The politics of Christianity
12/11/12 04:16
It should come as no surprise that I talk about Jesus a lot. I think about Jesus a lot. I read a lot of books about Jesus. I discuss Jesus with my colleagues. I don’t seem to write about Jesus very much, though that may be because I try not to get too “preachy” with my blogs. After all, I get the opportunity to preach a sermon to a congregation nearly every week.
Another reason why I don’t blog about Jesus very often is that I do not particularly feel a calling to change others’ notions about religion. I know that sounds strange, coming from a pastor, but I experience my religious calling in terms of my relationship to the people I serve, not in terms of converting others. My life of faith is not threatened by others who experience faith differently than I do. I have no need for others to have the same interpretations of Biblical texts as I.
I am aware that there are people in our society – people in the church – who see Jesus very differently than I. That comes as no surprise. From the earliest days of the church, Christians have had different opinions over who Jesus was and what his life and teachings meant. Certain stories have been emphasized in different communities throughout the entire history of the church. Different expressions of Christianity have had different interpretations of Jesus from very early after his crucifixion and resurrection.
After last week’s election, I am sure that I had members of my congregation who prayed, “Thank you, Jesus!” and other members who prayed, “Help me, Jesus!” Both groups are genuine Christians. Both are people who care about others, who believe in mission and outreach, who are committed to living lives of faith. But any careful reader of the Bible can easily see that Jesus didn’t leave clear instructions about how to organize the church, let alone establish government or exercise political power.
I suspect that there were a few sermons that referred to the election in congregations across the country yesterday. There are plenty of faithful Christians who read John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me,” as a pivotal and defining text. From their perspective, there is exclusivity to Christianity that places a mandate on Christians to convert people of other faiths to accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Many of those same people would interpret Jesus answer, “My kingdom is not of this world,” to argue against providing food and health care to those in need. They would argue that salvation does not come from what we do in this life and that we need to wait for a triumphant return of Christ to save the world. Their vision often includes no small amount of violence associated with the return of Christ and the end of time.
Others, just as faithful, read Matthew 25:31-46 (whatever you did for t=one of the least of these . . .) as a pivotal example of Jesus’ teaching. They note his words about care for widows and orphans and strangers as critical to the life of faithful Christians.
It isn’t difficult to go through the scriptures and find passages that appear to support a particular political belief. And it isn’t difficult to divide the Gospels into “Red Texts” and “Blue Texts.” There are plenty of Bible verses to support whatever candidate you voted for. But the church isn’t only two strains of believers. It is far more complex and subtle than a simple division of believers into a couple of factions. A simple examination of the history of denominationalism in the United States reveals that we are very practiced at arguing with one another. There are Christians in almost every political camp and there are people who use their faith to justify their political positions.
Quite frankly, I find those discussions to be a bit boring. I am far more interested in the teachings and examples of Jesus that bring us together than those that divide us. Jesus showed genuine concern for the unity of those who followed him. In the great pastoral prayer of John 17, he prays of his followers, “That they all may be one.” In Matthew, Mark and Luke Jesus called his disciples to service: “The greatest among you must be your servant.”
Jesus might not have been very clear about how his followers should participate in politics, but he was clear about how we should treat one another. He stood in the best tradition of Biblical prophets calling the faithful to return to their covenant with God, to seek justice for all people and to love neighbor as oneself.
I am relieved that the election is over. I don’t find the advertisements for mattresses and medicines to be any less annoying than the advertisements for candidates, but I do appreciate the possibility of having discussions of other matters in the cafes and coffee shops of our town. I remain convinced that the call to faithfulness would be equally clear no matter who won the election. I suspect that American Democracy is far stronger than the pundits and predictors of doom would have us believe. I know that in all things we have been called to serve our sisters and brothers. That is true in good economic times and bad. It is true in moments of victory and times of defeat. It remains our calling no matter how close to the fiscal cliff we come. It will remain our calling even if we fall over the imagined precipice.
Here is what I know. God has promised to be with us no matter what. Jesus declared in Matthew 28:20, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” In this post election season I have great anticipation for the beginning of Advent. The reminder of the promise of new life through God’s gift of coming to us in human terms, in human form, not as a conquering military victor, but as a baby, vulnerable and in need of care.
The politicians and pundits need to spend more time rocking babies if they want to understand the politics of Christianity.
Another reason why I don’t blog about Jesus very often is that I do not particularly feel a calling to change others’ notions about religion. I know that sounds strange, coming from a pastor, but I experience my religious calling in terms of my relationship to the people I serve, not in terms of converting others. My life of faith is not threatened by others who experience faith differently than I do. I have no need for others to have the same interpretations of Biblical texts as I.
I am aware that there are people in our society – people in the church – who see Jesus very differently than I. That comes as no surprise. From the earliest days of the church, Christians have had different opinions over who Jesus was and what his life and teachings meant. Certain stories have been emphasized in different communities throughout the entire history of the church. Different expressions of Christianity have had different interpretations of Jesus from very early after his crucifixion and resurrection.
After last week’s election, I am sure that I had members of my congregation who prayed, “Thank you, Jesus!” and other members who prayed, “Help me, Jesus!” Both groups are genuine Christians. Both are people who care about others, who believe in mission and outreach, who are committed to living lives of faith. But any careful reader of the Bible can easily see that Jesus didn’t leave clear instructions about how to organize the church, let alone establish government or exercise political power.
I suspect that there were a few sermons that referred to the election in congregations across the country yesterday. There are plenty of faithful Christians who read John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me,” as a pivotal and defining text. From their perspective, there is exclusivity to Christianity that places a mandate on Christians to convert people of other faiths to accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Many of those same people would interpret Jesus answer, “My kingdom is not of this world,” to argue against providing food and health care to those in need. They would argue that salvation does not come from what we do in this life and that we need to wait for a triumphant return of Christ to save the world. Their vision often includes no small amount of violence associated with the return of Christ and the end of time.
Others, just as faithful, read Matthew 25:31-46 (whatever you did for t=one of the least of these . . .) as a pivotal example of Jesus’ teaching. They note his words about care for widows and orphans and strangers as critical to the life of faithful Christians.
It isn’t difficult to go through the scriptures and find passages that appear to support a particular political belief. And it isn’t difficult to divide the Gospels into “Red Texts” and “Blue Texts.” There are plenty of Bible verses to support whatever candidate you voted for. But the church isn’t only two strains of believers. It is far more complex and subtle than a simple division of believers into a couple of factions. A simple examination of the history of denominationalism in the United States reveals that we are very practiced at arguing with one another. There are Christians in almost every political camp and there are people who use their faith to justify their political positions.
Quite frankly, I find those discussions to be a bit boring. I am far more interested in the teachings and examples of Jesus that bring us together than those that divide us. Jesus showed genuine concern for the unity of those who followed him. In the great pastoral prayer of John 17, he prays of his followers, “That they all may be one.” In Matthew, Mark and Luke Jesus called his disciples to service: “The greatest among you must be your servant.”
Jesus might not have been very clear about how his followers should participate in politics, but he was clear about how we should treat one another. He stood in the best tradition of Biblical prophets calling the faithful to return to their covenant with God, to seek justice for all people and to love neighbor as oneself.
I am relieved that the election is over. I don’t find the advertisements for mattresses and medicines to be any less annoying than the advertisements for candidates, but I do appreciate the possibility of having discussions of other matters in the cafes and coffee shops of our town. I remain convinced that the call to faithfulness would be equally clear no matter who won the election. I suspect that American Democracy is far stronger than the pundits and predictors of doom would have us believe. I know that in all things we have been called to serve our sisters and brothers. That is true in good economic times and bad. It is true in moments of victory and times of defeat. It remains our calling no matter how close to the fiscal cliff we come. It will remain our calling even if we fall over the imagined precipice.
Here is what I know. God has promised to be with us no matter what. Jesus declared in Matthew 28:20, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” In this post election season I have great anticipation for the beginning of Advent. The reminder of the promise of new life through God’s gift of coming to us in human terms, in human form, not as a conquering military victor, but as a baby, vulnerable and in need of care.
The politicians and pundits need to spend more time rocking babies if they want to understand the politics of Christianity.