Religion in the voting booth
Are Christians the government’s keepers? Should they be involved with political matters, or should they stand on the sidelines and watch what happens? I have heard opinions on both sides of the coin, but I favor the opinion that, yes, Christians need to be involved.
We must remember that our country was founded on biblical principles. In scripted on American currency is the phrase “In God we trust.” I am assured that some persons involved in our country’s early development were Christians.
Many Christian and politically minded ancestors prayed, marched, fought and even died to obtain certain political rights for all people. Perhaps it would be an insult to them and our current activists to not exercise the political privileges gained. Christians desire a society based on truth and godly principles. How can this transpire if Christians refrain from political participation?
We realize that no political official is perfect, but we must weigh our options and attempt to choose “the best.” We do have the option of voting against bills or principles that are not aligned with our biblical beliefs regardless of who occupies the highest political office. For this reason, Christians are needed to help promote a “positive” impact.
If Christians shun political involvement, do you feel that justice for all citizens regardless of race, creed or color would exist? Christians should have love for all mankind. As we have seen in our day, injustice is rampant. Additional violence does not remedy the situation. We need Christians, therefore, to raise their voices in a strong effort to help promote love instead of strife in governing the nation. We do realize that God is love and a promoter thereof, don’t we?
Christian involvement in politics did not begin in our era. From time to time Jesus’ ministry caused Him to engage in encounters that could be described as political. For example, notice Jesus’ dialogue recorded in St. Mark 12:13-17. A group of men asked Jesus if tribute should be rendered to Caesar or to God. Jesus said, “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s.” In essence, to apply what He was saying to today, Christians have obligations to the civil government as long as biblical principles are not compromised.
In conclusion, Christians do have roles to play in the political arena of this country. If anyone desires a better life, she must actively participate in political activities. We must not sit idly by, wishfully hoping for better life opportunities without getting involved in politics, that is, without letting our voices be heard. So, are Christians the government’s keeper? Maybe not along, but we definitely should take a shift.
