John Whitehead's Commentary

"For conservative people of faith, voting for principle this year means voting for the re-election of George W. Bush.... I believe it is the responsibility of every political conservative, every evangelical Christian, every pro-life Catholic, every traditional Jew, every Reagan Democrat, and everyone in between to get serious about re-electing President Bush." -- Rev. Jerry Falwell

The evangelical church in America is in real danger today.

As if the effort to save people's souls wasn't enough to deal with, today's church must also grapple with sex scandals, skyrocketing divorce rates, debates over gay marriage and a nation in the midst of what seems to be an escalating religious war.

Sensing the vulnerability of evangelical churches and the potential power of the church to influence large numbers of individuals (according to statistics reported in the World Churches Handbook, in 1995 Christians made up close to 70% of the total U.S. population), those in politics have already begun circling. And given the fact that religion is now the biggest predictor of vote, after party identification, it is evident why churchgoers are being targeted heavily by both parties during a presidential election that could be determined by a few swing states.

This blatant effort by politicians to turn churches into vehicles for garnering more votes can most clearly be seen in the Bush/Cheney presidential campaign's recent outreach to Christian congregations. A detailed plan of action sent to religious "volunteers" around the country, the Bush/Cheney campaign's directive revolves around a time-sensitive list of 22 "duties" intended to mobilize Bush's base of religious supporters.

For example, the Houston Chronicle reports that by July 31, volunteers are asked to "send your church directory to your state Bush-Cheney '04 headquarters" and "talk to your pastor about holding a Citizenship Sunday and voter registration drive." By Aug. 15, volunteers should "talk to your church's seniors or 20-30 something group about Bush-Cheney '04" and "recruit five more people in your church to volunteer for the Bush-Cheney campaign." By Sept. 17, they are to host at least two campaign-related potluck dinners with members, and in October they are to "finish calling all pro-Bush members of your church." Evangelicals were also asked to identify other "conservative" churches in their communities "who can organize for Bush."

These outreach efforts are not limited to the Republican ticket, however. Considering that Democrats are losing the vote of regular churchgoers by a 2-to-1 margin, it is clear why vice presidential candidate Sen. John Edwards recently addressed a crowd of worshipers at St. Mark's A.M.E. Church in Orlando.

These attempts to turn the pulpits of tax-exempt churches into political platforms seem to fly directly in the face of current IRS guidelines for non-profit entities such as churches. Indeed, these guidelines make it clear that churches or other religious organizations may lose their tax-exempt status if they actively participate or intervene in any way in a political campaign, including supplying the type of information requested by the Bush/Cheney campaign.

Despite the problem with the law, I believe there are much bigger issues to be considered as Christian congregations are encouraged to dabble in politics. These concerns have to do with the true nature of the church.

The church, as Jesus Christ proclaimed, exists to teach the good news (i.e. "the gospel") that there is a God who loved the world so much that He was willing to sacrifice His own Son. This universal sacrifice necessarily means that Christ's message is for everyone, irrespective of their status in life or their politics.

But Christ's message of love does not square with much of what we hear coming from certain quarters of modern evangelicalism--a religion steeped in an "us versus them" mentality. This is in direct opposition to the early Christian church, which cut across all lines that divided people--Jew and Greek, Greek and barbarian, male and female, religious and political philosophies.

These early Christians did not seek to either dominate the political establishment or maintain the status quo. To the contrary, they were not political conservatives. Instead, they were revolutionaries who saw what they had to say as truly universal and relevant to all segments of society.

"One of the greatest injustices we do to our young people is to ask them to be conservative," theologian Francis Schaeffer wrote. In fact, for Christians to be stridently aligned with conservative politics is to miss the point of their religion. Conservatism, as such, means promoting a political agenda and, thus, maintaining the flow of the status quo. True Christians, however, are revolutionaries against a status quo dedicated to materialism and the survival of the fittest.

Indeed, Christians should stand outside the status quo. This includes politics. We often forget that the founder of Christianity, when questioned by His executioners, clearly said that His kingdom is not of this world. Christ, therefore, was apolitical.

Unfortunately, all too often Christians wrap their religion in the flag, so to speak. For the Christian, country and faith are never synonymous, and they are not two equal loyalties. As Francis Schaeffer noted, "It must be taught that patriotic loyalty must not be identified with Christianity." As Christians in past regimes have found, identifying with the establishment, as much of modern evangelicalism is doing, can present a grave danger--the establishment may easily become the church's enemy.

Not only is it perilous to identify with the established powers, it also negates the true mission of the church. The church is not to identify with power but to speak truth to power--even at great costs. Martyrs, past and present, testify to this.

The reason Christians have been willing to sacrifice even their lives for truth is because of their love of people. In propounding the greatest commandment, Christ said that we should show our love for God by loving those around us. There is no way this can be accomplished if Christians are politicizing their religion. Politics, by way of its very nature, does not speak truth and does not seek the best interests of people. Indeed, politics by its very nature is driven toward division, compromise, deceit and inevitably corruption.

All this does not mean that the church has to be silent. This is definitely not a day for a sleeping church. While Christians should avoid politicizing their religion, this does not mean that pastors or individuals should not address the pressing social and moral issues of the day. Just the opposite is true. Christians need to be clear in what they say and stand by it. The wishy-washy political correctness that characterizes many churches will simply not meet the challenges of the day.

Finally, there is a dire need for a compassionate Christianity. Like the early church, the modern church needs to cut across all lines and reach out to every segment of society. If not, as Martin Luther King once said, the church will eventually become irrelevant.

ABOUT JOHN W. WHITEHEAD

Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. His most recent books are the best-selling Battlefield America: The War on the American People, the award-winning A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, and a debut dystopian fiction novel, The Erik Blair Diaries. Whitehead can be contacted at staff@rutherford.org. Nisha Whitehead is the Executive Director of The Rutherford Institute. Information about The Rutherford Institute is available at www.rutherford.org.

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