Some Poor Polling Place Practices
Let’s talk about some approaches to voting that I believe are generally speaking not the best ways to go about this particular civic duty.
The Pessimistic Non-Voter
“It’s no use even voting. We’re just passing through this world. Politics is dirty, I don’t want its cooties on me. Let the world go to hell if it wants to, I know where I’m going. God will bring about his choice anyway.”
It’s true that faith and politics don’t “mix,” but they certainly do intersect. They intersect at points of moral issues, things that effect shalom in the world. I’m referring to justice concerns that clearly carry a moral component. These, if not directly, are indirectly mandated in the biblical narrative.
What we call “the separation of church and state” doesn’t mean the segregation of biblical moral values from public life.
If you think about it, most political issues have moral implications, and since we get our morals from God, we can hardly stay quiet when something he cares about is at stake. We vote for and work toward the kind of society that we believe God wants or we don’t.
“Yeah, but there’s a limit to what government can do. It can’t people’s hearts.” True, but it can limit their behavior when their behavior harms others.
“We can’t legislate morality.” It’s true that laws can’t make a person moral, but they can require compliance to an agreed upon moral standard for the common good. “Thou shalt not drive away after running into thy neighbor’s bumper,” for example.
“My faith is in God, not in politics.” As it should be. But God does require us to use whatever legitimate tools at our disposal for the good of society. Politics is one of those tools. It’s not THE solution to many things. But it does address things that cannot be solved any other way. While praying, row toward shore.
“Social ills (poverty, care of widows, orphans, and immigrants, environmental stewardship…) are the responsibility of the Church. Government has its own set of obligations.” Yes, but here’s a limit to what the Church and conversely what government can do. The Church can’t stop wars, fix the immigrant crisis, climate change, health insurance issues, or racial injustice. We can and must model kingdom priorities in each of those areas, but we need local, state, and federal government to weigh in and act. Our part is to show it and share it, lobby the lobbyists, and nudge the powers toward a more just and equitable society. But many social issues can only be fixed through the political process. That’s why we have a Constitution and the legislative process.
Martin Luther King said, “The Church is not the master of the state or the servant of the state, but the conscience of it.”
Our government (maybe the best in the world) is run by flawed humans, so the most we can expect from it is the gradual progression of small steps toward a better society. Those of us who claim a friendship with God should be positioned to point the way to that society.
The Exclusive Party Platform Voter
Anyone who identifies totally with one or the other party platform and only votes with that party is, in my opinion, not thinking for themselves. I don’t entirely agree with everyone and everything anywhere. I have opinions that differ from some people in my church, my denomination, my circle of friends, my family, and with either political party. Otherwise you succumb to “group think,” which is paramount to surrendering your mind to what others believe without thinking for yourself.
That kind of voter insists that their party can do no wrong and the other party can do no right, which of course is silly. Don’t vote for a party. Vote for a candidate, the one who best aligns with your conscience, informed by God and his Word.
[For more on this see:]
The Self-centered Voter
If we only vote for candidates based on what they’ll do to benefit us and don’t consider the common good, especially those below us financially and in terms of social agency, we’re acting like the rich young ruler who wouldn’t give everything up to follow Jesus. Jesus told us to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves. That is not to say that you have to give all your money away, but that the story should inform us about our relationship with our resources and with the poor. Paul commanded us not to steal, but to work so we’ll “have something to share with those in need.” (Ephesians 4:28)
“Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you,” said Wendell Berry.
Solomon wrote, “Speak up [i.e., vote on behalf of] for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” (Proverbs 31:8-9) He doesn’t say speak up for the rich and powerful, because they can speak up for themselves, pay the best lawyers, or bribe the judge!
Often what is to your own advantage is to the disadvantage of someone else, especially those below you on the socioeconomic ladder. The politician or policy that may help you achieve the American Dream may be to others a nightmare!
“Liberty and justice for all?” Some people’s version of justice is for “just us.” The way they vote shows more concern to get their own liberty than others getting justice.
One way to look at biblical justice is when you’re willing to disadvantage yourself for the advantage of the disadvantaged. It’s going out of your way for those who are out of the way and off the grid, the least, last, lonely, and lost.
You might not be least or last or lost, but you can vote with their good in mind, even when it mitigates some of your own good. That’s the Jesus way. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
