Christianity and Politics? Question for Christians. (Long, but please read).?

Question

On The Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert mimics a right-wing, fundamentalist Christian (more specifically, Catholic), satirizing not only political issues and paradoxes, but religious ones as well. Believe it or not, he happens to really be a Roman Catholic Christian in real life. In fact, it has been reported that he teaches Sunday school each week.

When asked by an interviewer about his religious views, to summarize, he explains that he does not criticize religion itself, but how politicians use religion, often in hypocritical ways. He then makes the comment that Jesus' Kingdom is not of this Earth, and implies it should be uninvolved with politics.

For first century pagans, Jews, and Christians, there was no such thing as separation as church and state. Caesar, for example, was not just a ruler: he was divine, the son of god, and the savior. For Jews, YHWH was the true God of the world, who would one day send a Messiah to overthrow the pagan powers of the day.

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Jesus came preaching the same pharisaic kingdom-of-God-message most Jews hoped for, but at the same time, in different ways. For early Christians, Jesus’ resurrection proved him to be the Messiah, the true Lord of the world. Jesus did defeat enemies, but not exactly the ones most Jews expected; he defeated the forces the enemies of God’s people employ: Satan and death. Ascending to Heaven, Jesus was put above all powers and enemies, but they have not all been defeated. Yes Jesus personally defeated death by his vindication from it, but death still has the final say over the rest of creation; thus the final enemy Jesus will defeat is death itself. This message meant something spectacular for the first century Christians: Jesus, not Caesar, is Lord; God’s Kingdom, not Caesar’s, is where the Christian has his habitation.

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Within all of this is the view that God has the final say; one is to live by his standards, not man's. As a result, all the language that was previously used of Caesar – lord, savior, son of god, and so on – was employed for Jesus. This is all extremely political.

On the other hand, in this modern age, church and state are, or at least viewed as, completely separate. Yet, many Christians still feel that the country will be safer and better ruled by a Christian president; George Bush sort of destroyed this view. However, many politicians become religious when the situation fits them, if you know what I mean.

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So the question is this: should we, as Christians, try to revert back to the order of things of the first century, when church and state were in-explicitly bound up? Or, on the other hand, should we except the age we live in is quite different, and in many respects, quite better than the first century age? If we do accept that, should we not set aside our religious views when it comes to politics, and especially voting?

Should church, state, and politics remain separate or should we fight to bring them together was they once were? Or should we listen to Stephen Colbert and keep God’s Kingdom in Heaven instead of usurping it to Earth as a foreshadow for what will definitely happen in the future through resurrection and renewal of creation?

TriciaG28, the gospel has positive implications for women. According to Paul, all are equal in Christ. The problem is, society forces certain roles on different people: some are slaves; some are men; some are Jews; some are Gentiles. Paul did not what Christians to try to overthrow rules because, well, he wanted to avoid the same thing the Jews of the first century brought on themselves: 70 A.D.

Answer 1

We should have everything in God, as God is the creator of everything. There is nothing in life that shouldn't involve God.

Answer 2

The wall of separation between church and state is absolutely essential for freedom. That wall protects the church at least as much as the state, but mostly it protects the individual from abuse by those of different faiths.

Or it's supposed to. In fact, the wall has been pretty crumbly lately, and some really inappropriate breaches have been made. One that springs to mind immediately is the extent to which the U.S. military forces are heavily influenced by evangelical Christians, such as allowing the "Christian Embassy" (How many knew there even was such a thing?) to hold services INSIDE the Pentagon. And no, the space is not equally available to all religions, let alone to an atheist organization. Also, cadets in the military academies are expected to go to "chapel." Job assignments, educational opportunities and promotions are too often biased by religion.

You are right that there was no separation between church and state during the first century AD; that's the explanation for much of the martyrdom in those days. I like our way much better. Well enough to really work at defending it.

Answer 3

People can claim any religion they want that and many use it, and that is sad, the only way a person has The Lord is through Christ, you shouldn't use it to benefit, Look how Jesus turned all the tables over on the church steps, many change the Bible to fit thier needs call them selves a Chistian and tell you that, then you are like all christians are like this, when this person wasn't at all, A real Christian has invited Jesus Christ into thier lives, Knows that Jesus went to the cross in our place for our sins as a sacrifice, they have repented of thier sins, they will now produce good things, and they have asked forgiveness confessing before God.

They will not use this to gain anything, they will witness and be a desciple as Jesus told us to go out and do, we need to be carefull and not be decieved, you won't if you have The Holy Spirit, The comforter Jesus left you.

Answer 4

The state should not dictate a set of values beyond that which help make society a better place. “Better” is subjective and that is where personal opinion comes into play -- my vote is going to based on what I consider to make my life and the greater society “better.” I do that while keeping in mind that I cannot coerce someone into being a Christian.

Righteousness will not result from a law; it will only come from the regeneration resulting from faith alone in Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made on behalf of sinners. Why do we champion forcing Christian values on an unchristian society? Sure, our country may have a Judeo-Christian heritage, but it is not a Christian nation today. Unfortunately, no law can change that. A Christian nation is built from the bottom up, not the top down. God’s new covenant will be written on the hearts of men only after they receive Him through faith, not by adhering to a law or other means of coercion.

So, I think that leaves us with fighting for true Christian beliefs in a different arena than the political one. We have to follow God’s Word ourselves and show that to our nation. We have to tell them about Christ, and pray that the Holy Spirit will convict them of their sin unto repentance. Only then will they be able to follow God’s commands.

Answer 5

The first century Jews believed falsely that the Messiah would set up a temporal government and overthrow the Romans of the time. This was not Christ's mission. His mission was to die for our sins, and accumulate believers who would one day inhabit a perfect kingdom after this temporal one was destroyed. God's kingdom is not of this earth, so trying to establish a one-world religion won't work.
HOWEVER, God DOES tell us to "respect the king"[government], and He tells us to eschew evil and stand up for the innocent. Godly people should do everything in their power to protect innocent people like the unborn, and to stand up against paganism and sexual impurity in their society. Our country was a unique experiment that God gave us, a chance to have a free country that is ruled by godly people rather than by a dictator who claims "godliness", such as the Pope during the Dark Ages. ("Those who refused to be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants.") However, the people of this country have turned their backs on God, allowing all kinds of sin and ungodliness into their borders; thus God is turning His back on us, and we will lose our blessings and eventually disintegrate from the inside-out, just as pagan Rome did.

Answer 6

To be honest, I am yet to see a real Christian Politicians, which I believe doesn't exist. They may say that they are Christians, but who believe what the politicians says anyway?

Religion has been used for so many years to gain votes and that's all there is to it. They often use the name of God in vain and continue to live their life without moral. They can't live a moral life else they would suck at their job.

And I'm one of the few who believe that the world will be a better place without religion since most of the conflict starts with disagreement in religious beliefs.

Answer 7

I agree that Christ came to establish an other-worldly kingdom and that we cannot push political agenda's as being specifically Christian or non-Christian in nature, but I would disagree with your statement that Christ was preaching the same pharisaic message of his day. Jesus may have been staying consisten with God's character, as he was God incarnate, but the reason that he was killed is because he was claiming to be the messiah in an age that was looking for an earthly, political savior. Not a spiritual one. Therefore, Christ's message seems to have been inconsistent with most of the religious leasers of his day.

Answer 8

Why would we want to go backwards to a time of little understanding and when the schools of philosophical thought were being severely restricted. Sounds like a terrible idea!! Oh yeah and religion has just been SO good for women! Imagine if those teachings were allowed into the law governing the land.

Answer 9

Ah, however the Church DOES administration Governments international. seem at each and each of the leaders previous and present day Popes have shaken hands with... which consists of Adolph Hitler- who decrease a deal a manage that Pope. The Vatican has it quite is hands in each government. in basic terms as with the Inquisition, interior which era the Catholics slaughtered hundreds of thousands of individuals, and the Crusades besides, all simply by fact they does no longer conform to the lies of Catholicism... for the only purpose of world Domination. it quite is the Roman Catholic Church that the e book of Revelations is bearing on simply by fact the whore who sits upon the thrones of many countries. the completed theory of catholicism is plagiarised from historical egyptian faith. occasion: Horus... worshipped around 3000 BC... born of a virgin, died on a circulate, 3 days later became risen from the ineffective. Sound time-honored? properly it is going to. Horus became the representation of the sunlight. He became no longer the only 'photograph voltaic diety' with this tale ... so too, have been Dionysus, Jesus, and infinite others earlier Jesus. Has every person no longer observed the Epic of Gilgamesh is same to the tale of Noah's Ark? Riligion is the lie pulled over our eyes to conceal the actuality and save the lots under administration and blind to what's quite going on right here.

Answer 10

Personally, I think we should start the beginning of a new era, where both politician and people acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord.

Answer 11

These are good questions. I have spent time pondering these things myself. As a Christian, I believe that my religion/spiritual beliefs are inextricably tied to the political decisions that I make. I think all my behavior is tied to my belief in Christ. That said I offer the scripture below form James 4:11-12.

11Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. 12There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?

I believe that this scripture warns us not to judge others. Other scriptures (1 Corinthians 13:13) remind us that LOVE is the highest Christian ideal. And that above all we must "love our neighbors as ourselves." Thus the politics of the Christian right which casts judgment on others (gays, women who receive abortions, those of others faiths) is a movement that I do not associate with. I also do not feel true Christian values associated with this political movement. I believe that each Christian must earnestly seek God in prayer, fasting and reading of scripture to determine what they believe to be true.