...that is Politics & Religion. This blog is about both so buckle up for a bumpy ride! All joking aside, this blog is not intended to stir up controversy, but is mainly to lay out our top three political parties in a brief history lesson. Also I want to examine how the Bible relates to government as a whole, and what our role as both believers and citizens should be.During this current election year as well as in many elections in the past I've heard well-meaning Christians attempt to promote their political parties by attaching Biblical values to it.
In doing so, they try to lay claim to the moral high ground in the name of their political party. Of course our political party should reflect our moral values, and if we look to the Bible as the source of our moral values, then it becomes difficult (maybe impossible) to separate our faith from our political views.
As a Christian there should be no higher authority for us than the Word of God - the Holy Bible. The bible does not endorse being a Republican, a Democrat, a Libertarian, a Socialist, a Communist, or any other party or political ideology.
We can however, as Christians, list our specific moral values that are derived from the Bible, and then pick a political party (or candidate) that lines up the closest to them.
We can however, as Christians, list our specific moral values that are derived from the Bible, and then pick a political party (or candidate) that lines up the closest to them.
It is also important to understand what each party stands for in general, what their history details, and what they are today. After you have a sense of the party, then you need to examine the character of the candidate that is running on that platform.
Without being biased, I've chosen the 3 main political parties in our country to examine. I've posted a little history on each Party. In doing this I've chosen the most non-biased source possible - Wikipedia. Dubbed as the People's Encyclopedia as it is open for constant editing, I feel it is only appropriate to reference due to this subject matter. According to Wikipedia:
The Republican Party
History
Founded in Northern States in 1854 by anti-slavery activists, modernizers, ex-Whigs and ex-Free Soilers, the Republican Party quickly became the principal opposition to the dominantDemocratic Party and the briefly popular Know Nothing Party. The main cause was opposition to the Kansas–Nebraska Act, which repealed the Missouri Compromise by which slavery was kept out of Kansas. The Republicans saw the expansion of slavery as a great evil. The first public meeting where the name "Republican" was suggested for a new anti-slavery party was held on March 20, 1854 in a schoolhouse in Ripon, Wisconsin.[4]The first official party convention was held on July 6, 1854 in Jackson, Michigan. By 1858, the Republicans dominated nearly all Northern states. The Republican Party first came to power in 1860 with the election of Lincoln to the Presidency and Republicans in control of Congress and the northern states. It oversaw the saving of the union, the destruction of slavery, and the provision of equal rights to all men in the American Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861-1877.
The Democratic Party
History
The Democratic Party evolved from Anti-Federalistfactions that opposed the fiscal policies of Alexander Hamilton in the early 1790s. Thomas Jefferson andJames Madison organized these factions into theDemocratic-Republican Party. The party favoredstates' rights and strict adherence to the Constitution; it opposed a national bank and wealthy, moneyed interests. The Democratic-Republican Party ascended to power in the election of 1800.
After the War of 1812, the party's chief rival, theFederalist Party disbanded. Democratic-Republicans split over the choice of a successor to PresidentJames Monroe, and the party faction that supported many of the old Jeffersonian principles, led by Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren, became the Democratic Party. Along with the Whig Party, the Democratic Party was the chief party in the United States until the Civil War. The Whigs were a commercial party, and usually less popular, if better financed. The Whigs divided over the slavery issueafter the Mexican–American War and faded away. In the 1850s, under the stress of the Fugitive Slave Lawand the Kansas–Nebraska Act, anti-slaveryDemocrats left the party. Joining with former members of existing or dwindling parties, theRepublican Party emerged.
The Libertarian Party
History
The Libertarian Party was formed in Colorado Springs in the home of David Nolan on December 11, 1971.[6] The formation was prompted in part by the Vietnam War, conscription, and the end of the Gold Standard.[8] The first Libertarian National Convention was held in June, 1972. In 1978, Dick Randolph ofAlaska became the first elected Libertarian state legislator. In 1994, over 40 Libertarians were elected or appointed which was a record for the party at that time. The year 1995 saw a soaring membership and voter registration for the party. In 1996, the Libertarian Party became the first third party to earn ballot status in all 50 states two presidential elections in a row. By the end of 2009, 146 Libertarians were holding elected offices.
The Libertarian Party is the first party to earn an electoral vote for a woman. In the 1972 Presidential Election John Hospers ran for president on the Libertarian Ticket, with his running mate, Tonie Nathan (a woman). The team earned one electoral vote in that election, making history.[6][7]
As anyone can see none of these political parties are "evil" - nor is any one of them more Godly than the other. An evil party in my opinion would be the Nazi party, and we are blessed to live in a country where it is not a threat.
Regardless of which political party you choose, please do so as you feel the Lord leads you in accordance to your moral values as a believer. According to gotquestions.org :
Regardless of which political party you choose, please do so as you feel the Lord leads you in accordance to your moral values as a believer. According to gotquestions.org :
"The Bible teaches that a leader in the church should be a godly, moral, ethical person (1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:6-9). This should apply to political leaders as well. If politicians are going to make wise, God-honoring decisions, they must have a basic morality and worldview on which to base the decisions they are going to have to make. So if there is a clear moral distinction between candidates, as Christians, we should choose the more moral, honest, and ethical of the candidates."Finally, the bible tells us a lot about government and our relationship as a Christian to it.
Romans 13:1-7 says,
13 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. 4 For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. 5 Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. 7 Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.Our role as a Christian is to be submissive to the government. We will never know the joy of a perfect government until Christ returns to earth to reign as King. In the meantime, we are to submit to human governments, even the ones that don't seem to care about our Christian beliefs, and of course this is only until they try to make us violate the Bible.
The bible is not anti-government ( Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17) and as a matter of fact, God has placed governments on the earth to judge sin until He comes. We are to obey government, not as the enemy of God, but as the agent of God. Whether it be as a judgment or as blessing to us, God has ordained the powers that be. This being said we should always remember to pray for our leaders whether we agree with them or not.
