Christians Lynch Obama

I just caught a news article that was seriously disappointing but unfortunately, not very shocking. Upon the campus of our beloved bastion of Christian love and enlightened education, George Fox U., an effigy of Barak Obama was found hanging from a tree with a sign attached reading "Act Six Reject". Act Six is a scholarship program whose goal is to increase minority attendance at northwest Christian colleges. The reason it's not that shocking is that I've been around the Evangelical movement long enough to recognize the deep and twisted connection to ultra right wing conservatism that has taken over the collective mind of Evangelical Christianity.

Folks like Pat Robertson, Jimmy Swaggart, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson have defined politics for Christians for a over 2 decades and one of their primary motivators has been fear. How many times did I wake up to Dobson's schrill cries over the alarm clock radio begging and cajoling me to call my senator before the "Homosexual Agenda" took over our schools and destroyed America's families? I don't know, I finally turned him off about the time of the Iraq war when the president Dobson was in bed with didn't seem that Christian to me anymore. I must admit I started to feel better about life when I wasn't waking up to the-sky-is-falling-propaganda machine that is Focus on the Family.

The other day I walked into a meeting with a men's leadership team from church and somebody had recognized Donald Miller giving the Benediction at the DNC and suddenly it was like I was in the interrogation room, the spotlight shining in my eyes, men in black firing questions- "What exactly is your connection to this Donald Miller? Are you a Democrat Mr. McElravy? Are you?" I was under the gun, I felt the pressure, I was starting to sweat and I just blurted out "I'm still registered as a Republican!" McCarthy was easier on defendants than these guys. But my statement seemed to keep the wolves at bay, for now. One of them muttered, "That Obama scares me." And suddenly I realized, that's what it was, fear. These guys were geniunely afraid. I said, "Obama's just a man. What's so scary about him?" Blank stare, awkward silence, subject changed. No discussion of policy, no banter about who seems to be the most Christlike of the two candidates, and no talk of what Christian faith brings to the politcal discussion. Just a group of church leaders afraid of a Democrat. Sad.

Fear is one of those things that has it's uses. If your in situation where your life is in danger fear kicks the brain into fight or flight mode. In this state fear sometimes gives us super-human strength to do what might normaly be impossible. The adrenaline rushes through the body and gives us the ability to lift cars of people in a wreck (or so I've heard). You know what I mean. But the thing is, it also blocks some of our ability to asses situations realisticly. We don't necasarily see things as they are. Emotions can get the best of us. I fear that fear has been used against us and the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. Sorry, that was supposed to be funny, but maybe there's some truth to it.

So the question is, can we (Christians) get passed the fear mongering and engage in real political discussion? Not emotional I'm-right-your-wrong-and-that's-that yelling. Our world faces serious problems and the status quo seems to have marginalized the Christian voice into lockstep with a politcal party who uses guys like Dobson and crew to scare us into their agenda. I'm not suggesting Christians should belong to one party or the other or not. It's bigger than that. I think this book will take us into a deeper discussion of what impact Christians could have politcally and in a much more constructive way than currently is happenning.

Looking forward to the discussion.

For your viewing enjoyment

GOD'S POLITICS

Okay my friends, I am sorry it took me so long to get this going. I know that I said we would read NT Wright a couple of weeks ago and now I'm changing my mind and am going with Jim Wallis' book God's Politics in honor of the political season we find ourselves in. I've read about half of the book and find Wallis' ideas challenging and refreshing. I don't necessarily agree with everything he stands for but this book has given me some hope for the influence Christians can have politically, something beyond just voting Republican because that's what all good Christians do, or simply voting based on a couple of hot button issues. But rather to engage the system like the prophets of old and stand up for justice and truth, to face down the oppressors regardless of party. This book has given me the freedom to go ahead and "talk politics and religion" and let it be okay that there are other sides to the issues, that the truth is it isn't the evil liberals vs. the righteous conservatives. Anyway, it should make for some good conversations.

Since everyone will be getting a late start on the book I'd like to focus our first discussion on Parts I and II, Intro through pg.84. I'll update this blog with some discussions points as we get closer to Thursday.