www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Politics and Religion

I wish to share some thoughts that keep rumbling around in my mind about the relationship between politics and religion and to some degree between East and West.

People often proclaim that "religion and politics should never mix." I do not understand that comment and I don't believe I agree with it. People often add ominously that somehow whenever they do terrible things happen. Just look at history. I do look at history and I think we are worse off for trying to pretend that they don't mix than when we tried to affect changes in our political realm.

Specifically, some of our people have been involved in the march for life in January. Are they wrong for so doing?

I've support Romanian Catholic Eric Schiedler and his efforts to stop the building of Abortion clinics and most recently to stop the HHS mandate. Yet I see very little about those issues on these fora making me wonder if that too is something to be avoided by Eastern Christians.

I've organized mission meetings and rallies and have participated in events to support the plight of suffering Christians in Iraq and Egypt. I've gone to rallies. I've written letters encouraged from the pulpit to effect American policy in these areas. Are these actions somehow non-Eastern?

I think they are isolationist. I think they expose us as complaining too much against Roman hegemony when we aren't willing to contribute to the redemption of the world. I don't think they are Eastern. I could be wrong and am always willing to learn.

I think that individuals absolutely MUST allow their faith to inform and shape their politics and political involvement. Otherwise, we are merely whited sepulchers, saying one thing and doing another.

On the other hand, I think that organized (or disorganized, as the case may be ) religious bodies should NOT insert themselves into the political machinery. The role of the church, IMO, is to teach the individuals so that individuals can act (and vote) according to their conscience shaped by faith. I do not believe that the institutional church is to play a direct role in shaping government policy.

In my mind, the institutional church should say "These are the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is how these teachings have been interpreted through the centuries." It is then the responsibility of the individual Christian to look at Law X or Candidate Y or Situation Z and act accordingly. In general, I do not think that it is the proper role of the institution to support or condemn specific Laws or Candidates. On the other hand, the institution can and should denounce Situations, but I do not think they should mandate how the individual Christian responds to that Situation.

Obviously, there are going to be exceptions to what I've just said, but I think those exceptions should be extremely rare ... and extreme.

The principal you have outlined seems simple and clear. I would guess that Eastern Christians would have no problem with individuals even priests participating in the events I've described. I wonder why people get so shook up about and loudly proclaiming that there should be no mixing of religion and politics as if there is too much of it or as if there is a danger that there will be too much of it.

To clarify: I think Crocker's dictum that the Church and state are like two book ends to benefit society is quite correct. I'm not sure that all would agree.