Political diversity of Christians

The mainstream media seems to lump all Christians into the "Fundamentalist" Red-State Conservative mode.

I suppose it just makes for simpler story telling on their part and there are enough people who fit that mold that it is true to some limited extent.

But in my years of experience of talking with people of religious faith there is quite a bit of diversity of views on politics.

Just a few examples:

One person I knew was a fiscal conservative and socially liberal with the view that the government isn't in the business of morality.

Another friend is pro-life but doesn't have any strong feelings about economic matters.

A third example is a pro-lifer who is against the death penalty and usually votes democrat.

Then there is good friend who is pro-life but libertarian in economics and most other social issues.

And indeed, I have friends who are down the line conservative: pro-life, fiscal conservatives, in favor of the death penalty and will vote Republican no matter what.

In the end, I think they all have more or less the same views on personal morality; they differ on whether the government should impose or encourage those views. There clearly is a diversity of opinion on the role of government in economic matters that range from libertarian to government should redistribute the wealth.

So just as there isn't really "one voice" for the black community or the Asian-Pacific Islanders, there isn't a monolithic Christian political mindset.

2 comments:

Rene said...

Hi Zurma:

Thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment.

From your comment, it seems you have had some negative impressions of Christians. I'm sorry to hear that this is the case. I hope you have the chance to meet some of the kinds of Christian people I know. These individuals are found in many places: wonderful doctors who care for their patients, teach in public schools, help the poor in South Los Angeles, visit people in nursing homes, etc.

Certainly, I do not and most Christians I know will not defend the bad things that have been done and are being done in the name of Christianity.

I have to say, I don't know who Reverend Phelps is. But certainly, if he is doing something well outside the bounds, I would not defend him and would use this rather small megaphone to say "stop it."

I know one of the issues I struggle with is the terminology people use. In particular the word, "fundamentalist."

If fundamentalist means raving hateful lunatic then I definitely disavow that kind of so called Christianity.

But Christians who take the Bible seriously, are concerned about moral values and are some of the most generous and caring people I know are often called fundamentalists as well. And the last phrase I'd use to describe them is "raving hateful lunatics."

Thanks again for stopping by my spot in the blogosphere.

All the best,
Rene

Kari said...

As I'm from Kansas, I do know who Fred Phelps is -- a failed and disbarred preacher/attorney in Topeka who heads an unallied "Baptist" "church" of primarily his family members known for their "God hates fags" picketing campaigns (they go to funerals all over the country to "protest" -- most infamously at Matthew Shepard's funeral). Zurma must not know that groups of Christians in Topeka do form counter-protests (i.e., the "Not Today Fred" campaigns in response to his post-9/11 "God Hates America" signs), but they've also learned that there's a balance between refuting Phelps' message and giving him the attention and significance he is begging for. He is completely marginalized in Kansas. In fact, most of his group's day-to-day picketing is done against churches.

And actually, Phelps IS regularly told "Stop that" from pulpits all over the country -- in evangelical as well as mainstream denominations. If anything, he's an icon for what Christians must not be. He doesn't need to be apologized for -- he needs to be refuted in word and particularly in deed.

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