The Cross and the Flag: Republicans are PCs and Democrats are Trying to be Macs

There is something to be said for the political landscape in America; the old world of the 1950s - early 1990s has completely faded into the background and the 21^st century has ushered in a completely new society with all sorts of new issues at stake.

One party understands that and is trying to adjust with the times, while the other party wants to pretend that the 1990s never ended; that the world is still the same.

Mind you, I am not a Liberal Democrat, but I am also not a Conservative Republican; I am an independent voter and thinker and so this is not a biased “haha, my party is better!”

What I got from listening to President Barack Obama’s speech last night (besides the insanely optimistic progressive rhetoric) was the President, though he has been somewhat of an enigma since taking office, wants to be conciliatory and has some actual good ideas. It at least appears to me to he is trying to get some sort of intellectual discussion going on the Hill.

It is also very clear that the Republicans want to act like the Constitution is the Bible and does not need to be constantly updated and evaluated to meet the needs of our citizenry. Instead of being willing to try some new ideas and to give us some sort of direction, the GOP has decided to emphasize the “o” which stands now, not for “ole,” but for “old.” They do not want innovation; they want the same old Conservative agenda that favors corporations and people who make over 250,000 a year; every time you point that out they scream “socialism” or “class warfare” at the top of their lungs. Why? Because it is their money that is at stake; their greed is what fuels a mindless consumer economy, extreme capitalism does not reward the hard worker; it rewards the capitalist, the one who manages to destroy the competitor to get to the top. Capitalism can be just as dehumanizing as Communism.

That is why we need both the Government and the Free Market keeping each other in check; we need a balance. We cannot go back to the Jeffersonian days when the government only delivered the mail, raised the military, and collected taxes (which is ultimately the vision of the Tea Party minus the taxes). We need to realize that the Free Market can be just as corrupt as the Government and that we as the Church need to keep both of them accountable to the ways of God revealed in the Scriptures. We cannot let a Conservative or Liberal mindset overthrow our faithfulness to the truth of the Scriptures and we must be willing to defy either ideology in order to be faithful representatives of the kingdom of God.

I will hand it to the Democrats, they are trying to innovative and engaging; the Republicans need to stop scaring people and stop talking to us like we are five.

I am not a fan of politics, because ultimately, politics cannot save us or make heaven come to earth. However, I think it is time for a series on political issues and why we need to apply a truly biblical perspective to every area of politics. You may not agree with me on a lot of the issues to be discussed, but I hope that it gets you thinking about how your Christian faith plays out in your political beliefs.

Grace and Peace

Why is it that Christians tend to swing Left or Right politically? Why might this not be helpful?