On the Upcoming Presidential Election

The previous post (below) lets you know that I cannot, in good conscience as a Christian, vote for Barack Obama. This is not due to his party, nor to his belonging (until recently) to a church whose theology was far from evangelical (the United Church of Christ is perhaps the most liberal denomination theologically in Protestantism). I have voted for candidates of both major parties in my time, and supported non-believers as well as people of various churches and religions.

I cannot vote for Barack Obama because he not only supports abortion, but when given the opportunities to moderate his views to a level that even Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups accept, he has failed to do so. In fact, his political record is one of calculated choices against the preservation of unborn human beings and of those born alive due to a botched abortion procedure. A number of other candidates on the ballot oppose abortion and infancticide, including John McCain. Those looking for a "purist" who represents this view can choose from any of them. I will vote for John McCain, and will explain that choice below.

As a Christian, I have thought long about the duties of government that are assigned by God, drawn not only from the Gospels, Acts, Romans 13, and 1 Timothy 2, but also from the origins and functions of government seen in Genesis, the establishment of Israel, and the writings of the prophets to various kings and kingdoms. As I see it, there are three main categories of responsiblity. They are the protection of civil order--including protecting the weak in society, the upholding of law and justice, and the punishment of evildoers. Many different forms of government can perform these functions, not just democracies, republics, and constitutional monarchies.

Human laws, which governments create and enforce, are the imposition on all citizens of a morality decided upon by the government. So, the old canard, "you can't impose your morality on people" is only true is terms of personal obedience--government can, does, and should impose morality--it has no choice. The question is whose morality; and that--in our society--is decided by the representatives elected by the people.

Sometimes our laws coincide with God's law. For example, laws that punish theft and murder coincide in value, if not in actual punishment or practice, with clear teaching from God's Word.

Sometimes they do not. Laws that protect a supposed "right" to abortion or the right of parents to choose not to feed and hydrate babies born with "undesirable" birth defects would fit here. So would, in my view, Nebraska's law allowing children to be abandoned without question by parents at any hospital in the state (allowing parents to dismiss their God given responsibility for the children they bring into the world).

And sometimes they deal with matters not directly addressed by the Bible, where principles from the Bible may be extrapolated to apply to situations (i.e., protecting civil order and punishing evildoers may result in nations going to war). Christians often differ on just how these principles apply. Matters from tax policy to building codes to educational policy to traffic regulation often fall within this category--are we protecting the weak, protecting private property, preserving civil order, etc., by adopting or rejecting a particular law.

Barack Obama's election to the presidency would further the cause of laws that are opposed to God's morality related to life issues. It would mean new Supreme Court justices would be committed to this morality. It would mean the likely control of all branches of government by those holding this perspective. Abortion and infanticide would become more acceptable and legal, not less, in this set of circumstances.

I believe that Barack Obama's policies, on the whole, might make my life more comfortable, with his proposed tax cuts and help for middle income families with government support. I know that he has concern for the disenfranchised in society and plans to provide more government support for a larger segment of the population on many fronts--health care, social welfare services, etc. I am not personally a believer that government intervention programs for the poor accomplish what they intend--having served an inner city church for seven years, and being heavily involved in inner city ministry for another eighteen years, I believe that private (usually evangelical Christian) help has yielded the positive results that a welfare/entitlement mentality has not. That said, I would not oppose him for our differences here.

At issue is this. I live in a representative democracy. I choose those who make the laws under which all of us will live. Mine may be a small voice, but it is still a privilege given me by God through the kind providence of being born in the United States, which has a constitution granting that right. Therefore, as a Christian citizen, I have the opportunity of choosing representatives who will lead my nation according to a morality that brings either God's approval or curse. Since I am to seek the welfare of my city (and by extension, nation), I must choose representatives most closely in line with those values

In those times when I am faced with less than perfect options, I should choose based upon which candidate will do the most to further laws and values in line with biblical values, or do the least damage to current biblically coherent laws. I do not believe in only "making a statement" with a vote--choosing a candidate with no conceivable chance to win who is 100% right over a candidate who is less right but whose election would both be possible and protect the nation from the greater evil that might result from another candidate's success.

So, Barack Obama's embrace of morality that is contradictory to the Bible makes him a non-option for me. John McCain's positions are generally in line with biblical morality, and while on some issues I have strong disagreements with him, they are not significant biblically. McCain has a chance to win, slim though it appears to be right now. Third party candidates do not.

Speaking for myself, I have determined that my best course of action as a Christian citizen is to vote for John McCain.