Note: What follows is NOT a partisan post!
There has been a lot of talk in the media about Obama’s first one hundred days – some helpful and some, well, just plain wacko. In this latter regard, take James Dobson’s 4/29 Citizenlink newsletter as a case in point. I have subscribed to Citizenlink for years, not because I enjoy or agree with it, but because I think it’s important to hear what people are saying on the other end of the theological swimming pool. But yesterday I finally cancelled my subscription, as I must confess to not being able to find evidence that we’re even in the same pool to begin with, much less the same planet.
Dobson’s Citizenlink came up with a lot to say about Obama’s first one hundred days – ALL of it negative, as if there’s absolutely nothing they could find in 100 days in office that even slightly suggested anything positive. Now, if Dobson’s organization represented itself as purely political, it would be wacky for even the most heavily partisan of organizations to claim that EVERYTHING has been negative. Yet, Dobson’s organization claims to be religious in nature, not simply political. As a “religious” organization, they not only cannot seem to find anything positive to say about our current President of the United States, but their entire basis for judging good vs. evil apparently revolves around “pro-family” issues, which are ENTIRELY identified with the issue of abortion, homosexuality, and federal funding for religious organizations that promote views like Dobson’s. No matter what one’s views are concerning these three issues, can good vs. evil be so narrowly defined by a “religious” organization?
Like I say, I can’t even find “the pool” anymore with Dobson.
I wonder how Obama’s first 100 days would look when considered in light of the Phoenix Affirmations. I don’t mean to make any personal claims one way or another with respect to Obama and politics, and I would not expect any Administration to advocate for specific religious values. Rather, the only point I’m making is that, as Christians, it’s important to get our questions right (or at least have them coming from the “swimming pool”). Using the relevant Phoenix Affirmations as a guide, here are some questions to ask. How has the Obama Administration done with respect to:
Affirmation 1: Respecting other religious traditions.
Affirmation 2: Reflecting God’s still-speaking voice in our world?
Affirmation 3: Caring for the earth and its ecosystems?
Affirmation 4: Promoting the arts (wouldn’t expect an administration to promote worship)
Affirmation 5: Treating all people with dignity and respect, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental ability, nationality, or economic class.
Affirmation 6: Standing with the outcast and oppressed, the denigrated and afflicted, seeking peace and justice with or without the support of others.
Affirmation 7: Keeping Church and State separated.
Affirmation 8: Seeking to understand and call forth the best in others, including those who consider us their enemies.
Affirmation 9: Acting on the basis that they and all people are loved beyond their wildest imagination.
Affirmation 10: Affirming that science can work alongside faith in the pursuit of truth.
Affirmation 11: Respecting the responsibility of individuals to care for and make decisions concerning their bodies and to value rest and recreation in addition to work.
Affirmation 12: Affirming that all people are born with a meaning and purpose, and have an important role to play in our society.
I leave it to you to decide how well or poorly the Obama Administration has done in its first 100 days. I’m simply suggesting that it’s terribly important to ask the right questions when discerning this as Christians. I suggest starting with the above twelve.
THE HOLY SPIRIT