I don’t really want to write a political post. It doesn’t go along with the theme I had in mind for my blog, and I am not knowledgeable enough in the field to make claims and endorse candidates to other people. I feel uncomfortable now thinking about how I must include politics in this post. But there is something bearing down on my heart that cannot be silenced.
Part of the reason I don’t like to get involved in politics is because I think the process has become entirely absurd. I see little to no difference between these presidential campaigns and the campaigns I watched in high school for student council offices. In fact, I’d be willing to say that the student council campaigns are more professional, and more real.
I’m not sure what went wrong in our political process, but something is very, very wrong.
On a simple level, candidates don’t focus on the change they want to bring, and why they are addressing the relevant problems of our time. Yes, they mention them. Yes, it’s on their websites written very nicely. But whenever I listen to them speak, it is less about what they have to offer, and more about the mistakes of other candidates.
Now hear me out- I firmly believe that candidates running for such an influential office should be held accountable for inconsistencies in their actions and professed beliefs. I happen to also believe that someone running for this office should be able to convince the American public of their qualifications without acting like tattletales.
On an even more horrifying note, we now have a candidate that not only acts like a child with and about the other candidates, he very blatantly preaches, endorses, and encourages hate. While claiming to be a Christian. And while vying to run our country.
This should be extremely disconcerting. And yet, Trump STILL leads the GOP race.
I’m going to acknowledge my limited history knowledge and make a bold claim here. Has anything good ever happened when a political leader put down a group of people in order to gain popularity and power? Has anything good ever come from a leader who believes and claims that some people are better than others, and that they deserve better than others?
I really can’t think of anything. Peanut gallery? You got anything?
Let me phrase this another way. Has any major, man-caused disaster ever NOT been born from groups of people believing that they are superior to all others?
Still nothing? Me either.
[Perhaps there are exceptions. Like school shootings. Many of those seem motiveless. But the larger point is that there is a very, very apparent pattern to notice here.]
When we put ourselves above other people, what keeps those people from being expendable in our minds? Nothing. If we really, truly believe that our group is better than another, then we see those people only as pawns in the game of our own successes. And pawns can be replaced, sacrificed, given up without thought.
But we are not talking about pawns here- we are talking about people. And I have yet to be convinced that place of birth, a certain gene, hair color, or first language can cause one group to be better than another. I don’t believe it. It’s absolutely wrong.
As a Christian, I believe that God created all people equally. And not equally low, where we must fight each other to stand out. He created us equally great, equally wonderfully, and equally lovingly, that He might delight in us and that we might delight in the world He created for us. Equally. If you didn’t catch my drift.
I could be wrong. But the way I read the Gospels…
Jesus’ agenda wasn’t men.
It wasn’t women.
It wasn’t Jews.
It wasn’t Pharisees.
It wasn’t Gentiles.
It wasn’t Samaritans.
It wasn’t educated people.
It wasn’t people living in wealth.
It wasn’t people living in poverty.
It wasn’t power.
And it wasn’t violence.
Jesus’ agenda for His teachings was love. A love so deep, so pure, and so urgent that it walked willingly through suffering and death in order to fully express itself. For all of us. Equally.
And in this sacrifice is a call to action for us. Are we going to sit idly and let our neighbors be treated as less than human? I sure hope not. This election cycle has very clearly brought to light that there is a battle going on. A battle against mankind. I don’t care if you identify as Christian, or atheist, or anything in between. If you identify as human, this battle is yours to fight.
Maybe you think you can’t make a difference. And I agree- alone, you cannot make a difference, or at least much of one. But battles are never fought alone. And the worst thing we can do is claim indifference. Indifference is the poison of this battle against humanity. It tricks our minds to thinking it’s “not a big deal” and that “we can’t do anything anyway.” But this is a lie. We can do something. And there are a lot of somethings to do.
I think Trump is mistaken in what it means to be great. America was once seen as a place of freedom, of refuge, of safety, of hope. Of opportunity. Of open spaces and adventures. These things are what is truly great about America. Let’s not lose them.