Religion and Politics

 I’m on vacation this week, so I don’t have to write a sermon on the death of John the Baptist, the assigned reading from Mark’s Gospel in the Revised Common Lectionary (Mark 6:14-29). Nevertheless, I attended my conference pericope study this week because I enjoy hanging out with my clergy colleagues and because my Dean of Conference—who is an excellent baker—promised he’d serve us the remnants of the scrumptious lemon-blueberry birthday cake he cooked for his husband. I have to say I was not disappointed by either the collegial discussion or the birthday cake.

The story of John’s martyrdom described by St. Mark has, through the centuries, taken on a rather prurient coloration. Thanks to Oscar Wilde’s 1893 play, Salome, and subsequent retellings by Hollywood, we always imagine King Herod Antipas as some lust-crazed pedophile who gets a thing for his stepdaughter and—against his better conscience—murders the prophet to please the girl and her offended mother. I think the story has more to tell us than that.

No matter how wealthy or well-protected a nation is, it can’t survive without good, moral leadership. Mark gives us this picture of a foolish leader, a man who makes a stupid promise and is too arrogant to admit his mistake. Herod loves to play to his base, so he’d rather lop the head off a righteous man than look weak in front of his fans. It’s a great irony, but sometimes one of the strongest things we can do is admit to our weakness. If we can’t “fess up” to our mistakes we’ll never correct them and we’ll most certainly repeat them. Herod is one of these guys who will double down when he knows he’s wrong.

As my clergy buddies and I discussed this passage, Pastor Dan made two interesting observations. First, he thought we should ask what is morally wrong with Herod’s guests. If the king was unable to admit his error, why didn’t any of the folks at his birthday party speak up for John? How afraid of this king were they that no one questioned his judgment? Instead of bringing the cake and ice cream, they were content to have a prisoner’s severed head brought into the banquet room. Moral cowardice, it seems, was contagious.

Secondly, Pastor Dan noted that John was arrested because he openly criticized the king for breaking a Jewish marriage law. By our standards today, we might not think what Herod did was so terrible. All the same, it was against the law. John knew that, if the leader of the nation openly breaks the law, then the law is not binding on anyone. John was making a political statement. There are those who wish the Church would only deal with matters of the individual spiritual life and leave public policy outside the church doors. The Bible, however, is full of stories of prophets—Jesus included—who challenged the earthly authorities.

For those who get uncomfortable with mixing politics with religion I will share my policy on preaching about the society in which we find ourselves.

First, there are things I can’t do. Even though former President Trump voided the Johnson Amendment which prohibited church leaders from endorsing or opposing a specific political party or candidate, the policy of the ELCA has been to behave as if that law were still in effect. As one under the authority of bishops, I follow their direction in such matters.

Secondly, there are things I shouldn’t do. I should never preach a sermon which is so inflammatory that the gospel gets lost amidst the social debate. Any commentary on social issues must be fully grounded in the teachings of the faith. Social issues come and go, but the command of Christ to love our neighbors and to show justice and mercy endures forever. What we should do must never overshadow why we are doing it.

Finally, there are things I won’t do. I won’t be so afraid of offending a congregant’s feelings that I tiptoe around a crucial social issue just to avoid controversy. As I stated above, the church has always used her voice to call out the state on matters of injustice. From John the Baptist to Martin Luther to Dietrich Bonhoeffer to Martin Luther King, Christians have recognized our responsibility to speak truth to power.

I will continue to preach, therefore, that it is the duty of the strong to protect the weak. I believe supply-side economics (aside from being totally impractical) favors the wealthy at the expense of service to the poor and, as such, ignores the command of Jesus to care for “the least of these.” I believe denying global climate change endangers everyone on this planet—especially those in the poorest of nations—and is an affront to our Creator. I believe American isolationism is economically impractical, shows a callous disregard for the multitudes who suffer in poverty around the globe, and is a threat to world peace and stability. I believe that the xenophobic hatred of migrants coming to the United States ignores the basic humanity of God’s children and does not address the reasons why so many have become refugees in the first place. I believe Jesus loved and died for everyone including LGBTQ+ folks, and, as such, I believe members of that community should be welcomed in our churches. I believe that Black lives matter. I respect life and I believe abortion is always a bad choice, but I cannot claim it is always the worst choice. That decision should be made by the one who might need the abortion and not by the church, the courts, or the government. Finally, I believe as Martin Luther has said we come to Christ by way of the gospel and the Holy Spirit—not by government edicts or regulations.

I am proud to be an American—even when my native land has made mistakes. Yes, we had a botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. Come to think of it, we had a botched withdrawal from Vietnam, too. We’ve done numerous things which, in hindsight, we could’ve done better or not done at all. But I think the world still looks to us as the nation with free speech, a free press, a fair and honest system of justice, and freedom of religion—any religion or no religion at all. We are also the land where every citizen of age—rich or poor, Black or white, gay or straight, male or female—has one vote for our leadership and the majority rules. When we abandon these principles, we stop being Americans. January 6, 2021 was the darkest day I can ever recall in America. May it never be repeated. May the voices of honesty, brotherhood, mercy, peace and responsibility drown out the voices of fear, greed, hatred, intolerance, and arrogance.

Pray for our nation, my friend, and do your part.