The Role of Evangelicals in Elections

We've all sat through church services where our pastors have made some sort of political comment, even if they weren't meaning to. They point out that George W. Bush is a Christian man, or the faults of the democratic party members and how they falter on matters of faith and holiness. They urge us to prayerfully consider candidates and point to their views on items like same sex marriage and abortion. And behind all the comments, there's fear.

Fear that the federal government will somehow impose the same sort of authority as communist countries like China and North Korea, and that the views and values of the leader will somehow blanket over the country instantly. I was talking to a friend just the other day...a youth pastor in fact...who went on about how Obama wants to get into the White House to further an Islamic agenda. It's fear without facts, and we as Christians need to ensure that we're guarding ourselves against it.

The unfortunate part of this election is that while people should be asking about ending the war in Iraq or the missions in Afghanestan, or what needs to be done to ensure that the fallout of the sub-prime mortgage disaster doesn't happen again, or how we can ensure that America reduces its dependency on foreign oil, or how to help people get access to medical care, we get muddied in the same old waters that we've been dragged into before. It will mean more that a candidate is pro-life than it will what their foreign policy is.

The reality is that there are going to be people who will vote for the next president based solely on whether they share the same views on social topics instead of whether their policies and plans are best for the country at large. The fear that a tool of Satan will be given power will supercede the real possibility that America will continue to plunge out of its superpower status and into that of mediocrity.

So what is the role of evangelicals in this election? To stop being reactionary and use the brain that God gave you to THINK. Read, listen, ask questions, research...ensure that you know WHY you will be voting for a given political leader and not just because you've always been a Republican (or Democrat).

The world will be watching what the USA does...that doesn't matter. What matters is that you vote for what's best for you and your country. If that's McCain, fine. But do it because you know it to be right...not because someone else tells you it is.