Of Lamposts and Coreflute

Well here we are again – smack in the middle of the campaign leading up to a Federal Election. Here, where I live, the general amenity of the main roads has taken a significant turn for the worse, with the array of mug shots of election hopefuls staring down from coreflute posters adorning lamp and power poles. Whilst the posters mainly belong to the usual suspects, there is the occasional cameo from one of the minor parties and sundry “single issue” independents who obviously have too much time on their hands.

Once again, also, with the advent of election time (actually it’s the week before Advent, but why let a bad pun go to waste), there is the usual round of discussions about the separation of Church and State, and to what extent, if any, the Church should “get involved” in politics. I am amused that some of the very same politicians who ranted against Christian leaders publicly critiquing government or opposition policies, insisting that the Church should keep out of politics, have happily made guest appearances at a number of high profile Churches recently, and used their “platform time” to make sure they got their political message across. Ah well, I suppose we all have double standards to maintain!

Call me an outrageous rebel if you will, but it seems to me that those of us who are fair dinkum about following Jesus cannot avoid “getting involved in politics”. If politics is the means by which a society develops policies and principles to ensure the rights, dignity and well-being of every person, then those who try to live by Jesus' example will be right there in the middle of it. Jesus certainly got involved in politics and so, I reckon, must his followers.

How that involvement might look will depend on our passions, skills and circumstances. Not all of us will want to get to the point of having our mug on a coreflute poster. Most of us, I suspect, will try to influence things in a less “out there” way, by using the resources at our disposal to be a voice to our community’s leaders, encouraging (or perhaps requiring) them to act with compassion and integrity, and to use their power and influence to take care of those whom Jesus once called “the least of his brother and sisters.” Mind you, if we are going to ask this of them, then we better be real sure we are living that way ourselves. (Always an area for improvement for me!)

So, as the election approaches and afterwards, no matter what the result, go on, I dare you, be political.