Today’s a new day! There are several things I dislike about the blending of politics and the Christian community. I could write a series of books on that topic. One of those issues is when some in the Christian community refer to an opposing candidate or political party as “The Enemy.” Really? The enemy? Do you realize you probably have more in common with that “enemy” than you have differences. By using such language we’re potentially missing out on a great friendship because of politics. God’s heart must break when he sees this happening among his children.
I truly believe Christians can vote, engage in respectful political conversations, and be passionate about policies and issues. I think lively and respectful discussions make us better people. But, when we engage in political conversations, we should avoid engaging in partisan politics.
What does the dictionary say about the word Partisan? “A feeling, showing, or deriving from strong and sometimes blind adherence to a particular party, faction, cause, or person.”
One of the problems with partisan loyalty, is often those strong opinions about a particular political affiliation becomes core to a person’s identity. For instance, when we fall into the partisan trap, we do not simply agree with Democrats or Republicans on certain issues, “Democrat” or “Republican” becomes fundamental to how we think of ourselves. Similarly, ideological perspectives, such as “Progressive” or “Conservative,” can also become cornerstones of our identity.
Partisan beliefs sometimes become fixated on a political leader. Our loyalty gets directed to the person who leads the party, embodies the party’s values, or seems capable of saving the party from opponents. That strong and sometimes blind adherence can be concentrated on one particular person.
So, what happens when we give our loyalty to a politician, a party, or an ideological group? What are some of the negative effects of partisanship?
Our values become shaped by culture and not by our faith. For Christians, partisanship often begins with genuine Christian motivation. We find that one party seems to align with biblical values on a particular issue or policy. Perhaps it is a concern for the poor or a concern for the unborn. It could be a biblical stance on sexual ethics or justice for people wrongly accused of crime. This desire to support a party that supports biblical values is admirable.
However, political parties are a mixed bag. No political party aligns completely with kingdom interests, values, and priorities. When we develop a strong and sometimes blind adherence to a political party, that party can begin to shape our values.
Sadly, many are towing the party line rather than holding fast to the truth of scripture. They have abandoned the historic Christian view on war, wealth, poverty, ethnicity, sexuality, or something else…and we don’t even know it. They have allowed a party platform, rather than the Holy Spirit, to shape their views.
Because we agree with a party on issue X, we blindly assume that party must also be right on issue Y. This is a dangerous and harmful assumption.
Sadly the world is currently filled with anger and division. That’s because the partisan spirit is a spirit of division. When we have a strong and sometimes blind adherence to a particular side, we tend to assume everyone on the other side is foolish, evil, or both. We do not see political opponents as people to listen to, understand, empathize with, and love. No, we see them as enemies to silence and defeat. As Christians, we go so far as to doubt someone can truly be a Christian if they vote for the other party.
Partisanship often becomes so severe that fear and hatred of the other side becomes a test of camaraderie. The question we implicitly ask friends and family is not just, “Do you share my convictions?” but rather, “Do you share my outrage?” If someone is not as angry and upset as we are, that person becomes suspect in our eyes. Perhaps they aren’t one of us if they do not share our anger and outrage.
That sort of angry, fearful, and outraged partisanship is not only dividing us from our neighbors, but also from our brothers and sisters in Christ. It ought to be obvious how many Christian principles this violates: “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you. (Luke 6:27), “But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.” (Colossians 3:8), or Titus 3:2 which states “to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
Our neighbors are not our enemies. The devil is our enemy (Ephesians 6:11-12). Our neighbors are not issues to be solved, opponents to defeat, or enemies to be conquered. They are people to be loved and cared for. Even when we strongly disagree with them, even when they are far from God, they are people to be loved.
Pride and double standards can create even further division. Strategically, it makes sense to exaggerate the faults, shortcomings of the other team, while minimizing our own. We see this all the time in partisan politics. There is moral outrage over something said or done in the party across the aisle but complete silence or excuses when the same thing happens on our side of the aisle.
On both ends of the political spectrum, people demand the impeachment and even imprisonment of politicians for unethical behavior. However, when one of our own is caught doing the same thing, we rally around them in solidarity and support. If someone objects, “Isn’t this just like when so-and-so did this?” we question that person’s loyalty. “Whose side are you on anyway?” we ask defensively.
Criticism of our side is not allowed. We are afraid it will give ammunition to the folks across the aisle. So, regardless of what our political tribe does, we think we must remain loyal.
This sort of behavior bleeds over into other areas of our lives and leads to a twisted form of Christianity. It leads us to ignore the logs in our eyes and search for the specks in the eyes of others. Of course, this is the opposite of what Jesus taught us to do (Matthew 7:1-5).
Partisan politics teaches us to think like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector” (Luke 18:11). What if we replaced “tax collector” with a modern political term? Do we pride ourselves that we are not like those across the aisle?
There can be a time to criticize, but as Christians we should begin with ourselves and not our “opponents.” We should be working on our own faults instead of pointing fingers at others.
As I shared in the beginning, none of this is to say a Christian shouldn’t vote, support a particular candidate, be passionate about certain issues, or even prefer one party over another. However, this is a reminder about loyalty because it’s too easy to fall into partisan politics.
We must all be aware that there is a danger when we give our allegiance to a particular group or person. Our values, priorities, and perspectives will be shaped by that allegiance. We can fool ourselves into believing that we “think for ourselves.” However, like it or not, we are social creatures and we are shaped by our group loyalty.
As Christians, our loyalty and allegiance should belong to God. We must remember that our true family or tribe is much bigger than America, political party, ethnic group, or ideological views. The things of this world will always be competing for our loyalty, but we must resist those temptations.
On several occasions, the apostles rebuked partisanship in the first-century church. The answer to partisanship is Paul’s words to the Galatian churches, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
So let’s walk into this political season with our eyes fixed on love, serving others and keeping our eyes on the real prize. A Heavenly reward. ~OC
