Article VI Blog

Tony Perkins, Chairman of the Family Research Council, is one of the bigger political leaders in Evangelical circles.   Michael Steele was not a favorite amongst conservative Evangelicals, so Dan Gilgoff decided to interview Perkins.  This resulted in a great deal of discussion on Gilgoff’s God and Country blog, and a couple of follow-up posts.  The issue centers on the fact that Perkins seems to be building distance between the FRC and the Republican party.

In his first follow-up, Gilgoff looks at the fact that many inside Evangelicalism are turning away from politics altogether because it has failed to help them meet therir goals.  Well, to some extent that is very true, politics has failed Evangelicals.  That is in part due to the fact that Evangelicals have set goals for politcs that American politcs are certainly not designed to deliver.  Some of what they want to accomplish needs to be accomplished by doing things like, well, evangelism.  It is a simple formula – in a democratic nation the government will appear more Christian if there are, in fact, more Christians in the nation.

But that does not mean Christians in general, or Evangelicals in particular, should abandon the political field.  America is unique in its design as providing a society in which religion can thrive.  Evangelicalism owes its existence to the America’s political structure and ethos – it formed uniquely out of the Second Great Awakening, something that could only happen in America.  That structure and ethos has to be maintained for Evangelicalism to continue to thrive.   Call that structure and ethos “pre-evangelism” (borrowing a phrase from C.S. Lewis).  That struture and ethos is threatened by American liberalism and on that level we have no choice but to politcally engage.

In the second follow-up, Gilgoff wonders is Perkins comments are not posturing to help reorient the party to Evangelical concerns.

In American politics, both parties get beat up by their bases even though those bases have really have no place else to go, short of staying home on Election Day.

I think a lot of Evangelicals really are considering staying home on Election Day.   But there is an underlying presumption here that I think Evangelicals need to rethink, very carefully.  We do not do politics to gain power – we search for power to achieve some greater good – this should be especially true for people involved in politics with religious motivation.  Posturing for power positions inside the party often ends up being an end unto itself.

Staying home on Election Day is about being petulant if feeling ignored.  Christianity is a religion based on real power being in service, not position of authority.  (Christ died at the hands of religious authority – remember?)  Maybe if we engaged in politics that way – served the party which in turn gives us avenues to serve the nation we might come closer to achieving our goals.

Just some thoughts as everybody on the right rethinks.

Posted in Political Strategy, Understanding Religion | Comment on this post » |  Print this post |  Email This Post

Recently Posted:

• I blame Mitt Romney
• The Media Double Standard and The Incredible Chutzpah of The Obama Administration
• The Return of Wright
• More Religious Values That Matter – Right and Wrong Turns
• Religious Values That Matter