It isn’t uncommon for some American politicians to want the public to be governed by the former’s religious beliefs. That might not be a good idea. An attempt to create a marriage between politics and religion tends to cause trouble for both, and the record of world history confirms this. When the Pilgrims boarded the Mayflower, they were fleeing from a place where the King’s religious beliefs had been made a part of civil law. Did the King belong to a pagan faith? No. He was the head of the Church of England, a branch of the universal Church. The Pilgrims were also a part of the universal Church.
In the USA, members of the Religious Right insist that civil laws adhere to the Bible in the way that the members of the Religious Right interpret the Bible. If that were to happen, then what would happen to Christians who don’t agree with the way that the Religious Right interprets the Bible? What New World would dissenting Christians have to flee to? What place of refuge would await those who are a part of the Christian Middle?
One has not compromised the Christian faith by rejecting the politics of the Religious Right. Yes, certain behaviors are sinful from a biblical perspective, but the desire to engage in such behaviors is not removed when those behaviors are prohibited by civil law. The desire to engage in such behaviors is removed when a person has a change of heart, but a civil government is powerless to change hearts. God alone can change the human heart, and as an act of faith, one needs to trust in God’s power to change human hearts.
One also needs to keep in mind that God’s sovereign will shall be done regardless of anything that Man can do, regardless of Man’s politics. Besides, when one does stand before one’s Creator, one’s politics will be meaningless, because God is a political Independent.
