Why are religious conservatives still the squeaky wheels?

Great points brought forth in this article. Thanks to the Christian Right, if you say you’re a Christian, you’re branded as a close-minded political conservative, which, for a lot of us, just isn’t the case. But don’t just blame the Religious Right and the, ahem, left-leaning media for this bias:

Some responsibility for the continued loud voices of political conservatives rests with the leadership of mainline Protestant traditions. Mainline Protestants, who have tended to become more politically liberal in the last two decades, are the natural base for a “Vote ALL your values” initiative. And yet whether concerned with the in-house business of their own denominations or wary of alienating the person in the pew by perceived involvement in political debate during a polarized time, few denominational heads showed up at last week’s New York press conference. With the exception of an Episcopal bishop and an ecumenical officer for the United Methodists, all the other featured speakers were heads of large extra-denominational organizations. Moderate leaders within traditional church structures are not going out on any limbs.

I think for some folks (at least reformed types), going out on a limb means potentially creating rifts within a congregation, because there are still plenty of political conservatives to be found in evangelical/reformed circles. Do you risk dividing a church by talking politics from the pulpit? While many Christians may not agree with George Bush’s policies, how many would be willing to say that they are sinful? But perhaps that’s the wrong question — the plank in your own eye and all that. We should, however, be able to examine political policy under the Biblical microscope. A pastor should be critical of putting the cart before the horse — are we letting our faith be influenced by our political views, or are our political views shaped by the proper study of Scripture? And I’ve asked before, we’re we called to be counter-cultural?

Posted on 28 October 2004