Religion and Politics, Round 8,977,427
For this post, I’m going to leave the argument about whether or not religion should play a part in politics alone. Whether or not it should happen, a person’s faith will always end up playing a part in their politics, I believe, because our beliefs are fundamentally tied to our priorities and ethics.
What I will say is that the way faith interacts with politics is largely misconstrued, both in our society at large and within the UAB community. I think people often align the Christian vote with the right, and I’m not so certain that is always accurate.
Take a look at what is happening in the evangelical community in our country. Such individuals as Rick Warren (Purpose Driven Life) and Jim Wallis (God’s Politics: Why the Right is Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It) have discussed the ways that different Christian values are represented in each of the major political parties in the United States. While Republicans may have a lock on the Pro-Life vote, many Christians are drawn to aiding the poor in our country, something that causes many Christians to resonate with the Democratic platform.
I don’t think there is one right and one wrong answer when it comes to faith and politics. I know many Christians whose views I respect that have valid reasons for voting conservative. On the other hand, I know many devout Christians who, due to their faith, feel compelled towards a more liberal point of view.
The problem comes when we brand all liberals as God hating baby killers and all conservatives as closeminded biblethumpers. Stereotyping can never lead to at true dialogue about the important issues facing this country. It takes an open ear and a willingness to understand that faith takes many shapes and forms in different people to make progress in solving our problems together.
I’ll keep things short this week, but I want to invite the student body to discuss the role faith, whether it be Christianity, Islam, Atheist, or anything inbetween, plays in politics. Keep things civil, and have an open ear to your neighbor.
