The Pulpit and the Podium: 4 part series

With the election season now in full swing the discussion about Christian political responsibility must fully engaged. In order to remain diligent, tactful, and properly motivated in engaging public policy Christians must constantly ask themselves what exactly they are advocating — or better — what they should be advocating. Continue reading for part one of a five part series…

He who converts his neighbor has preformed the most practical Christian-political act of all.
~ C.S. Lewis

 

Part 1: What is the problem?

The perplexity seems to play where the pulpit meets the podium. Simply put, most Christians do not know their role in the public polity of a democracy — it is just not something many of our communities discuss. The Christian advocate may have a highly educated position on the issues under contention, yet may have never bothered to understand the role of the Christian in political debate.

The argument set forth here is that a significant problem is caused by a general misunderstanding in the Christian community about the difference between Christian standards of conduct and biblically derived social ethics as they relate to the Christian’s advocacy for public policy in a democracy. Confusion is caused by the unique dynamic between the biblical ethics that America’s government and legal system is based upon and the Christian’s special claim to those ethics. Nevertheless, friction between Christianity and culture is often caused more as a result of the Christian’s faulty motivation than the culture’s blind rejection.

Enthusiastic Christians can easily expect too much from an unregenerate people. While their intentions may be noble this can lead to imposing Christianity on the unsaved — something that just cannot be done. Obviously Christians support a biblical social ethic for America, but that is not to confuse America with Christianity. Unfortunately, many Christians seem unable to differentiate between their faith and their politics.

To advocate for public policy is not to advocate for Christianity. Those called to a political profession have to learn to compartmentalize their roles and responsibilities and resist blending faith into politics. Christians must know what they can feasibly achieve through political means and must recognize their priorities as Christians.

American Christians in particular have been given remarkable opportunity to participate in the government and have an added responsibility to make the most of the opportunities that democracy provides. Christians, motivated by faith, are fully justified in taking a public stand for biblical ideals but they must do so in harmony with democratic principles.

The purpose of this series is to focus primarily on the distinctions between Christian standards of conduct and biblically derived social ethics so that Christians new to cultural engagement are able achieve clarity about where their faith fits into a liberal democracy and are able make a distinction between their political responsibilities and their Christian convictions. Frequently this is an issue that evades thorough analysis because it falls in between the lines of most “Christianity and culture” discussions. Although analyzing the differences may be stating the obvious to some, nonetheless they need to be made painfully obvious to others in order to provide a proper perspective from which to build an effective and properly motivated public policy campaign.

Continue to Part 2…