Jesus, Democracy, and Violence

This is a sad time for the United States.  Our system of government is based on the assumption that individuals in our society will sacrifice of their time, energy, and talents to provide leadership at the local, state and national levels.  Rule by the people only works if the people are willing to step forward and help lead the way.  Those who enter the political realm know they will not be universally liked or appreciated.  As the old adage goes, if you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.  But, and this is a big but, they should never, ever, have to fear for their physical safety or the safety of their family and staff.  Now it seems that is no longer the case.

What do those of us who follow Jesus have to say to a nation in which public servants are targets not just of toxic rhetoric (which comes from all sides, parties, and news outlets) but also assassins bullets? What can we offer to a country increasingly intolerant of those who think differently than we do? Where violence, both at home and abroad, seem to be the new standard for solving political problems.

First, we must confess that the "What Would Jesus Do?" approach will be of little use.  Jesus, the one who walked the earth some 2000 years ago, had absolutely no experience with what we call democracy.  He lived in a hierarchical world, one in which political leaders ruled as emperors and kings and the religious establishment worshipped a God of strict commandments and rigid, top down, order.  There was nothing democratic about his world, no place for the people to elect their leaders or for the masses to have any role in providing leadership.  Save for the occasional revolution.  Even when they succeeded (which was not often) violence only served to replace one king with another.  Democracy as we understand it did not emerge until the 18th Century.

Yet, even though Jesus had no understanding of democracy, nor any agenda to set up a democratic political or religious community, he understood two things that I think are of help to us.  First, he stood firmly within a religious tradition that taught that we, humans, are created in the image and likeness of God.  Not some humans or most humans, but all humans.  There have always been people who have tried to deny that certain families or tribes or groups were fully human, and thus could be treated in inhumane ways.  But then a prophet would appear and remind folks that even though you may dislike or even hate your enemies they are still human, still created in the image and likeness of God.  That means we must treat them as we would God.

To the politicians and the political commentators and the average citizens we, the followers of Jesus, have to say enough with the demonizing of those who think differently than you and have a different vision for America.  This is not acceptable.  It does not matter if a person is a liberal or moderate or conservative, they are still created in the image and likeness of God.  Republican, Democrat, Communist, Tea Party, no party it does not matter.  Everyone is deserving of respect, dignity, compassion and love.  The era of hate filled speeches, of talking heads who make a fortune off of dehumanizing their political opponents, and out right insensitivity to the basic humanity of those who seek and hold elective office must end.  Now.  Vigorous debate and impassioned discussion are part and parcel of democracy.  Treating those who differ with you as if they were somehow less human than yourself is not only antithetical to everything democracy stands for, but it is an affront to God.  We the people are better than this.  We the people  must be better than what we have let ourselves become.

Second, Jesus understood, no Jesus proved through his own life that violence is not the way forward nor is it the way of God.  Those who hated Jesus and his teachings sought to have him killed.  If you don't like an idea, kill the messenger of that idea.  If you disagree with someone and they will not come over to your way of thinking than take them out.  That will solve the problem, or so they thought.  We, the followers of Jesus celebrate the fact that through the resurrection of Jesus God said an emphatic "NO!" to violence.  Death does not get the last word, God does and God's last word, like God's first word, is life.

Murder of elected government officials is not the answer to our problems.  We cannot kill off the issues that we confront as a society.  It is a joke and a farce to pretend that gunning down a Congresswoman, or a judge, or the President, or bombing a daycare full of children in an Oklahoma City government building will make everything right.  Democracy does not work that way.  God does not work that way.  Nothing works that way.

Those who have taken part in polarizing the body politic will be quick to say they never encouraged or endorsed anyone to resort to violence.  Strictly speaking they are correct.  Yet, the constant, 24 hour attacks, false statements, blatant lies, and exaggeration of fears and prejudices help to contribute to a climate of violence.  Their words and tone have helped lead us to this point.  When every side in a political debate envokes the name of Hitler or the ghost of the Nazi party when talking about their rivals, violence is not far in the offing. 

And those of us who listen or watch their programs or vote them into office are equally at fault.  We encourage them by our tuning in or casting our votes and they tell us what we want to hear - that our problems are the fault of the other side.  As the anger and the suspecion grows (and grow it has) we don't even realize how far down the road towards violence we have traveled.  The young man in Arizona just got to the place many of us were headed first.  Yet it is a path to nowhere.

Out of the ashes of the tragedy in Arizona God will affirm life and create life.  That is what God does.  The question we as a nation face is whether we will be working with God in bringing forth something redemptive from this horrible situation, or whether we will continue to delude ourselves into believing that a little more bloodshed from our democratically elected leaders will force everyone else to think and act like we do.  We, the followers of Jesus, hope and pray it is the former and not the latter.  Otherwise, or democracy is doomed to failure.

Copyright © 2011, Roger Burns-Watson, All Rights Reserved