church decided to love homosexuals enough to treat them as human beings? Do you think something might change? Evangelicalism seems too often narrow minded and based on one issue. I am tired of it. I want to see the church be a true force in the community, a force that seeks to change the world with the love of Christ. But it seems that Evangelicals cannot love the unlovely unless the unlovely becomes a straight white middle classed American. That is harsh, I know. But that is how I feel. The christian right has been caricatured here and I realize it. Still, the majority of contact that I have with this Christian right is so devoid of love toward those who are opposed to being good republicans that it sickens me. Why can't we love people? All that said, I do love the people in the church who are like this. I am sad that they make poor decisions and neglect what seems incredibly important to the gospel. I don't want to offend anyone who reads this, but no doubt I will. Sorry.

grace and peace

Wednesday my heart is restless

Finally, the day has come! It has been long enough, the election is over. Yet something restless lies in my heart. Not about the country, its politics, or the election, but about my future as someone serving God.

I have begun to see where people draw the line for fellowship. Maybe not intentionally, but the line is drawn nonetheless. The whole church is not always concerned about the pursuit of truth. It is sad to say, but the church parade's its knowledge of truth as a knowledge of ownership, a knowledge that exclusively belongs to her. This knowledge is stagnant, not progressing. I fear what will happen to me, whether or not I will remain faithful to truth, even if that means marching down a different path from the ones who led me along. What if I disagree greatly with my mentors and those who have invested in me? Do I just concede what I perceive truth to be, so that I will not ruffle anyone's feathers? I fear that I have seen people take a stand, a radical stand for what they thought was true. But after a while of standing on their own, of being outside of the theological and social norm, they caved into compromise.

I will pursue truth, because I believe that Jesus is truth. I will pursue it and know what precious little of it I can. I will stand alone if necessary so that truth can be proclaimed. I will be faithful. All of this will happen only by the grace of God. Only by my trusting in Him above all else.

It is my goal to read the people I am told I should disagree with. I want to hear their voice, not their accusers. I would rather disagree with the accuser, it is in my nature to be pretentious. I am sick of hearing false caricatures of "liberal" views. I am sick of being given a partial and biased knowledge against beliefs that stretch people. I am sick of much, I am sick of who I am becoming. But I know that it is only on the road of trials that I will become. In the end I wish to say that, I have known God.

Waiting For Wednesday

I will be glad once this presidential election is finished. It will be a glorious day to not have to hear or see another political advertisement. It will be even better to not have to heart the many disagreements taking place within the Kingdom of God. I could care less who is president, but I need to care more about what the church is doing to change the world.

In the Old Testament the Temple was the intersecting point between the presence of God and the presence of humanity. Ironically, in the New Testament, Paul calls the church the Temple of God. So, what Paul is says is that the church is the presence of God within humanity.

With that as a background, I would like to see the church start doing acts of restoration on troublesome issues, rather than complain about legislature. Maybe if the church actually did something, other than vote, like pray or act, we would not be worried so much about abortions.

In any case, I am excited about this Wednesday it will be a time of relief and hopefully of the church growing closer together. Politics may be a tool of the enemy used to divide, rather than unite. I pray that we may be one, just as Jesus and the Father are one.