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-- GideonHart - 2 Apr 2008 | | | Poverty in the Bible | |
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< | The world described in the Gospels is one in which there is a clear division between rich and poor, with Romans, priests, urban aristocrats, and landowners possessing most available wealth. The rural masses were left horribly destitute through a combination of Roman and religious taxes, and widespread land seizures. The terrible poverty of the many played a major part in the message of Jesus. Jesus was at his most scathing and critical when considering the disparity between the wealthy and the poor. Further, Jesus elevated the poor, oppressed, and suffering – he freely offered them salvation and was most concerned with their plight. Jesus squarely stood against the self-serving rhetoric of the wealthy elites and their manipulations of the poor. It follows that an individual today attempting to follow the teachings of Jesus would be very concerned with the fate of the poor and the growing inequality of wealth and power in America. | >
> | The world described in the Gospels is one in which there is a clear division between rich and poor, with Romans, priests, urban aristocrats, and landowners possessing most available wealth. The rural masses were left horribly destitute through a combination of Roman and religious taxes, and widespread land seizures. The terrible poverty of the many played a major part in the message of Jesus. Jesus was at his most scathing and critical when considering the disparity between the wealthy and the poor. Further, Jesus elevated the poor, oppressed, and suffering – he freely offered them salvation and placed their plight at the center of his teachings. Jesus squarely stood against the self-serving rhetoric of the wealthy elites and their manipulations of the poor. It follows that an individual today attempting to follow the teachings of Jesus would be very concerned with the fate of the poor and the growing inequality of wealth and power in America. | | | Political Conservatism in Modern America and the Republican Party | | | Political Capture of the Evangelical Christian Vote | |
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< | Republicans have succeeded in capturing the Evangelical vote by placing several morally conservative positions at the center of their platform. This strategy deflects attention away from their disregard for other, arguably more important, Christian positions. The Republican Party's outspoken and vehement opposition to abortion, gay marriage, and euthanasia have turned those issues into effective rallying points for the Evangelical vote. Without delving into a theological analysis (dozens of which can be found easily), it will be granted that it is not a stretch of Christian rules to oppose abortion and euthanasia, and possibly gay marriage, on biblical grounds. This is especially true for Evangelical Christians who tend to interpret the Bible literally. Although these positions may arguably be correct in terms of Christian theology, the Republican Party's advocacy for them seems to be little more than Christian adornment in light of their other policies favoring war, torture, the death penalty, and abandonment of the poor. By fervently and very publicly supporting Evangelical/morally conservative positions, Republicans have succeeded in giving many Christians the impression that the Republican Party is a Christian party, and that a handful of highly publicized moral positions should trump all others at the polls. The support of the Christian Coalition and other prominent ministers has lent this position even more credibility in the eyes of Evangelicals. The Evangelical support for these morally conservative positions has been so strong that they have been willing to ignore the other, often extremely un-Christian, policies advocated by many of the Republicans they vote into office. | >
> | Republicans have succeeded in capturing the Evangelical vote by placing several morally conservative positions at the center of their platform. This strategy deflects attention away from their disregard for other, arguably more important, Christian positions. The Republican Party's outspoken and vehement opposition to abortion, gay marriage, and euthanasia have turned those issues into effective rallying points for the Evangelical vote. Without delving into a theological analysis (dozens of which can be found easily), it will be granted that it is not a stretch of Christian rules to oppose abortion and euthanasia, and possibly gay marriage, on biblical grounds. This is especially true for Evangelical Christians who tend to interpret the Bible literally. Although these positions may arguably be correct in terms of Christian theology, the Republican Party's advocacy for them seems to be little more than Christian adornment in light of their other policies favoring war, torture, the death penalty, and importantly, the abandonment of the poor. By fervently and very publicly supporting Evangelical/morally conservative positions, Republicans have succeeded in giving many Christians the impression that the Republican Party is a Christian party, and that a handful of highly publicized moral positions should trump all others at the polls. The support of the Christian Coalition and other prominent ministers has lent this position even more credibility in the eyes of Evangelical voters. The Evangelicals' support for these morally conservative positions has been so strong that they have been willing to ignore the other, often extremely un-Christian, policies advocated by many of the Republicans they vote into office. | | |
The Future of the Religious Right | |
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< | If the Evangelical Christian community is to truly vote in-line with the teachings of Jesus it must abandon its support for candidates that are supporting policies in conflict with the issues that were most important to Jesus - particularly those dealing with poverty. Evangelicals, justifiably, could continue to support morally conservative policies, and lend support to candidates advocating those positions. Evangelicals, must also however, consider the other policies advocated by those same candidates when voting. Recently some cracks have appeared, as some Evangelical ministers have spoken out against the Bush administration's fiscal and environmental policies, among others. This movement may possibly be the beginning of a decrease in the power of the religious right. These leaders are beginning to instruct Evangelical voters to support candidates that reflect the values of Jesus overall, rather than allow their voting to be swayed by a single issue. Although this trend may in the long-run damage the heavy political clout of the Evangelical movement, it will also allow it to more fully reflect the teachings of Jesus - a goal that seems as though it should be foremost for a religion. | >
> | If the Evangelical Christian community is to truly vote in-line with the teachings of Jesus it must abandon its support for candidates that are supporting policies in conflict with the issues that were most important to Jesus - particularly those dealing with poverty. Evangelicals, justifiably, could continue to support morally conservative policies, and lend support to candidates advocating those positions. Evangelicals, must also however, consider the other policies advocated by those same candidates when voting. Recently some cracks have appeared, as some Evangelical ministers have spoken out against the Bush administration's fiscal and environmental policies. This movement may possibly be the beginning of a decrease in the power of the religious right. These leaders are beginning to instruct Evangelical voters to support candidates that reflect the values of Jesus overall, rather than allow their voting to be swayed by a single issue. Although this trend may in the long-run damage the heavy political clout of the religious right, it seems as though it could also allow Evangelical voters to make political decisions that more accurately reflect the teachings of Jesus. | | |
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