If you asked ten random people on the street to define what an evangelical Christian is, it’s likely that you would get at least one person who would say “someone who opposes abortion and gay marriage.”  It is a lamentable (and frustrating) truth that the church in the late 20th and early 21st century has in many ways become known for what it opposes, with the hot button issues of abortion and gay marriage being the most prominent ones.  One of the major contributors to this perception of the church has been the Christian Coalition of America, a political advocacy (and pro-Republican) group founded by Pat Robertson and led for many years by Ralph Reed.  The Christian Coalition lobbies for “pro-family” issues in Washington and has historically focused much of its efforts on the twin issues of abortion and gay marriage. 

However, the organization has seen a decline in its impact since the 2000 election of George Bush, a decline which they hoped to turn around with the election of a Florida megachurch pastor named Joel Hunter as the new president.  Hunter has become a national church leader in the issue of global warming by forming the Evangelical Climate Initiative, which acknowledges the reality and dangers of global warming and challenges Christians to do something about it as part of our mandate to be stewards of God’s creation.  And many leading Christians have responded to the ECI, including Rick Warren of The Purpose Driven Life fame, as well as the presidents of 39 evangelical Christian colleges (including Wheaton College).  Others, however, have argued against the ECI, claiming that global warming is a big scam and a waste of time, including Jim Dobson of Focus on the Family, Chuck Colson of Prison Fellowship Ministries, and Jerry Falwell of Liberty University.

So it was interesting to see an article in The Hartford Courant last week proclaiming that Joel Hunter had decided to step down from his upcoming appointment as President of the Christian Coalition.  His explanation was that he realized he would be unable to broaden the organization’s agenda beyond opposing gay marriage and abortion.  Apparently, he had hoped to include issues such as easing poverty and saving the environment, but was told that although those issues were fine, they weren’t the issues Coalition members were concerned about.

That’s right – apparently fighting poverty is no longer an important issue for Christians.

How in God’s good name did abortion and gay marriage become the defining issues for Christians in America???  And after those two issues, it seems that more focus is given to issues like prayer in schools and morality on television and in Hollywood than it is to causes that are ABSOLUTELY CENTRAL to the Bible and the teachings of Jesus – issues like poverty, injustice, and oppression (read the oft-overlooked prophetical books some time if you disagree).

Certainly the environmental issue is one of those that believing Christians differ on.  The theology of some Christians is that God has called us to be stewards of His good creation, which He will ultimately redeem at the end of time, when the barrier between heaven and earth is destroyed and God descends to live for us forever in the new heavens and new earth (read Revelation 21-22 if this is a new concept to you).  Thus, creation care is part of bringing God’s kingdom to earth.  Others, however, believe that God will rapture Christians out of the earth and ultimately destroy much of what remains on the earth in his wrath before re-creating the new heavens and the new earth (a literal reading of Revelation popularized in the Left Behind series).  Which of these two theologies you agree with will have a huge say on whether or not you believe saving the environment is worth dedicating time to.

But back to the relative importance of poverty, injustice, and oppression versus abortion and gay marriage.  First of all, there should be no need to make this into an either-or debate.  Certainly there is room for Christians to lovingly and truthfully engage with all of the above issues.  But if I had to set a priority as a political advocacy group based on what the Bible teaches, I would have a hard time keeping fighting poverty and injustice in the world off the top of the list.  Am I to believe that although we live in a world where millions are dying from AIDS in Africa, where there are genocides, wars, injustices done in all countries, millions more living below the poverty line, that the issue of primary importance for the church is making sure Adam and Steve don’t tie the knot???

If you have noticed any of the current books, articles, and blogs dealing with the intersection of Christian faith and politics, you will notice a heavy dissatisfaction with the impact organizations such as the Christian Coalition have had on how Christianity is seen and issues Christians are being encouraged to devote their time to.  From Jim Wallis’ God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get it to Joel Hunter’s Right Wing, Wrong Bird: Why the Tactics of the Religious Right Won’t Fly With Most Conservative Christians, a theme I see repeated over and over is that God is not a Republican (as the Christian Coalition seems to have convinced many American Christians) nor is He a Democrat.  Candidates should not be evaluated solely on their stance on abortion and gay marriage, but on all faith issues, including poverty, injustice, and even war.  Certainly killing people, whether they are unborn babies, death row criminals, or people in a foreign land, is an issue worth engaging as a believer.  And Christians should not be misled into thinking that God’s biggest agendas in this world are outlawing abortion and gay marriage.

One of the most hopeful things I see as I look to the future of the church in America is the number of evangelical churches recognizing that feeding the poor, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, and fighting oppression and injustice are an integral part of what it means to be a Christian.  They have realized that engagement with these issues does not make one a “liberal,” but rather a follower of Jesus who recognizes that bringing the kingdom of God to earth means doing all of the aforementioned things.  My deepest prayer is that NewLife, and the Christian church in general, would be known not for what we are against, but for what we stand for – good news, the gospel of Jesus, freedom and justice for the oppressed, hope for the poor, healing for the sick, and eternal life for all who are willing to trust in Jesus Christ.
 
In closing, take time once again to listen to the revolutionary words of Jesus, who identified himself with the poor and oppressed so that he could teach us that every act of kindness is truly worship unto him:

Matthew 25:31-46 - “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.  ”Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’  “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’  ”The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’  “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,  I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’  “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’  “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’  “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” 

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