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So, What Do You Think about Christianity Today’s Editorial?
One week ago, Christianity Today (CT) published a column that sent the Christian community into a frenzy. The publication’s Editor in Chief, Mark Galli, authored an editorial that described the President as “profoundly immoral” and called for his removal from office. Twitter lit up. Counter opinions were swiftly published, including at another publication, The Christian Post, which took the exact opposite position in its own editorial..
Galli challenged, “Trump’s evangelical supporters” by stating that none of the President’s accomplishments related to religious freedom or protecting the unborn “can balance the moral and political danger we face under a leader” like Trump. Then, he claims that “Mr. Trump should be removed from office by the Senate or by popular vote next election.”
Meanwhile, The Christian Post editors didn’t mince words saying that CT’s approach disregarded the President’s policies and insulted the Evangelicals who support; they had embraced a “disdainful, dismissive, elitist posture toward their fellow Christians [that] may well do far more long-term damage to American Christianity and its witness than any current prudential support for President Trump will ever cause.”
If that wasn’t enough, nearly 200 Evangelical leaders issued a letter to Christianity Today condemning the editorial for not only its conclusion about President Trump, but also for targeting and mischaracterizing those Christians who do support the President. The signatories then challenge CT to “tell us who they will support for president among the 2020 field.” And then there was the perspective of Rev. Franklin Graham, whose father founded Christianity Today.
Wherever you stand on the issue, we at My Faith Votes believe that Christians ought to be engaged in the public square. In this case, you could, for instance, tell Christianity Today and/or The Christian Post what you think about their respective editorial positions. You can email CT here or The Christian Post here.
Since we are going into a Presidential election, we are likely to see a lot more of this; so, here are a few things we should all agree about, including among the 25-million Evangelicals who are registered to vote but who haven’t voted in several previous presidential elections.
God doesn’t need your vote, but he wants it
Some would argue that God is in control and he doesn’t need your vote to accomplish his purposes in our world. They point to verses such as Daniel 2:21 which tells us that God “deposes kings and raises up others,” and Romans 13:1 which states “the authorities that exist have been established by God.” This argument makes it easy to avoid the whole topic altogether and stay far from the division and difficulties we find in politics.
It is true that God doesn’t need your vote, but he calls us to put our faith into action. Unlike the days of Daniel when Kings were appointed, we live in a nation where government leaders are elected. With each election, we have an opportunity to bring the influence of our faith into the voting booth. Galatians 6:10a says, “as we have opportunity, let us do good.” Your vote is an opportunity to do good (or at least to minimize the bad), and God wants us to exercise it.
Your faith can influence more than the Presidential election
All we seem to hear about is the Presidential election. One might conclude that this is the only election happening in 2020, or at least the only election of any significant consequence. Nothing could be further from the truth.
In the coming year, Americans will vote to elect 33 Senators, 435 House Representatives, 748 state executives, thousands of state representatives, and tens of thousands of local leaders. In all, Americans will participate in more than 100,000 elections. We should never choose to avoid being involved over conflict over Presidential candidates; if we do then we abdicate our opportunity to vote for all other offices – opportunities to influence our communities in ways that have even greater impact on our daily lives.
You are not alone
Many Christians do not engage in politics and elections because they do not know how to connect the values of their faith to the complex issues we face in our nation and our communities. In a cultural atmosphere that drives people to “pick a side,” Christians sometimes stay on the sidelines if they feel forced to choose a candidate that does not fully align with their values. Others find it too difficult to stay on top of the processes of voting and knowing when elections are happening or who the candidates are.
If you find yourself in this position, you are not alone. My Faith Votes was established for you.
Our purpose over the next year is to encourage and guide Christians to faithfully engage in every election. When you join with My Faith Votes, you are joining with millions of fellow Christians who intentionally choose to bring the good of their faith to our nation through their vote, My Faith Votes is here to guide you with resources to pray faithfully for our nation and our leaders, to think biblically about the issues, and to vote consistently in every election from the federal level all the way to the local level.
At the core of what has transpired over the last week is a spiritual battle raging for the heart and soul of this nation. Satan wants nothing more than to distract us from our public engagement by dividing us and therefore convincing us that our faith has no place in the public square.
That is why more than 25 million Christians did not vote in 2016, and we cannot let this happen again.
Join us and get equipped for 2020 by joining us at www.myfaithvotes.org.
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My Faith Votes— is a ministry that motivates, equips, and activates Christians in America to vote in every election, transforming our communities and influencing our nation with biblical truth. An estimated 25 million Christians who are registered to vote, fail to vote in presidential elections. My Faith Votes is on a mission to change this statistic by helping Christians act on their faith and vote in every election. When we pray unceasingly for our nation, think biblically about the issues, and vote consistently in every election the impact of Christians taking action from the local to the state and federal level will be unprecedented.
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