Politics And Jesus

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” [John 13:34-35]

This might not be my most popular post.

I’m struggling with an invitation to be interviewed on a relatively high-profile Christian radio show. It’s the sort of opportunity most authors would celebrate, a chance to tell my story to a large audience of mostly sympathetic listeners. Such an interview might generate book sales and speaking gigs, but mostly it’s a chance to spread a message of hope.

This kind of connection should be exciting, and in many ways it is. So why am I struggling?

The invitation came in the context of a political cause the host actively supports. He suggested that my story might fit into promoting his view of the issue.

The strange thing is that I agree with the end result he’s trying to achieve. I don’t know the details of this particular measure, but overall I support the primary objective.

So where’s the discomfort? If I’m not advocating an idea just to get some exposure, what’s the problem?

I’m not comfortable with the combination of politics and religion. I think politics is by nature a matter of achieving dominance, and Jesus’ message simply isn’t congruent with a quest for power and control. A great deal of harm results from both religious politics and politicized religion.

I tend to agree with Tony Campollo: “Mixing politics and religion is like mixing manure and ice cream. The manure’s not improved much, and the ice cream gets ruined.”

My concern isn’t about left or right or any particular ideology. Whenever anyone invokes Jesus to promote their agenda, I think Christianity loses. Politics is a battle that demands compromise, winners, and losers. I understand the real-world realities, but I simply cannot reconcile my faith with a desire to win.

Like most folks, I have my personal political ideas. They’re often not internally consistent, nor do they always exemplify love, service, and generosity. I’m working to better align my views with my understanding of Jesus.

I guess my concern is that politics usually works the other way—we tend to pick out the parts of scripture that enhance our cause while ignoring less convenient teachings like “love your enemies.” In a political context, a worthy result justifies less-than ideal means. That’s not what Jesus taught.

I’m convinced that Jesus would be neither liberal nor conservative, Republican nor Democrat. I don’t think He’s on the political spectrum at all, because He represented a higher truth. (Left, Right, Or Something Else?)

I’m not trying to appear self-righteous. I miss the mark and fall into the arms of grace more than anyone. I clearly don’t have the right answers—in fact, I’m still trying to understand the questions. So I hope this doesn’t come across as condemnation, because that’s not the intent.

But I do believe that Grace And Truth are partners. As we rely on grace, we’re able to confront more truth, which increases our reliance on grace even more. So when I get a handle on even a scrap of truth, I want to follow it to the best of my limited ability.

And one truth I see is that Jesus didn’t approach the world on the world’s terms. He didn’t advocate or pursue political solutions to issues of spirit. He maintains that He is the way to mend broken hearts.

There’s lots of room for disagreement among those who love Jesus, and I don’t claim to know the one and only right way to follow Him. So while I decline the opportunity to tell my story in support of a political cause, I don’t condemn those who see it differently. If my track record’s any indication, I’m probably wrong.

I believe in expanding the circle. I think every Christian has one primary obligation that trumps all others—we need to clear the path for others to find relationship with Jesus. And we certainly can’t intentionally place obstacles in that path. Winning a political battle at the expense of alienating others from Christ—that shrinks the circle, and that’s just too high a price.

I wonder what would happen if we took Jesus seriously and approached one another with unconditional love? I wonder how many of our problems flow from our reliance on the world’s pricesses?

I’d really like to hear your thoughts. How do you deal with conflicts between worldly realities and Jesus’ ideals?