When politics are everywhere and the big debates and discussions begin among friends. In a recent conversation with a fellow blogger friend; she stated
"you and I have different views about how much religion should factor into politics."
This couldn't be more true.
My twin the other day stated, "Why should you vote according to their Christian beliefs? It's not like the President makes all the decisions all by himself." If that's the case, you could use that argument for everything. Why does it matter who you vote for at all then? Or where they stand on any issue at all if they have no real authority.
I just want to use my tiny little blogger platform to state my own personal beliefs that it DOES matter, and religion should be your MAIN factor in politics. This country is based on the Bible. Our constitution, our swearing in of the President, our three branches of government; everything our founding fathers set up was due to their believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Check this out from centerforbibleengagement.org:
There are many revealing marks of faith in God’s Word in the history of America. Consider these.
The Three Branches of Government
The idea of three branches of government is not unique to the United States. Many early political philosophers saw the wisdom in this system of checks and balances.At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, James Madison proposed the plan to divide the central government into three branches. But he was not so much influenced by Montesquieu as he was the Bible While reading Isaiah 33:22, ““For the LORD is our judge; the LORD is our lawgiver; the LORD is our king; he will save us,” it came to James Madison that this is how the government of the United States should be structured. You can thank the Bible for a lack of tyranny in American government.
The Presidential Oath of Office
During his inauguration, George Washington took the oath as prescribed by the Constitution. However, Washington added several religious components to that official ceremony. Before the swearing in ceremony, he summoned a Bible on which to take the oath. Presidents have been placing their hand on a Bible to take the oath of office ever since. Washington also added the words “So help me God!” to the end of the oath. That was not scripted; it reflected Washington’s faith. And in a show of respect for God’s Word, after Washington took the oath of office as the first President of the United States, he leaned over and kissed the Bible.
We as Christians must live our faith in every aspect of our lives. Including how we vote. I'm not an advocate of any political party, and I certainly am not naive enough to believe there is any one perfect candidate for president. Most often I would like to combine all the the candidates together and create one that would better represent the people of the United States. But I digress. My faith is first. My belief in the Bible and what GOD says about how we should live our lives is my foremost criteria for a President or anyone else running for office. Do they believe abortion is okay? The Bible says NO to abortion. So I want a candidate who reflects that same value. Do they think gay marriage is okay? The Bible says no to gay marriage. So I want a candidate who reflects that same value. There are always grey areas. What about the war? What about our environment? What about our economy? What about unions? And that's okay. I have my own opinions about all of those platforms as well. But I START with what the Bible says and if a candidate lines up with that first. It is my belief that we as Christians should be more proactive when it comes to our political beliefs. It DOES matter. We MUST stand up. We MUST agree with what God says. He says, "If you love me, you will keep the commands I have given you." We must give God our firstfruits. We must put Him first in everything we do. In how we live, what we eat, how we spend our time, money, and resources, and how we vote. It's a tiny sacrifice compared to the price He paid on Calvary for us. He's worth it. Do I always get this right? No way. I don't claim to be perfect. But I desire to please my Lord and Savior and I believe that involves the way I vote as well.
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4 comments:
Ditto.
I confess, I've been a LONG TIME republican, simply because of my perception of the democratic party. However, the last 8 years have convinced me to stop voting party lines.
The reason I say we have different views on how much religion should play into politics is because we have to realize and accept that we live in a pluralistic society, not everyone is Christian and it's not our government's role to impose their morals on society. There are countries that do that and we call them oppressive yet that's what you would call for in this country? What if it was another religious belief that wanted to impose their beliefs on you, would you be ok with that? For all the people that aren't Christian being told they must obey Christian laws is scary to them. That's not our government's job. The church doesn't have to agree but it is up to the people to choose if they want to believe as the church does, not the government. I'm sorry we don't agree on this. I love your passion for Christ and wouldn't change that about you for anything. I love Christ with all my heart too and I feel at peace with my beliefs. I do feel that I am lined up with God's will and if I'm not then that is between me and God, same for everyone else. That's my point, each person's relationship with God is personal and it's not our government's role to say "this is illegal because the Bible says it's a sin." Remember honey, there was a time when the religious community was outraged at the idea of allowing interracial marriage and they used a lot of the same arguments that are being used now to argue same sex marriage. That's why it's not the government's job to dictate morality onto those that don't believe what we believe.
Again, we disagree. Christian laws are a good way to live; weather or not you're a Christian. And most of our laws have some sort of Christian value to them. After all; our founding fathers were all Christians. One thing we do agree on is that the government shouldn't be imposing thier morals on our society. It's our job as Christians to be showing the light of God to others. But do not be fooled. Our government imposes thier morals on us all the time. And that's all I'm going to respond about this topic. It is a heated one, and I do love you too much to argue. That wasn't my intent at all. I simply wanted to share my own personal feelings on the matter.
It wasn't my intention to argue either, just sharing my personal feelings as well on why I feel that religion and government don't belong together.
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