Originally posted by caltour:Did I say I think evangelicals should be disenfranchised? No. They get to vote just like everyone else.
Post #53
Originally posted by caltour:For the same reasons, churches today should restrain themselves from political activity.
What are you saying? That religious Americans can vote but shouldn't be able to organize to promote their views?
Church members should express their political views through voting (and individual financial contributions), just like the rest of us. They shouldn't form umbrella organizations like the NAE for the purpose of gathering money to influence politics. They should not support initiatives to make their interpretation of christianity the law of the land. They shouldn't lobby for public funding for christian schools, they shouldn't try to get religious displays installed on public property, and they shouldn't try to make kids pray in public schools. They shouldn't seek to blur the line between church and state.
I am not just saying this because I am anti-evangelical (I share their belief in God and their veneration of Jesus. I share many of their values). I am saying this because I have studied history and law, and I am not at all sure our little experiment with democracy could survive an unrestrained application of the power of evangelical churches. Our form of government may collapse into anarchy when the most powerful groups (religious groups, the wealthy elite, or corporations) decide to ditch pluralism and remake the rules to thier liking. You know this is true: if evangelical churches banded together, they could go a long way toward creating Bible Nation. Then we would then have an uncontrollable political and social upheaval in this country, because the rest of us do not want to live in Bible Nation.
Our democracy was never meant to be an unrestrained free-for-all grab for power. It is neither foolproof nor bulletproof. It depends partly on our good faith and consideration for others. The most powerful groups could easily dominate policymaking, and deprive the rest of us of democratic representation. If evangelical churches (or corporations, or the wealthy elite) decide they want to dominate the rest of us, our system may not have strong enough checks and balances to prevent it. Our system has never been tested in the way it is being tested today, and I can't swear to you that it is up to the challenge. This means that groups with extraordinary potential for upsetting the delicate balance of power must exercise voluntary restraint if they care at all about preserving our democracy.
