Sure, we all want to say we vote on the issues, but I don't really think that's completely true. If it were, personal attack ads would not exist. But they do. And they don't just attack a candidates policies, they attack their character.
Character is, and should be a deciding factor- not the only one and not as big as the issues, but a sizable one nonetheless. Of course, the cynic in me feels to the need to point out that we need to ignore the lying character flaw because it is a given they all bend the truth until they darn near break the thing off. Both candidates said things in the debates that were fact checked to be inaccurate at best and yet they still kept saying them.
But there is still a question of integrity. And it is not just "doing what they say." I believe candidates, especially those running for president, make promises that are literally impossible to keep once in office because they learn things they could not be privy to before they took office. Obama promised to close Gitmo, but didn't- and I really think that has more do with him getting information that forced him to change his plans. It wasn't a lie, it was new context. And that's just one example.
So, for character, we need to look at people's personal life, what they choose to do with their lives outside of office.
Are they charitable? Are they faithful to their spouse? Are they good parents? Are they committed to something bigger than themselves (that is not about getting elected)?
This election, I have seen people attack the President as a Muslim. This should stop. As a Christian, I believe that I cannot judge a man's heart, I can only hear what he says he believes and what he shows that he does with that belief. President Obama has stated he is a Christian- my only concern is to see if his actions follow that belief system. Just because he has taken actions and said things that show an affinity for Muslims and Islam in general doesn't make him un-christian and it does not make him Muslim. To understand the man's faith, listen to his words, look at his activities with his church, and his expressions of faith. And let God judge those actions.
This election is historic because we have our first legitimate Mormon candidate for President. There have been attacks on him for this belief. This should stop. As a Christian, I believe that Mormonism and Christianity are in fact different theologies. The deity is not the same based on what I have read and what I have heard from Mormons I have spoken to. The salvation story is different. But much of the expressions of charity towards others and family values are the same. Since we are not a theocracy, the theology should not matter, but if his beliefs make him a more compassionate and better person or a more hateful person, they should affect our vote. As I said with President Obama: my only concern with Mitt Romney is to see if his actions follow that belief system he claims to hold. To understand the man's faith, listen to his words, look at his activities with his church, and his expressions of faith. And let God judge those actions.
So, for character, we need to look at people's personal life, what they choose to do with their lives outside of office.
Are they charitable? Are they faithful to their spouse? Are they good parents? Are they committed to something bigger than themselves (that is not about getting elected)?
This election, I have seen people attack the President as a Muslim. This should stop. As a Christian, I believe that I cannot judge a man's heart, I can only hear what he says he believes and what he shows that he does with that belief. President Obama has stated he is a Christian- my only concern is to see if his actions follow that belief system. Just because he has taken actions and said things that show an affinity for Muslims and Islam in general doesn't make him un-christian and it does not make him Muslim. To understand the man's faith, listen to his words, look at his activities with his church, and his expressions of faith. And let God judge those actions.
This election is historic because we have our first legitimate Mormon candidate for President. There have been attacks on him for this belief. This should stop. As a Christian, I believe that Mormonism and Christianity are in fact different theologies. The deity is not the same based on what I have read and what I have heard from Mormons I have spoken to. The salvation story is different. But much of the expressions of charity towards others and family values are the same. Since we are not a theocracy, the theology should not matter, but if his beliefs make him a more compassionate and better person or a more hateful person, they should affect our vote. As I said with President Obama: my only concern with Mitt Romney is to see if his actions follow that belief system he claims to hold. To understand the man's faith, listen to his words, look at his activities with his church, and his expressions of faith. And let God judge those actions.
I often quote this line from Batman Begins: "It's not who you are on the inside, but what you do that defines you."
Politicians say things, but what do they do? We have an incumbent President- and I have not heard a significant change in his plans for the next four years. If you like what you have seen of his policies and his character- vote for him. If you do not, then look to another candidate. Look at what they have done- not what they have said, what they have done. Choose the best candidate based on that and their character.
Politicians say things, but what do they do? We have an incumbent President- and I have not heard a significant change in his plans for the next four years. If you like what you have seen of his policies and his character- vote for him. If you do not, then look to another candidate. Look at what they have done- not what they have said, what they have done. Choose the best candidate based on that and their character.
It must be both, I believe. If we elect a man or woman only for personality and not for his/her work and his/her plans, we are fools.
And I think we must remember that just because we don't like a candidate, it does not make them evil. Sure, there could someday be a person elected to President who is truly despicable and vile, a tyrant that people will talk of overthrowing. Christians will wonder if it right to do so- like Bonhoefer with Hitler. Because our leaders are humans, and power is an enticing corrupter.
At the end of the day, even if whoever is elected Tuesday turns into a modern day Attilla the Hun or heaven-forbid Adolf Hitler- or conversely the next JFK or Lincoln- we need to remember this:
No politician can save you. Only Christ can.
So, why then is it important that we vote?
Because when we vote, we are are voting to keep the freedoms in place that make it easier for us to share the message of Christ with our neighbors- those down the street and those around the world. Freedom of speech and religion that allows us- along with all religions- to openly share their beliefs. A sharing that must be accompanied by love and grace. Because even despite our current economy, we are financially blessed and able to help- as individual missionaries or through our churches and organizations- people who are in dire straits all over the world. Because we are free to send missionaries at all. We vote because we are declaring that we want to continue to be able to use our blessings to live for Christ.
We vote because we hope each vote we cast is a vote to make things better. That may be naive- but I certainly hope that this election will make things better, just like I hoped the last one did, and the one before that. And it doesn't always get better. Sometimes it gets worse.
As Christians, we should take comfort whether we are better off after next Tuesday or worse in the fact that Christ will still be our Lord. He will still be working to make it all right even when we make it all wrong.
And whoever wins, may we pray for them even when we disagree with them.
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