a day after

A DAY AFTER THE WEEK BEFORE 

I hope, as I write this, I do not do so from my own political bias, which I prefer to keep out of my church-based writing and my preaching. Blind Freddy of course could tell what it is, though even Blind Freddy is not right all the time.

But as I tried to say an eternity ago in last week’s column, I have no understanding of economics. Pundits tell me that largely drove the US election outcome. Before an eternity ago (Tuesday) a lot of sources told me that those signs were good: better than in 2026 to 2020. The Democrats were clearly abysmal at getting that message across amidst the white noise of election fever (which seems to go on for four years in the USA). Ah well. What’s done is done,” as Lady Macbeth muttered. I support democracy, though in an ideal world I would probably support benevolent dictatorship. It saves a lot of money and stress, but sadly tends not to stay benevolent for long. Maybe Ataturk did?

So yeah, I don’t want to talk Right or Left. Democracy suggests both have strengths and weaknesses. Let’s not go there.

But I want to talk decency. I want to talk Christian witness. I want to talk Christlikeness. Even in politics. And I acknowledge, by and large we do it quite well in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Perhaps a little less so in the USA? By and large we don’t say things like “In two days, we are going to take out the trash …” and then name our opponent. (“Chris” covers both sides of our politics!). We don’t, however disingenuously, suggest guns should be pointed at our opponent, whether referring to firing squads or the theatre of war.

Having landed on the wrong side of the US equation this past week I must practice what I preach. Maybe I’m a drama queen? Maybe I catastrophise? Bluntly I am very scared of the next four years. But be that as it may I am faith-duty bound to pray for the leadership (because US leadership is world leadership).

But: benefit of the doubt, for now. Perhaps threats to “round up” illegal immigrants, despatch “the enemy within,” or that a special counsel should be “thrown out of the country” are okay? Maybe, if they are just rhetoric?

But wait: loose words are dangerous. They give permissions to those who are mentally unstable. We saw that on January 6th, 2021. “Stand up and stand by” excited some very dangerous people.

Many American Christians have moved into dangerous territory, alongside many Americans of every persuasion. As Christ-bearers we must pray for and support our elected leaders, until we mustn’t. And then, God forbid, if a time comes when a government becomes anti-decency, anti-human, anti-Christ, there’s a long and time-honoured path of passive resistance and non-violent action.

May that never happen, either in the USA or here. But it could.

 

  

a week before

SOME THOUGHTS A WEEK BEFORE THAT DAY

I am deeply aware of the pending US election. I don’t mean to be, and perhaps at a political and economic level it may not have a great deal of impact on Aotearoa New Zealand, maybe even less here in the deep south. I really don’t understand economics particularly. Some benefit from high interest rates, some from low. A bit like farming, really—how’s poor God supposed to sort out conflicting prayers? Rain, or shine?

But I can speak of faith and spirituality. One candidate in the USA is seen by some to be God’s chosen servant. Hmmm. God operates on a “by their fruits you shall know them” basis. By “fruits” Jesus did not mean economic outcomes. I’m not saying Ms Harris is a card-carrying Christ-bearer. They are rare, too, in US politics, though Jimmy Carter was (and at 100 still is) regardless of whether he was a good president or not.

But a person who encourages Christian Nationalism, a dangerous distortion of the gospel (unfortunately all too common in Christian history), who boasts of philandering, who is a proven abuser of financial trust, and who has at best a cavalier attitude to truth (even more brazenly so than most politicians), is not God’s chosen servant.

Okay. I don’t think Ms Harris is God’s chosen servant either. Or Mr Luxon. Or Ms Ardern, or—I dunno—the list around the world goes on. Nelson Mandela was, perhaps? But I certainly think Mr Trump’s blatant manipulation of fundamentalist Christians in his country is deeply evil. 

Okay, I can’t speak for the economic outcomes of right and left in the USA ... or here. But I hope American Christians remain very vigilant, for there is a deeply demonic tsunami of belief that hugging a US flag, holding an upside down bible, marketing a bible (printed in China) renamed after oneself, with added inclusion of a national constitution … is in some way the gospel.

These are not the way of Jesus Christ.