The Bloody Mess of Life Together

Pastor’s Epistle—August, A.D. 2016 C

Politics is a messy business. We inherit the term from polis, the Greek word for city, and the Bible has a fairly ambivalent view of cities. Sure, the New Jerusalem will descend from Heaven at the Resurrection in the age to come (Revelation). But down here on earth, history’s first city was founded by history’s first murderer (Genesis).

Early Christians were viewed as threats to the Roman Empire, because we would not worship the state gods of warfare, government, indulgence, and the ruling class. We would not confess Caesar as king of kings and lord of lords. We would not blindly endorse bloodsport in the Coliseum or endless wars of aggression against the barbarian tribes. Much of this should sound familiar; many governments today still view Christians as dangerous for these same reasons. If Christ is our one true God, then the powers and authorities of this world cannot hold our ultimate allegiance. And that can be dangerous.

St Paul, himself a Roman citizen, wrote to assure The Powers That Be that Christians were in fact far from disloyal. On the contrary, pious Christians made the best of citizens. We obey civil laws, pay our taxes, care for the needy, and strive to uphold justice and good order. Paul and other early Christians argued that our loyalty to God did not dissuade us from doing our civic duties. Rather, it motivated us to serve whatever government under which we might live to the utmost of our abilities—provided that government does not coerce us to sin. From the beginning, Christians have viewed politics as a good, as a way to love and serve God by loving and serving our neighbor.

As you may have noticed, this is an election year, and elections have always been hotly contested things in America. (If you think 2016 is bad, look up the vitriol flung back and forth between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in 1800. It’ll make your toes curl.) Accordingly, I see a lot of political postings on social media, notably Facebook, which old folks like me still use to stay connected. Posting about politics is not necessarily a bad thing, provided that we can do so respectfully. We have every right to express our opinions, especially on the matters that most directly impact us.

But—and this is putting things bluntly—nobody cares what we post on Facebook. I’m not trying to be crass; I’m trying to offer a helpful alternative. Most folks have their political minds made up. We can engage in constructive dialogue, one hopes, but for the most part any political statements will only reaffirm the prejudices of our tribe and steel the resolve of the other tribes. (In truth, Christian social teaching contains plenty to scandalize both the Right and the Left.) But I do know people who honestly want to hear our political opinions, and who, more importantly, are in a position to actually do something about them.

I used to work in Church Advocacy, which strives to be a voice for the voiceless in the halls of power. So take it from me: your representatives want to hear from you. Very few of their constituents ever bother to contact them, and so they are left to chase after inaccurate polls and party dogma for guidance. Every letter they receive—and I do mean a physical letter, not e-mail—is assumed to speak for 100 others of the same opinion who never bothered to write. You can find the contact information for your U.S. Senators and House Representative at whoismyrepresentative.com. Give them your opinions; their jobs depend on them.

I would offer a few pieces of advice. First, include your address. Your representatives want to hear from their constituents, not from random citizens. Show them that you are from their district, from their state. Second, keep it simple. Perhaps you have many topics that you would like to see addressed. That’s great. Do one at a time. Write about your beliefs on the pressing issues of the day using your own words, not a form letter. By all means, please include how your religious faith informs and guides your principles. And third, be consistent in communication, but not obsessive. Don’t write multiple times a week. Send a letter once a month, perhaps, addressing a different topic each time. Sign in pen.

Finally, don’t just be negative. Don’t tell them only what the government is doing wrong. Affirm the decisions they’ve made that have impacted your life for the better. Praise them for faithfully serving God by serving their country, their community, and their constituents. Representatives get a lot of flak—some of it justified—but they don’t hear a lot of honest thanks or praise. Certainly our government doesn’t have to share our faith in order to be a good and honest government; Rome certainly didn’t in the time of St Paul. But wittingly or unwittingly, good government is a blessing from God. And in a representative democracy, we are called to participate and contribute to that good order.

Politics are messy. If men were angels, there would be no need for government. But in this broken world, we are stronger when we work together. Government is a fearful master but a powerful servant; let us take ownership of our government, and help our representatives help those most in need.

In Jesus. Amen.