A Christian attitude could civilise politics
By Barney Zwartz
This year, there are apparently 60 elections around the globe involving up to 2 billion voters. Nearly half of these voters are in India, while some elections – think Russia or Iran – are a complete sham.
In Britain this week, where voters turned on the 14-year Tory government, the campaign was far less toxic than we have seen in the United States for several years but it was still marred by unpleasantness and contempt for differing opinions.
Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer is Britain’s new prime minister.Credit: Getty Images
Nor is Australia immune, as the furore over Senator Fatima Payman has shown this week. The prospect of a Muslim religious party disturbs many – though recent Christian precedents (Family First or the Fred Nile Party) have not been particularly influential.
A couple of weeks ago, I helped Michael Jensen launch his book, Subjects and Citizens, which outlines the responsibility of the Christian when it comes to politics.
An exposition of Paul’s teaching in his letter to the Romans, the book points out that the core Christian belief should make a critical difference.
That belief is that Jesus is Lord of all, above any government or political party, and it should have massive ramifications – as has been recognised by rulers from ancient Rome to modern China who find the concept impossible to tolerate. They fear divided loyalties, and though Paul exhorts believers to value and obey state authorities, he recognises that there are times when they must be defied. Jesus is a crucified Lord, a leader who came not to be served but to serve, and that service includes self-sacrifice and love. Some Christians have modelled this marvellously in the world of politics, and many have failed miserably – but the aspiration is important.
The ultimate lordship of Jesus does not mean Christians should either avoid secular politics or form Christian parties. To the contrary, politics should be seen as service.
But we should be clear-eyed about what politics can and cannot achieve (it cannot, for example, make people moral) and about the separation between “the two kingdoms”, the Christian understanding of the distinction between secular and spiritual realms that are nevertheless not totally separate.
In practical terms, the lordship of Christ should affect how Christians treat political opponents. It requires a generosity of spirit that does not come naturally to most of us. But my faith leads me to acknowledge that nearly everyone wants society to flourish, even if they differ about what that means and how to get there.
In other words, I should assume the best about those who disagree rather than the worst, and recognise I owe them attention rather than rage or dismissal. And sometimes I manage that.
G.K. Chesterton got to the heart of the ideal Christian politics in his famous letter to The Times which had asked readers “what is wrong with the world?” Chesterton’s four-word letter read: “Dear sir. I am.”
Barney Zwartz is a senior fellow of the Centre for Public Christianity.
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