I am a recovering Republican and talk radio listener, but I would still consider myself politically conservative. There are many reasons why the Republican Party and the Democrat Party do not represent the party of Jesus Christ. I want to address one of my problems with the Republican Party today, followed by a critique of the Democrats to come.
I recently read a story in the news where a man in Texas was just acquitted of any wrong doing in the slaying of two individuals in November of 2007. This man saw two individuals breaking into his neighbor’s house while they were not home at the time. He felt it was his responsibility to intervene in this situation where there was no individual in harms way. This man was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher who was pleading with him not to get involved. This man had a shotgun in hand and kept saying “I can’t let them get away with this” as he was prepping the shotgun to go out and confront the men, the 911 dispatcher was voicing what I believe Jesus would have been saying:
“Stay inside the house and don’t go out there, OK? I know you’re pissed off, I know what you’re feeling, but it’s not worth shooting somebody over this, OK?”
The Man said “I don’t want to, but I mean if I go out there, you know, to see what the hell is going on, what choice am I gonna have?
The Dispatcher said this in response, “That’s alright, property’s not something worth killing someone over. OK? Don’t go out of the house, don’t be shooting nobody. I know you’re pissed and you’re frustrated but don’t do it.”
More dialogue followed but this was the last thing the man said before he went to kill the two individuals,
“Well, here it goes buddy, you hear the shotgun clicking and I’m going.”
He walks out to confront the men at this neighbor’s home and the following takes place.
“Boom! You’re dead!” he shouts. A loud bang is heard, then a shotgun being cocked and fired again, and then again.
The two men died there on the scene.
Wow. What goes through your mind reading that as a follower of Jesus? I read this story yesterday in the news and I heard the talk radio hosts talking about it today and the reaction was cold hearted and calloused. They were defending the actions of this man, as if he was a hero that saved a bunch of children from being killed by two monsters. Talk about detached from reality; this was extreme in my opinion.
What is my reaction to all this? I am whole heartedly against what Rush or Sean Hanity have to say about this, because my heart breaks. How can it not? I love Jesus with all I am and I pray for things like this to happen, not the shooting but my heart breaking over this event involving people I don’t even know. I feel overwhelmed. How can we have a State in our Union that acquits a man of any wrong doing in a case like this? He confronted and killed two men who were NOT HARMING any one!
I am as outraged at this almost as much as I am about what the Democrats do in defense of “women’s rights” that leads to 3,000+ deaths of unborn babies each day. Where are we going in America? If the above scenario is what it means to have “gun rights” in America today where we feel it is more important to protect property than to think twice before we go shooting off a shotgun then I don’t want anyone to have any “gun rights”! And if that makes me a wimpy weak liberal to the conservatives then I am guilty as charged because Jesus tells me this “Love your enemies and pray for them” and the Word of God says this in Col. 3:1-3 “If you have been raised with Jesus, seek what is above where Jesus is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on what is above, not what is on the earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Jesus in God.” Do you see what we are called to do here? Seek the things of the Kingdom, protecting life at all costs, even if that means letting two punks get away with some valuable property. But we don’t get that in America today and the Republican Party doesn’t get it when it comes to situations like this involving guns. By so fervently protecting the Second Amendment they have overlooked the devaluing of human life. Even if they break the law, these two men are still precious in the eyes of God and that life is still sacred to Jesus even if it is not sacred to those in the Republican Party.
A few scriptures come to mind in closing.
“Love your neighbor as your self”
“Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness”
“Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.”
“For God so loved the (whole) World that He gave His one and only Son…”
“What you have done to the least of these you have done to ME”
Amen.
On the Road with Jesus 
You ROCK Cole!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I agree with you!
Cole are you familiar with Jim Wallis’ books? I think you would relate to “God’s Politics, Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It”. He is a refreshing critic of the abuses and the neglect of biblical application of Christian Faith in politics.
I am an independent politically that has always voted Republican in the past. This election my vote will be going to Obama who although I do not agree with on every issue…I do believe he is correct on the essential commission to take care of the poor and marginalized through a more fair tax structure and universal health care system. After a thorough study of him I am also convinced that at the core he is searching for biblical truth in policy.
Dad and David thank you both for your comments. I will check out “God’s Politics, Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesnt get it”. I also like many of the things that Obama has to say about social justice and making sure that the least of our socity are taken care of. With that said I dont know if I will bring myself to vote for him in November, I want to see what else he has to say as well as John McCain. I above all want to see the voiceless defended as Jesus would.
What a thoughtful post- I appreciate this being forwarded to me and I really appreciate your ability to trust Jesus’ teachings and reject what the right wing mouth pieces are saying.
I have led a fairly self absorbed life politically, until the 2000 election when I became very concerned with the Supreme Court picking our President. I spent months trying to understand the core principals of both parties, although will confess I have always recoiled at the race baiting/class warfare the right engages in and sadly believe people like Rush and Hannity speak to the worst in us and have made personal fortunes fostering distrust and hatred toward fellow human beings.
As a Christian myself, I have never understood how anyone with similar faith could subscribe to the Republican principals. It is as if when it comes to the Bible, they stopped at Leviticus and was never introduced to the New Testament, nor the teachings of Jesus Christ. Love thy neighbor seems to be the antipathy to the GOP.
I consider myself a staunch Democrat these days, although I do not subscribe to everything under that “tent”. When it comes to the moral issue of abortion, I have found no one, NO ONE in the Democratic party who views abortion through the prism of the right to kill the unborn. That, like so much that has been twisted to paint a demonic picture of the left by the right for political gain and manipulation is pure fantasy. The reason Democrats, and many Independents alike, are for choice is because of the Constitution. It is about keeping the government out of our private decisions. As personal gun ownership, our ability to speak freely is protected, so should the body of a woman be hers to control without government or political interference. The argument is NOT about life or death- it is about maintaining and preserving control of your own body. Now, I know that creates a very thorny issue. No one with any moral fiber would support abortion as a means for birth control- so that argument is legitimate on both sides and it is an issue that both political sides should be anxious to come together to solve. What we have seen, instead, is a systemic push from the religious right to make birth control more difficult to obtain and taking sex education out of our schools so young girls enter puberty completely ignorant and unprepared insuring more unwanted pregnancies! (as an aside, this same group has no issue with insurance companies refusing to cover birth control while at the same time covering the cost of ED drugs like Viagra!) There is no willingness from the right to address the issues that create unwanted pregnancy, thus reducing abortions procedures to something that is rare and the exception- not the rule.
Tragically, the issue is purely political, as it’s been used by the right as a lighting rod to drum up support from Christians for a party that aside from “saying” they are about protecting the life of the unborn, everything else they stand for is in direct contradiction to the teaching of Jesus Christ.
The Partial Birth Abortion Ban law that the right loves to use to illustrate Dems as intentional baby killers is a prime example. The bill had unanimous support from both sides until the GOP insisted that no exceptions to the health of the mother could be included. Knowing Democrats, concerned about Constitutional rights to personal privacy would see this as a dangerous slippery slope, would have no choice but to vote against it, thus strengthening the perception Dems are unborn baby killers. Dems could not say the life of the mother was less important than the child she carries and if her life was threatened, as deemed by a licensed, medical Doctor, that had to be taken into consideration. Women, Dems argue, are more than vessels for reproduction and deserve consideration and respect. The government has no right to tell her her life is not important. So the bill was blocked. Although I am against abortion, it was the right thing to do. There could be a ban right now against this horrific procedure that everyone agrees is immoral, but political calculation was inserted and this practice is still legal.
What I really appreciate in your blog is your willingness to look beyond what is being said and measure it against your Christian faith and the teachings of Jesus Christ. I hope that you are not alone. 🙂
Obama 08!
Sara,
Wow! Thanks for your thoughts I really appreciate them. This is the kind of discussions followers of Jesus should be having, and many are not. I don’t know about you but I am so excited that I am in the church that I am in because I truly feel that the Christ followers I attend church with are open to this kind of discussion. That is ok that I don’t agree with you, but I hear a heart full of love and devotion for the Savior coming through in you words and I believe that along with respect belong in this kind of conversation. I love the writings of Anne Lamont but I don’t agree with most of her politics or theology but that makes no difference when you have the connection of mutual love and respect through a common bond in Jesus. Keep up hope in recovering Republicans and talk radio listeners like me and I will keep hope in flaming liberals. Fair enough?
In Him,
Cole Chambers
Cole, you are too funny! What part of my post indicated to you my apparent “flamingness”? LOL Although I thought I did a good job of disguising my more extreme liberal views, it appears once you start flaming, you can’t put out the fire! Oh well, I have been called much worse. I know Jesus loves me, fire works and all. 🙂
Well said Cole. Though I am all for gun rights and I think there are situations in which it is morally justifiable to take another life, this doesn’t sound like one of them.
I remember a debate erupting one day before history class in high school about whether God was a Republican or not. Of course the question is completely backwards, but it was pretty amusing at the time (picture a big old red and blue elephant on the front lawn of heaven). Sadly many adult Christians seem to be confused about this and miss the real issue entirely. Christians must recognize that political parties aren’t concerned about pleasing God, but concerned with their own agendas and ideals. That’s why its important for Christians not to unquestioningly accept whatever Sean Hannity or Rush Limbaugh says is the conservative answer (or even what Dr. Dobson or Pat Robertson says is the “Christian” answer), but to critically evaluate any issue through the lens of their faith. I’ll be the first to admit that this is a more challenging task and one that I am not very good at, but I want live my life in a way that shows that I care about being a follower of Jesus infinitely more than I care about being conservative, American, female or anything else.