Five commandments for religious Americans in political life

Posted: 4/28/06

Five commandments for
religious Americans in political life

ABILENE—Religious Americans should follow five commandments as they “enter the fray of political life,” Baptist Joint Committee Executive Director Brent Walker advised.

Walker presented his commandments as part of the Maston Christian Ethics Lectures at Hardin-Simmons University’s Logsdon School of Theology.

The commandments are:

• “Thou shalt acknowledge the limited scope of thy perspective, exercising much humility.”

“Any foray into politics with focused religious motivation should be tempered with a good dose of humility and self-criticism,” Walker advised.

“We need to understand that, however sure we think we are of our position, the other person at least has something to say and maybe in the final analysis is right.”

He quoted the late congresswoman Barbara Jordan: “You would do well to pursue your causes with vigor, while remembering that you are a servant of God, not a spokesperson for God … and remembering that God might well choose to bless an opposing point of view for reasons that have not been revealed to you.”

• “Thou shalt acknowledge thy brother and sister may disagree with thee and yet deserve thy respect.”

“Any attempt to elevate ‘my’ view on an issue to the status of ‘the Christian’ or ‘the godly’ position, to the exclusion of others, should be held in check,” Walker admonished. “Religious persons of good will can (and usually do) disagree over how their religious convictions play out in the public arena.”

He cited theologian Carl F.H. Henry: “There is no direct line from the Bible to the ballot box.” That has practical application for how Christians think about politics, Walker insisted.

“We need to stop trying to convince each other we’ve got God in our hip pockets,” he urged. “God is not a Republican or a Democrat, nor even an American for that matter. God’s precinct is the universe.”

• “Thou shalt speak and act in a way that does not undercut thy witness, resisting the temptation to stereotype.”

“This means at least that we don’t lie about our opponents, or distort their positions or resort to violence,” he said. “It means that we speak forcefully to be sure but also truthfully, directly and lovingly—always paying proper attention to nuance. … Bumper stickers, sound bites and clever sloganeering do little to advance the commonwealth.”

• “Thou shalt not fall into the civil religion trap.”

Walker defined civil religion as “the merger of a fuzzy Judeo/Christian consensus with uncritical, flag-waving Americanism.”

Citing former Sen. Mark Hatfield, he noted civil religion “distorts the relationship between the state and our faith. It tends to enshrine … national righteousness while failing to speak of repentance, salvation and God’s standard of justice.”

“Civil religion results when we fail properly to distinguish between God and government,” Walker said. “It happens when we go too long on the pastoral and too short on the prophetic. When we fail to keep that healthy distance from government, we can get captured by government and used for political purposes.”

• “Thou shalt not involve thy church in electoral politics.”

“While our duties as citizens of faith require individuals to become involved, churches and religious organizations must be more circumspect,” Walker cautioned. “First, it can jeopardize the nonprofit’s tax-exempt status. The tax code is clear that, while churches may take a position on public issues, they may not support or oppose candidates for public office. This includes outright endorsement, financial support, distributing campaign literature and joining political action committees.”

The Maston Lectures are named for T.B. Maston, a pioneer Christian ethicist who taught generations of ministers at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Logsdon’s Maston Chair of Christian Ethics sponsors the annual lectures.