Homepage Message: July 2007
Do politics and religion mix?
It is often said that religion and politics do not mix. They are like oil and water and do not belong together. In fact former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright called President Bush's faith into question, saying his view of absolute truth is "worrying." In her book, "The Mighty and The Almighty," Albright writes that expressing policy in religious terms is like "waving a red flag in front of a bull." She says faith is ok only if it doesn't influence policy.
Is that a reasonable request for every president? If this is requested of the president it would then stand to reason that it would also apply to congress, the Supreme Court and in fact every branch of government that influences policy.
To help answer this question, we should journey back to July 4, 1776, and read the words of the Declaration of Independence.
In congress, July 4, 1776.
The Unanimous Declaration
of the Thirteen United States of America.
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitles them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ...
We, Therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intention. ... And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
Does this sound like it is free of religious content? To the contrary!
Move ahead eleven years to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where Ben Franklin said in part; "We have assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that 'except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain, that build it.' I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better, than the Builders of Babel ...
"I therefore ... move-that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessing on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service."
The truth be made known that throughout the founding documents of the U.S.A. not only is religion mentioned and used to 'influence policy,' but it is the Christian religion that our founding fathers carefully and deliberately laid down as the only workable foundation the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Without the governing principles of Christianity and a people willing to follow them, our constitution will no longer be able to govern this great land of liberty. To remove the God of the Bible from this land is to wage war against ourselves and precipitate the judgment of the God who has blessed us for so long.
Again, the question; is it possible and reasonable to divorce religion from policy? No! Everyone has a religious point of view and it influences everything they see. Even an atheist is religious. He believes there is no God so man is in charge of the world and his destiny. This is known as humanism which our own Supreme Court ruled as a religion forty-some years ago. We cannot escape the fact that man is religious by nature. What Ms. Albright is asking is humanly impossible. Every president, from George Washington to George W. Bush, has influenced policy with religion. I suspect that Ms. Albright's diplomacy was and is also influenced by her religion.
The trouble with politics today is that the Christian church tries to steer clear of it, leaving it to those outside the church. So much for Christian influence. No wonder it's run amuck. As Christians we are called to serve our Lord in every area of life without exception.
Read what the Apostle Paul wrote about government: "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." —Romans 13:1. And from Jesus: "Then Jesus said to them, 'Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's.'" —Mark 12:17. Lastly, Charles Colson: "Christianity teaches that the state serves a divinely appointed and divinely defined task, although it is not in itself divine. Its authority is legitimate, though limited."
Let us celebrate this Independence Day with the awareness and thankfulness that the Christian religion and politics do mix and must be together.