Here’s John Wesley’s counsel to Methodists in Britain for election day as of October 6, 1774:
I met those of our society who had votes in the ensuing election, and advised them, 1. To vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most worthy: 2. To speak no evil of the person they voted against: And 3. To take care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side.
The advice still seems valid. Importantly, Wesley, like nearly all of church tradition, believed Christians had a duty to serve humanity and God by working to better society with the available tools, including voting. In Wesley’s Britain, the franchise was available only to a very small segment of the population, only men, and mostly to property owners. Wesley supported the British constitutional system of his day, even as he battled social vices, and thought it the best in the world, although like all political arrangements, fell short of divine perfection. But still he thought, and nearly all church tradition teaches, that Christians fully employ the rights and liberties available to them to nudge society in a more godly direction. Cynicism and indifference are not options for faithful living.
It’s easy to condemn politicians and others in politics, but their sins are only the sins of mankind. As James Madison once wrote, a government is only as good as its people. Nearly every regime everywhere, whether elected or not, reflects to some extent the strengths and weaknesses of the population it governs. Democracies, of course, afford the electorate the opportunity to directly assert their sovereignty and expectations of accountability over their rulers.
How should Christians vote? In general, they should support candidates and parties that, within the severe limitations of a fallen world, will seek approximate justice and protection of human dignity, understanding all people to be created in God’s image, without expecting or demanding utopia. The Romans 13 description of government power portrays it as primarily punitive, deterring and punishing the wicked, i.e. providing for judicial, police and military powers. Ensuring public safety is the chief duty of all governments, without which little or no other justice is possible. Upholding public safety especially includes protecting the social institutions that, like the state, are also divinely ordained, including the family, the church, private property, charities, and civic groups. The state, rightly understood, protects these institutions and does not interfere with their rightful spheres, lest the state exceed its own mandate and idolatrously become a tyranny.
Although not directly cited in Scripture, Christian tradition has over time attached wider responsibilities to the state, including the provision of public infrastructure, education, assistance for the indigent, and protection from harmful pollution, among others. There is the constant danger of governmental overreach in all of these areas, against which prudent voters must be on constant guard. The state that seeks to guarantee complete security is a state that ultimately aspires to displace God Himself in its aspirations.
Ideally, Christians support candidates who understand both the duties and limitations of government, regarding themselves as servants of the people and the law, both civil and natural. Ideally also candidates exemplify high personal moral character. But no voting situation offers complete clarity. Candidates with impeccable personal morals may not understand the state’s proper vocation, while candidates who do may have their own moral failures. Voters have to be prudent, discerning, and understand that all aspiring rulers, like all people, are deeply flawed, and there must be careful choice among imperfect options. The very best candidates will be, on some level, disappointments, if expectations are unreasonable.
Christians pray and work for statecraft and statesmen (and women) who foreshadow the justice and holiness of God’s eternal and perfect Kingdom. Progress in that direction is always incremental, the instruments never entirely worthy, and the goal of absolute righteousness never fully obtained. But Wesley portrayed the Christian life as a pathway towards perfection, not the guarantee of attaining it, this side of Heaven.
So if you haven’t already, go vote!
Comment by Namyriah on November 5, 2014 at 10:42 am
“By their fruits ye shall know them” is about the best and simplest voting guide ever. Every candidate has some kind of paper trail, not just of his promises and soundbites, but of his actual real-world actions. In 2008 the nation stupidly overlooked the Obamessiah’s ultra-liberal record because they were gullible enough to swallow something as vapid as “hope and change.”
Comment by Claus von Stauffenberg on November 7, 2014 at 9:10 pm
TO: Namyriah
Spot on !!
I am predicating my comment on the wise quote of Madison: “ A government is only as good as its people” and to expound on how we are accountable to “nudge society in a more godly direction” and that “indifference is not … an option for faithful living.”
Because their sins are only the sins of mankind, I do not trust government bureaucrats to be conscientious about anything if they are being intimidated by political thugs to ignore legalities that will enhance their agendas.
Anything is possible within government considering the myriad of accesses and special avenues they have, along with unlimited sources and futuristic technology to make mockery of “authentication tests” of birth certificates, witnesses, records, documents, etc. This also extends into the underworld of crime and other governments, should it become expedient.
James Madison stated: “A government is only as good as its people”. This reveals the gross political ignorance of the many that put a Marxist radical in the Whitehouse. The only prominence Obama has ever had in this country, is his connections with borderline anarchists and socialists that Obama just happened to know, such as: 60’s far-left radical revolutionary William Ayers, whose father just happened to be Thomas Ayers, who just happened to be a close friend of Obama’s communist mentor Frank Marshall Davis, who just happened to work at the communist-sympathizing Chicago Defender with Vernon Jarrett, who just happened to later become the father-in-law of Iranian-born leftist Valerie Jarrett, who Obama just happened to choose as his closest White House adviser, and who just happened to have been CEO of Habitat Company, which just happened to manage public housing in Chicago, which just happened to get millions of dollars from the Illinois state legislature, and which just happened not to properly maintain the housing which eventually just happened to require demolition. N.B. ~ This could continue on several more pages.
I guess no one ever heard of Obama’s accomplishments before they elected him. The greater crime is that we let it happen!!
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 8, 2014 at 8:45 am
I thought the bigoted biases were revealed with Namyriah’s comment, but lo and behold, Claus chimes in with his paranoia of Communists!!!
Wow! You guys truly are past the pale on any kind of collective compassion. …Or for that matter, common sense!
The losing candidate in ’08 would have further served the Plutocracy that caused the Great Recession. Would that have been what you wanted more of, for our country?
If these comments reflect the voting attitude of the Religious Right, then it’s a blessing that Christian parishioners are a dwindling electorate.
God help us!
Comment by DD on November 8, 2014 at 10:27 am
Actually, the numbers show the “Christian” left is dwindling away, for which I thank God every day.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 8, 2014 at 12:03 pm
So statistically, if both camps are dwindling… where are they going?
Is there a third ideological destination for those parishioners leaving each respective belief system?
Comment by DD on November 8, 2014 at 12:30 pm
Who said that “both camps are dwindling”? My denomination is growing. All pro-gay denominations are losing – no exceptions. Embracing sexual perversion is a losing strategy, both spiritually and demographically. Some gays and lesbians adopt children – which IMO is child abuse – but most do not, so “gay families” can’t compete in terms of filling up the pews. I’m betting that by 2020 the Episcopalians will no longer exist, unless they merge with some of the other loser denominations. My church has plenty of ex-Episcopalians, and they all have kids.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 8, 2014 at 2:35 pm
See what you just said?
If the only determiner for perpetuating a denomination is being able to procreate, that still won’t stop LGBT couples from “having” children.
It’s sad that you believe that families of same-sex parents amounts to “child abuse”, but that simply demonstrates your inability to accept people for their diversity and contribution to society.
By supporting the “Gay agenda” one is not endorsing perversion. Since perversion isn’t exclusive to homosexuals. There are already way too many perverse heterosexual couples to fret about. So don’t feel that you’re on any winning side, due to gender preference.
I’d wager that by 2020, the “Open Heart, Open Mind, Open Arms” churches, will eclipse the number of congregants in the Conservative/Orthodox churches.
But that’s just my humble opinion.
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 12, 2014 at 1:42 am
I agree!
Comment by DD on November 15, 2014 at 6:08 pm
Facts are not on your side. You’re on the road to extinction. The “Open Orifice” strategy is not working.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 15, 2014 at 6:13 pm
So be it!
Nobody lives forever, and my heart and soul are content with that fact.
Thanks anyway, DD.
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 16, 2014 at 12:30 am
You are wrong.First the UMC is conservative with liberal segments and ten yrs from now the even more open hearted UMC will grow. Get your facts straight.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 16, 2014 at 1:05 pm
You and others have a strange fixation on sex and orifices!
Homosexuality is no more sexual than heterosexual. So why such a constant reference to the act of sexual intercourse?
Me thinks you find it intriguing?!
Comment by Brad F on November 16, 2014 at 5:11 pm
Troll.
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 12, 2014 at 1:41 am
You are so wrong. Lgbt inclusive churches are growing. I don’t support them but the only thing worse than lgbt churches are people throwing out statements thatare patently untrue
Comment by DD on November 15, 2014 at 6:06 pm
Nope, sorry, you are entitled to your own opinions, but not your own facts. Pro-gay churches are slip sliding away, and here is some hard data on the decline of liberal (i.e., gay-friendly) denominations, and the growth of conservative denominations, contrasting membership figures for 1960 and 2009. The data for 1960 and 2009 are from the Association of Religion Data Archives
http://www.arda.com
Assemblies of God (very conservative)
1960: 508,000
2009: 2,914,000
United Pentecostal (very conservative)
1960: 175,000
2009: 646,000
Church of God (ultra conservative)
1960: 170,000
2009: 1,076,000
Presbyterian Church in America (broke away from the liberal Presbys)
1973: 41,322
2009: 341,210
Evangelical Free Church
1960: 31,543
2008: 356,000
Church of the Nazarene
1960: 307,000
2009: 645,000
Christian and Missionary Alliance
1960: 59,000
2009: 432,000
Mormons (not orthodox in theology, but conservative on social issues)
1960: 1,486,000
2009: 6,058,000
Seventh-Day Adventists (not orthodox in theology, but conservative on social issues)
1960: 317,000
2009: 1,043,000
By contrast, the declining pro-gay liberals:
Episcopalians
1960: 3.2 million
2012: 1.8 million
United Church of Christ
1960: 2,056,000
2012: 998,080,000
More than half its members in 50 years.
United Methodist
1960: 11,026,000
2009: 7,774,000
Presbyterian Church USA
1983 (year of their merger): 3.1 million
2012: 1.8 million
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
1987 (year of their merger): 5.2 million
2013: 3.9 million
Disciples of Christ
1960: 1.8 million
2009: 658,000
The Wikipedia article on Mainline Protestants states, at the end, that according to the ARDA data as of 2010, there were 29.3 million members in the mainlines, but 39.9 million in the evangelicals.
Read the data, and weep. Embracing sodomy is the road to extinction – and not just in the afterlife.
🙂
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 16, 2014 at 1:13 pm
DD,
Firstly, DD, there is no afterlife!
And I challenge you to prove it, but then, it really doesn’t matter!
Secondly, if these numbers reflect the trends of denominational attendance, then you have every reason to gloat. Have at it, because church attendance is but one factor in calculating a Religion’s validity.
I didn’t realize that the numbers were so important. But I’ve been baffled before on such ecumenical matters, that it really doesn’t make any difference.
I’ll stick with my humble Hippie ways of Peace Love and Understanding in the Church of my backyard!
Comment by Brad F on November 16, 2014 at 5:11 pm
No afterlife? Says who? Some flaky old nudist? You’re no authority.
Heaven and hell have been Christian doctrines for 2000 years. If you don’t accept them, that’s cool – but don’t call yourself a “Christian” is you throw away doctrines taught by Jesus himself.
As a rule, people who say they don’t believe in hell have skeletons in their closets.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 16, 2014 at 7:00 pm
For the record, I am a Pantheist/Buddhist (hybrid combination with low maintenance).
So Heaven or Hell is more a state of mind. Quite real! But it’s experienced here on Earth, while we’re alive… and not another distant destination.
Just my opinion! I am certainly not an authority, as you correctly stated.
You can bet, that if I’m comfortable in my own skin…nude…in a social setting…then I obviously, have nothing to hide!
Comment by ed-words on November 17, 2014 at 9:16 am
Lgbt inclusive churches are growing??
LOL
Name one that is.
Comment by Claus von Stauffenberg on November 8, 2014 at 4:57 pm
M.P. ~ “You guys truly are past the pale on any kind of collective compassion. …Or for that matter, common sense!” [sic]
K.V. ~ Just a lot of generalities without any substance or denouement, which emblematizes the ethos of the average liberal defending themselves with banalities.
RE. “collective compassion”: If this is another dishonest, liberal attack on conservatives, this is my answer to that:
For too long liberals have been claiming they are the most virtuous members of American society. Although they usually give less to charity, they have nevertheless lambasted conservatives for their callousness in the face of social injustice. The values espoused by conservatives such as church involvement, traditional families, the Protestant work ethic and antipathy of government-funded social services, make conservatives more generous than liberals. Though conservative-headed households make slightly less money than liberals, studies found that when you look at the data, it turns out the conservatives give about 30 percent more.”
I don’t know any conservatives that are opposed to helping the poor; we just disagree with liberals on what is the best way to provide assistance to those in need.”
*****************************************************
M.P. ~ “The losing candidate in ’08 would have further served the Plutocracy that caused the Great Recession. Would that have been what you wanted more of, for our country?” [sic]
K.V. ~ From hind sight, we can now say that almost ANYTHING that runs counter to what BO has done would have been better for America. Where have you been? How do voters feel about the BO agenda NOW ??
***************************************************
M.P. ~ “If these comments reflect the voting attitude of the Religious Right, then it’s a blessing that Christian parishioners are a dwindling electorate.” [sic]
K.V. ~ “Dwindling electorate” ???
Washington, DC — Conservative religious voters made up as big a percentage of the electorate as ever, backing Republicans at least as strongly as ever in the midterm election according to Exit Polls released following Tuesday’s voting.
White evangelicals were 26 percent of the electorate this year, 78 percent voting Republican, up from 2010.
White Catholics were similarly unchanged: they made up 19 percent of the electorate this year, 60 percent of whom voted Republican, whereas in 2010 they were 17 percent of the electorate.
Republican support among all Protestants was 61 percent this year, when they were 53 percent of the electorate
It is often claimed that conservative religious voters, especially white evangelicals, are going the way of the dinosaur, consigned to demographic irrelevance. But they were a KEY component of the Republicans’ 2014 midterm victories.
White evangelicals have remained a steady percentage of the electorate for a decade or more, even as whites overall have been a shrinking share of the population. As white Mainline Protestants continue to decline, it appears Republicans are making some gains among Ethnic Protestants, whose numbers are GROWING … thank God !
Wherever demographic trends lead in the future, conservative Christians were DECISIVE in the 2014 election, and their percentage of the electorate has NOT declined.
Comment by MarcoPolo on November 9, 2014 at 12:00 pm
I’m in agreement with you about the fervor of the religious conservative voter being dutiful in their voting habits. Quite right!
Their sense of responsibility to core values as you stated, are unparallelled by any other party.
As for the results of Obama’s administration, our collective well being is to his credit.
• Market rebound
• Lower unemployment
• Affordable Healthcare
• Fairer policies inside old-guard institutions, ie: “Don’t ask, don’t tell”
• Equal Pay for women
• Marriage Equality
…and of course, many more!
The down side for many Progressive and Liberal voters with this most recent election, was the turn-out at the polls. We can’t afford to sit on our laurels if we wish to bring America to a point of better serving our citizens and the World.
I feel confident that over the next ten years, the general electorate will become much more diversified.
As more immigrants, people of mixed race, and the LGBT community will help in demanding a more balanced social policy that better serves all of humanity.
But we’ll just have to work toward that end!
Peace be upon you, brother.
Sincerely,
MarcoPolo
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 12, 2014 at 1:46 am
The independent voters already have become a block to be reckoned with and they will only grow
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 12, 2014 at 1:37 am
Bless you.
Comment by Richard Kurtz on November 12, 2014 at 1:33 am
Your stupidity is as complete as a voter can be
Comment by Namyriah on November 16, 2014 at 9:16 am
LOL
Is that so?
Where is the “stupidity”? Quoting “By their fruits you shall know them,” which is from the mouth of Jesus? Or criticizing His Majesty Obamessiah? You call it “stupidity,” our Founders called it freedom of speech and enshrined it in the Constitution. I’m a Christian, I worship God, not cheap hack politicians. Sounds like you’d prefer a nation where criticizing left-wing politicians would be a felony.