#7 jesus and politics

now i realise its an age old discussion and we've heard it all before, but in the face of this huge primary season it has been impossible to not be a bit caught up in the craziness of it all.  Now I am not an American myself, but as I live in the Western world it would be fair to say that this election affects me as much as any American, really.  

I used to get really angry about American politics, but then one day realised that my anger was achieving absolutely nothing.  So (as hippy as it sounds) i chose channel my anger into something that would have some sort of effect.  I decided everyday to pray that those in charge would have an encounter with the God that I know.  That's all I can do really.

But thats beside the point..

I was just reading this article about young religious groups that band together and encourage people to vote for a particular party.  Now first of all let me say that I think its fantastic these youngens care enough about the future of their country to get off their butts and encourage others do the same....

But do we have  the right to petition in the name of God?  If followers of Christ back both parties, whose to say that one group heard right and one group heard wrong?  

I often wonder what Jesus would say if he were standing among all this, watching the stuff we do in his name....

I guess no candidate is ever going to be perfect, but I think that our vote is a deeply personal thing and needs to come out of our own belief systems.  We all have different sets of ideals and ideologies, experiences, influences and beliefs...but in the end we need to try our best to put these aside, and look at the kind of society that most represents the kind of world Jesus envisioned for the church...and trust that he is powerful enough to use whoever is in charge to help make the world possible.

Am i dreaming?  maybe