We live in an era of activism where pop culture props up those who yell for more “action” and “care” the most loudly, regardless of the efficacy of their ideas. In this environment, how do you stir up passion and emotion for smaller government and less action? It’s not easy. How do you stir it up for more government and more action? Easy. It’s much simpler to publicize growth and action than to market restraint and encourage responsibility. As in life, self-control and discipline over the long course is never sexy.

I do not like politics, but am interested by ideas. I don’t like all the schmoozing, networking, and whatever else goes on in Washington. That the political system is a necessary evil I understand. But what I desire from government is distinctly different from the trend we are currently experiencing. Almost every issue I can imagine supporting would try to lessen the power of government or repeal prior poor decisions. I am not an activist. I want to be left alone. I believe God will ask me to involve myself at some point, but the only reason I consider doing so is to protect us and help recover what others take away, not to actively pursue something new. How do you mobilize an army of people that would rather be uninvolved against activists who live for obtaining more power and being in the spotlight? Herein lies the conundrum for conservatism. On a personal level, if I am not an activist and have no desire to be a professional politician, how do I participate in something like this and still enjoy life? I don’t have an answer to this yet.

We face an opposition dedicated to and animated by finding new ways to grow government, spend more money, and take more control of our lives. There is no limit to the amount of enthusiasm they can create or power they wish to attain. Conversely, if the government were to do essentially nothing for the next year outside of approve what is already mandated for its operation, I would be ecstatic.  When I think about my children’s future, I do not think, “I hope they have as much regulation and government intervention as possible.” But rather I wish them a future full of freedom and the opportunity to make something of themselves. When I hear speeches full of pessimism that try to stir up fear or envy and tell us how we need yet more government, they seem petty and childish, and cannot hold a candle to Ronald Reagan’s inauguration address where he speaks of government as the problem, not the solution. It’s sad to see modern figures espousing these ideals, like a Duncan Hunter or a Ron Paul, left in the political dust in favor of candidates concerned with popularity. But I believe at some point, and hopefully it won’t be too late, the millions of people waiting for someone to embrace the Constitution, limited government, capitalism, liberty, and everything that has made this country great, will have their say and cry out to be left alone.

I do not wish to rehash what I have already written. (The pertaining excerpt from the paper can be downloaded here if so desired). But as we start an election year, I believe we must wrestle with this question. This is a broad topic ad I only wish to give brief critiques of the Religious Right as well as Christians who disagree with them. These are merely the musings of a young 26 year old who is continually maturing and learning. Four years after writing my paper, I firmly hold to the same conclusion I reached in 2003. The answer is not “either-or” but is rather “both-and.”

While they may not say it in so many words, some Christian leaders wish the Religious Right would either tone it down or go away. They assert the United States was never a “Christian Nation” and we ought to focus on the Kingdom of God rather than on political zealotry. Rallies to “win back America” miss the mark by focusing more on politics than on the work of the Church and the restoration of the soul. We ought to focus on our eternal work and not place our hopes in the temporal institution of government. Man made governments will always let us down and cannot bring restoration. In their estimation, we must first fix our own shortcomings as the Body of Christ before we have the right to criticize and fight in the public square. And until we do so, our message comes across as hypocritical and judgmental. This is a rather simplified synopsis of the discussion at hand, but it should serve as a framework for this debate.

As to this business of whether or not we are a “Christian nation,” I believe it is a semantics game played by both sides. The religious right can use the phrase to bestow a favored status upon the United States–as if we are nearer to God’s heart than other nations. This is a subtlety and quite dangerous, but I don’t think this is as common as their critics would have us believe. Also, those Christian leaders opposing the religious right are very quick to list all of our faults as a nation but very slow to highlight the positives. I see in them a jadedness to which they are oblivious. While I agree with them that we were not founded as a “Christian nation” per se, our founding is unique in the liberty it provided for Christianity to flourish and the Christianity it took for liberty to flourish. To downplay the fundamental role of Christians and their faith in the history of our country is to rewrite history.

The argument to move away from the current practices of the Religious Right is a strong one. I see the Church bending over backwards to make our message more “relevant”, “seeker friendly”, or whatever one wishes to call it. This is what my dad and I (and I’m sure we got it from someone else) refer to as the “Wal-Martization” of the Church. We expect pastors and our local church to offer a litany of services and cater to our needs or make us feel a certain way. In many ways it has become a gospel of convenience and a message of what God can do for me. In this environment the focus is on a Jesus who gives me things, helps me, or is my friend rather than the one who saved my soul from hell and eternal damnation. This attitude has carried over to politics in the sense that it is less demanding to rally around a political candidate or movement than it is to purify ourselves, preach repentance, and speak the truth. True redemption of nation comes from the collective effect of individuals repenting, not our politicians. Our restoration moves from the bottom up and not the top down.

Secondly, Christians (and Americans in general) can overestimate the importance of an elected individual. Jesus was the perfect son of God and politicians are fallible human beings and we should never forget that. The President, my congressman, and my two senators have little influence over my daily life in comparison to my faith and personal decisions. True, their power continues to grow as government oversteps its bounds and plays a more activist role. And in the big decisions, their policies can make life better or worse. But despite this, we as individuals possess the lion’s share of the responsibility for our lives. Here I believe Evangelical Christians can really miss the boat and find themselves disappointed when their chosen leader fails to reform the moral climate of the country.

Now let me speak in support of the Religious Right. There is one characteristic of Christian leaders opposing the Religious Right that really, really rubs me the wrong way. It is the aura of neutrality with which they try to carry themselves. When they communicate, they assume they are neutral because of a refusal to take sides and the emphasis they place on our heavenly kingdom. But running through their message is not just a love for the Kingdom, but also a current of cynicism, anti Americanism, and a desire to be different. It’s fine that they have a different opinion, but sometimes the pursuit of shock value becomes an end unto itself because they desperately want to stand out and apart from the Religious Right. People who refer to U.S. Air Force planes as “killing machines” or support abortion are entitled to their opinions, but they are not entitled to neutral status.

It is this quest for neutrality that I believe is so dangerous. By their very nature, two opposing viewpoints cannot both be correct. But when we pretend all political candidates and views are valid and tell people to just “focus on the Kingdom” we miss an opportunity to work for the Kingdom. Not all views are equal or correct and part of the Kingdom calling for some Christians is working to defeat false ideas and indoctrination. While most Christians would love to keep to themselves and avoid government and policy, some are called by God to stand against the tide they see washing away the fabric of our society. To its credit, the Religious Right has fought against pernicious trends of thought and worked to promote traditional morality and liberty. Their work has not been activist but rather a reaction to the onslaught of modern liberalism and a desire to protect what we have or recover some of what has been lost.

What some fail to see is that when Christians work in the public square to influence policy and elect solid leaders, they are doing work on the front end. They are fighting behind the scenes to promote an environment where people and faith can flourish. Perhaps a teenage boy never has to go to the pastor for counseling because someone cut taxes which in turn allowed his mother to stay at home and provide him with a solid upbringing. Or perhaps someone developed into an opera singer rather than a drug user because the policies of their area minimized dependency and encouraged hard work and self sufficiency. Or maybe a young mother in South Dakota never had premarital sex because her state prohibited abortion, thus saving her from a scarring decision that would have haunted her for the rest of her life. This work will forever go unnoticed and unappreciated, but since the battle was won beforehand, the church never has to fight it.

We need people working in churches to aid and love our community. But we also need what some would refer to as watchmen on the walls or guardians of the faith in the public square. These people not only promote solid ideas in society, but they also protect the rights of the Church. Without them, someone may have hamstrung the Church’s ability to participate in the lives of the community. Think of the fear caused by the IRS threatening to remove an organization’s tax exemption and you have a clear example how the heavy hand of government and the thinking that caused that policy can influence our work.

The Religious Right has provided a valuable service to the Kingdom by working to protect Christians and stop some of the moral decay beforehand instead of treating it afterwards. While others bemoan the status of the country, they have had the courage to contest problems at the source and call ideas what they are, evil. At the same time, Christian leaders in opposition to the Religious Right correctly call us back to proclaiming the true Gospel and not selling it out for temporary political power. This is why I believe the answer is not either Christians should be involved in politics or Kingdom work, but they ought to participate in both.

The idea that people in Washington would use our soldiers, national security, and the lives of millions of Iraqis as pawns in the chess game of hatred with George W. Bush and “his war” is one of the sickest, most maniacal, evil stunts I have seen in my short adult life. What baffles me even more is how, here in South America and across the world, these same people are touted as reasonable, merciful, and peace loving while the President is vilified in a way I never knew possible. Yet these same people who insist on passing a meaningless resolution to condemn a genocide of a century ago would readily stand by and watch one take place today in Iraq if it meant the humiliation and defeat of George W. Bush. The perversity and backwardness of the situation goes beyond the cognitive abilities of my finite mind.

When we speak of God righting wrongs and correcting injustice in this world, it goes beyond victims of abuse, neglect, poverty, etc. Injustice happens when good people are persecuted for doing right, lied about, and mocked. Jesus said in Matthew 5:10-11, “God blesses those who are persecuted because they live for God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses you when you are mocked and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers.” In addition, for those politicians and supporters who are gleefully pursuing our defeat, there will be a judgment more severe than they can fathom. Any short-lived gain from selling their soul and selling out our soldiers and innocent civilians in the Middle East for more votes will seem paltry compared to the hand of the Almighty and his justice.

The disbelief, uneasiness, and sickness I have now is indescribable. It’s similar to the feeling I have when hearing of child molesters, serial murderers, wife abusers, pimps, Al Qaeda torture tactics, or whatever vile, wretched act you can imagine. Those who manipulate the minds of others for their personal gain may be the most reprehensible members of our society. Ideas have consequences and it is my contention that the ideas of elected officials, even in the United States, often prevent people from realizing their potential, enslave them, stir up bitterness and a host of sinful attitudes, and kill millions of people. Ultimately, it is God who sees all and judges the heart. Knowing that, I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes and shame on us if we knowingly support them in any way.

President Nicolas Sarkozy in many ways is a revolutionary in France. His domestic policy is very encouraging as he talks of tax cuts and slashing spending in an effort to bring the nation out of it economic slumber. For a nation where working more than 35 hours per week is prohibited and people are so accustomed to social programs and overspending that they’ve run a federal deficit every year since 1974, this is big news.

As an American, what’s more encouraging is his view toward us. Rather than the French disdain we’ve come to expect, he speaks positively in regards to the United States. Sarkozy does not apologize for his admiration for our country and has even chosen to vacation in the American Northeast. Perhaps most inspirational is his tough stance toward Iran. He stands up and speaks forcefully against Ahmadinejad and the insane fanaticism of his regime. Especially after the departure of Tony Blair in Great Britain, it’s nice to know our President has an ally who can recognize evil and call it what it is. There seems to be an ever present shortage of leaders with this type of spine.

Sarkozy even receives a lot of press down here in Buenos Aires. Keep an eye on him. I know my view of France could change dramatically.

It seems like everyone here sees George W. Bush as an instigator that started rattling the sabers of war on January 20, 2001. They can’t understand how he can send soldiers to their death and kill tens of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians. The corollary is that Bill Clinton was an excellent president that didn’t hurt anyone and led the U.S. and the world through a period of peace. He may have had a problem with women, but what man doesn’t?

I can’t believe how popular ole Bill is here! For example, someone might finish rebuking Bush and then say their favorite president was, what was his name? He was president in the 90s? Yes! Clinton. I need to go rewatch Bill’s interview with Chris Wallace.

Republicans really, really screwed themselves. They took the Conservative base for granted, wined and dined the Washington crowd, and corrupted themselves. I hope this serves as a wakeup call to return to real conservatism. We need people who will follow in the pattern of Ronald Reagan and take charge and actually lead. Hopefully Newt (or someone even stronger) will through his hat into the ring…

George W. Bush must have a reward in heaven that is difficult to comprehend. The persecution he endures daily is beyond the pale. Ok…I have to stop now or I´ll be in a foul mood. More to come later…

Anyway, I leave for Argentina with the realization that I will probably face this attitude quite often. Argentina is heavily influenced by Europe and the societal problems of Europe are too voluminous to discuss in this post. I will not go out of my way to address political issues–especially because it will be difficult to do so in Spanish. Sometimes I will need to speak my mind. But more often than not, I will need to bite my tongue. There is a time and place for the debate. And when I’m a guest in another country, wisdom in this matter is especially important.

This day, Saturday, September 30th, I pledge my allegiance to conservatism and the vast right-wing conspiracy. I will return to this country still adhering to the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, and a strong national defense. I will faithfully listen to Rush via God’s gracious gift of the Podcast. I am proud to be a conservative, to have interned at the Heritage Foundation, and to be a member of Rush 24/7. Peace be upon Ronald Reagan.