Offsite Post: ‘Is Christian Politics Possible?’

 

In a recent article at The Hayride, we were presented with two choices when it comes to Christianity and politics.  The first, from Erick Erickson, is that God will handle most everything; man’s involvement is minimal and inconsequential.  The second, from Scott McKay, is that God has nothing to do with politics; man’s involvement therefore must be deep, maximal, and highly consequential, and he need not bother about Christian ethics when moving within the boundaries of the realm of politics. 

Both approaches suffer from an imbalance that is the result of a misunderstanding of the Incarnation of God the Word, Jesus Christ.  When the Son of God joined Himself forever to our human flesh, as the Church Fathers remind us often in their teachings, this union affected every aspect of human life.  The Lord came to heal and renew the whole man, not simply part of him.  If He had not accomplished that, our salvation would be incomplete and thus non-existent.  But He has accomplished the complete renewal of mankind, and this means that politics, too, has experienced a change since the Incarnation, just as eating, the family, and every other dimension of human life has been altered by it.

But God does not force Himself upon mankind.  His is always a synergistic work:  God and man working together to accomplish the building up of the Kingdom of God in this world.  The recent Feast of the Annunciation (25 March) is an excellent example of this.  In the reading for this Feast is the following passage:

 

 . . . “the word of the creature brought the Creator down into the world.” [St Philaret] explains that salvation is not merely an act of God’s will, but also involves the Virgin’s free will. She could have refused, but she accepted God’s will and chose to cooperate without complaint or further questions.

Therefore, it is an error to simply shrug our shoulders and say ‘God’s got this,’ like Mr Erickson would have us do.  This minimalist approach would leave the Church extremely vulnerable to her enemies and allow the latter to push the broader culture even further in an un-Christian direction.

However, the same thing will happen if we take the path offered by Mr McKay.  Any people that exiles God from its decision-making ends up a nightmare-land, as France, Russia, Cambodia, and others attest - and to which, more and more, Louisiana and the rest of the States are likewise attesting.

But is it possible for Christians to act forcefully and meaningfully in politics without renouncing Christian morality?  Without a doubt it is.  This has been the experience of the Church for 2,000 years:  from England to Constantinople to Serbia, etc., etc. 

Let us look at a couple of examples.  In England during the reign of King Oswald of Northumbria, we have this account from St Bede:  . . .

The rest is at https://thehayride.com/2021/03/garlington-is-christian-politics-possible/ .

--

Holy Ælfred the Great, King of England, South Patron, pray for us sinners at the Souð, unworthy though we are!

Anathema to the Union!