By Amy Butler
It’s not even the calendar year in which the next presidential election will be held and I’m already annoyed. There are many reasons, but I’m largely annoyed that Christian voters are getting so much attention from election hopefuls. Do they really think we’re not on to their strategy? Oh yeah, they really do.
For candidates, targeting Christian voters is a good strategy, a sound campaign approach. If politicians can convince Christians there’s a special way God wants them to vote, they’ve got it in the bag. After all, who doesn’t want to hold the same political opinion as God?
But every time they pull stunts like attending pastor’s conferences or speaking in evangelical settings, I get angry. News reports of politicians courting Christians underscore the public perception of evanglicals as non-thoughtful, easily manipulated political sheep.
Do you know how many sermons it takes to undo a perception like that? Neither do I, but I’ve been preaching for 10 years and don’t think I’m making much of a dent.
So, what form should Christian political involvement take, if any? Are we destined to follow engaging candidates around as if they will be the ones to finally bring about the kingdom of God here and now? I think not. Rather than pin all my hopes on the next God-endorsed candidate, I’d prefer to get busy making changes right here and now.
I saw it happening just this past week around here. Recently at Calvary our Mission Board has helped us become involved in Washington Interfaith Network, a group of congregations working together for substantive change in our community. Okay, so we probably won’t fix everything, but we’re busy making little changes and reminding each other that, with the motivation of our faith, we can make a difference in our city.
Twenty-two people showed up for the first meeting of Calvary’s Washington Interfaith Network team, and we decided we have two major agenda items we’ll be working on this year. One is the push to get a playground in our neighborhood.
So many young families have now moved into our downtown neighborhood, but there’s no place to play! We think we might be able to connect with families and make our neighborhood more family friendly, if we can convince the City Council this is important.
We’ll also be working this year to help D.C. put a One Pass system in place, to make sure immigrant kids have access to our city’s libraries and recreational facilities.
I left that meeting thinking: this is what people of faith can do with their convictions. They are little things, yes, but they are something. As people of faith, we can engage the political sector! Our faith can be a motivating factor that helps us identify areas of potential change and then jump right in to make a difference.
I was feeling good about all of this when I read yet another news story about presidential hopefuls holding prayer services to sell their agenda to evangelical voters. I object. We don’t need a savior. We already have one! What we need are willing hands and feet, a commitment to putting faith into action, the courage to work for a world that reflects God’s best dreams for all of us.
Along with all of those things, we Christians also need a better reputation, one in which politicians know that Christian voters will not be easily manipulated by churchy political rhetoric.
Until then, I’d like to ask all the presidential hopefuls out there to stay away from prayer meetings and church services. Because, we Christians are far, far too busy changing the world to listen to yet another stump speech!