political

I have to say this.

It annoys me to no end when people unabashedly, self-assuredly, unquestioningly, abrasively, unapologetically, uncritically, and unexamined-ly present their political stance in squarely religious terms.

As in:

"Vote for _______ _______. He/she best represents our Christian values."

You know, I'm a pastor... and I couldn't say that even of myself-- let alone stand for someone else to say that of me. "Vote for Jesse. He'll represent our Christian values." Maybe I'd represent some of them. But not all of them. Not all of everything that Jesus stood for. Not to the extent that he did. Not even me, a pastor.

Think about that, would you, the next time you use a political candidate's name and Jesus' name in the same sentence? Think about:

Which candidate comes closer to Jesus' ethic (do you know what Jesus' ethic was)?

Which candidate comes closer to Jesus' lifestyle and socio-economic status (i.e., homeless)?

Which candidate comes closer to Jesus' way of sacrificial, simple living?

Which candidate demonstrates a better ability to love like Jesus loved?

Which candidate would you say would probably love their neighbor better?

Which candidate would be more likely to extend love to his enemies?

Which candidate is more likely to serve God, and not money?

I don't know how you would answer each of those questions. But I can almost guarantee that your your answers to those questions are not informing your statement about your candidate best representing Christian values.

See, the assumptions behind those questions represent "Christian values." Love your enemy. Love sacrificially. Serve God, not money. Do justice, especially to those who can not do it for themselves. Love kindness. Those are the things that Jesus said and embodied.

So if you claim that I should vote for your candidate because he best represents Christian values, please... let's be talking about the values Jesus himself actually held and lived out--not your own political preferences and views projected on to Jesus' life.

And if you are wondering if I'm trying to sway your vote in a particular direction, you've missed the entire point of this entry.

Because, let's face it: neither candidate comes close to Jesus' values. As much as John McCain has sacrificed, and as much as Barack Obama has organized on behalf of the poor, both of them fall miserably short (just like the rest of us) of representing Jesus.

So who are we to say that one candidate is overwhelmingly more like Jesus than another? We are either misinformed about our candidate, or we are mistaken about our Savior. It's either one or the other.

Sorry for the rant.