Saturday, 12 July 2008
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Jesus and Uncle Sam
For those of you who read my Facebook note, this is the same post.
I like Tony's last note, and I heartily agree (for those of you who don't know Tony, here's a link to his note). I recently heard someone ask why there are 50 candidates for Miss America and only two viable candidates (Teddy Roosevelt notwithstanding) for president. In good conscience, I can't vote for either major candidate this year on several counts, many of which are shared by both. This is a fact which I know will greatly annoy several of my loved ones.
I think it's ridiculous that this means I'm "throwing my vote away," but that doesn't mean I disagree. However (side rant), I refuse to accept that a vote that's not for one is automatically a vote for the other - simple numbers refute the notion as a logical fallacy. The point is, I'm going to vote for the candidate I think is best, regardless of whether every vote "really counts." This is going to require more reserach than usual on my part (oh no, an educated voter!), but I'm not going to compromise my convictions because the current political system is inadequate for true democracy. I think that my allegience to Christ should take precedent over my allegience to a political party or even my country (which, according to some anti-Obama-nites, is at stake).
So there.
Wow, I didn't mean to rant that long. That's not even what I was originally going to write about.It feels good to get it off my chest, though.
No, that would be the immigration debate.
Immigration is a topic I've been pondering quite a bit lately. My misgivings about border control and other issues in the political spotlight are why I'm not marked "conservative" on my personal information. This excerpt from an old(ish) article by James Pinkerton of TCSDaily.com puts it well:
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"The notion that all, everywhere, are equal in God's eyes is deep in Christianity; in Galatians 3:28, Paul declares, 'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.' More than any other Christian church, the Catholics -- the word itself is derived from the Greek katholikos: 'about the whole' -- have embraced the idea of a single unitary world church, and held on to it, for 2000 years. Meanwhile, other great religions, such as Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism, have made little attempt to proselytize beyond their traditional group of adherents..."So the Catholic Church is noteworthy for its commitment to open borders, as befits an organization headquartered in Europe, yet with an ambitious presence in every country in the world. And [Los Angeles's Roger Cardinal] Mahony, who leads the largest archdiocese in the US, has said that he and his priests will disobey any restrictive new laws that might emerge from Congress; as the Cardinal said to ABC News on May 16, 'The law of Christ -- welcome the strangers in your midst -- is a higher law than the law of the House.' "
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There you have it. The promise of broken hypothetical laws on the basis of Scripture. This, by the way, is something I think we should see more of...not necessarily written laws, but definitely some of the more subtle, unspoken (social) ones. But I digress.It may seem like I'm all for open borders, but the fact is, I'm not necessarily in agreement with the Cardinal. I'm truly undecided. While I'm sure there are other verses that can be used in favor or in opposition of open, or at least more relaxed, borders, I'm not overly familiar with any of them. There are also contextual ramifications to consider: Are there any side effects of amnesty or lenient border control that would be condemned by scripture? Are there details regarding the historical context in which the scriptures were written that should be brought to bear on this issue?
Really, I guess, I just want your opinion. I'd also like either your logic behind it or a well-explained scriptural or historical reference (preferably both) that supports it, as well. Let your voice be heard.
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Comments (1)
People like you, (and me, if I could vote, or so I would liek to think) are called in politics "Kingmakers".
The independant political party is based off people who are neither Democratic nor Republican. I'm quite liberal, as you know, but I have conservative qualities about me that puzzle my friends. But I digress.
My point: As long as you knwo what you stand for, and you choose who you think will best benefit not the nation, but the nations people as a populace, your vote is not wasted. And sometimes, that means abstaining from the vote.