Elections Have Consequences

“Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither Liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin  

  Like you, I’m thankful things are opening up across the country from the pandemic. Yet, I’m cautiously optimistic. If you follow politics, then you know that politicians are driven by pragmatism and a desire to stay in power.  

  Most Americans have wearied of the mandates. With mid-term elections approaching, those who put in place many of the draconian mandates know voters have short memories. Elections have consequences. If Christians do not vote for those who understand the vital importance of religious liberty, if power-hungry leaders are re-elected, once November is past or if there’s another virus blip, it’s not unimaginable that those same leaders will again use their power to re-issue draconian mandates that impact the Church.

  It’s noteworthy that those most opposed to the beliefs of Christians consistently sought to shut down church assemblies. They’re very cognizant of the power of assembled believers. While they have little problem with Christians worshiping in the privacy of their own homes, they fear gathered assemblies and are opposed to the public expression of faith and religious freedom.

  Here are a few examples: A church in Nevada had to seek relief in federal court from the Governor’s executive order subjecting churches in the state to strict numerical limits on congregants at religious services while allowing casinos to operate at 50% capacity. Across the country, marijuana dispensaries, liquor stores, and abortion clinics were deemed essential while churches were not. These closures infringed on the 1^st Amendment as enumerated in the Bill of Rights, our right to the free exercise of religion.

  Ideology became very clear when the same politicians encouraged demonstrators and rioters to assemble with no social distancing and spotty mask-wearing. Using the pandemic as an excuse, officials threatened to permanently shut down synagogues, banned drive-in church services (even where worshippers remained in their own cars), and forbade singing or chanting in religious services, while decreeing that massive protests with screaming and singing were allowed. Ideology drove the double standard by which some rights were protected and others were not.

  Historically, religion and its adherents have been often oppressed by government. America has been singular in its dedication to preserving the freedom of its people to expect and experience religious freedom. Tragically, that’s rapidly changing, yet too many of us are unfamiliar with our history and the high price our ancestors paid to secure religious liberty.

  If one goes back to incidents such as the great flu pandemic in 1918 and 1919, lessons were learned and Christians took time to work through these things. Three important principles developed from that crisis.

  First, actions undertaken by the government should be temporary. Second, the actions should be rational. And third, they should be generally applicable.

  Yet, in the COVID pandemic, one by one, most governments violated one or more of those principles. In other words, a restriction handed down by the government in the name of something like a pandemic must be temporary, rational, and generally applicable.

  Generally applicable, in that it applies to everyone equally. It’s not targeted. It’s not targeted toward Jews or Baptists. It’s not targeted toward bakers or mechanics. There may be differences because of the particular circumstances but the law is to be generally applicable.

  Those were continually violated. Restrictions were put in place that put religious congregations at a distinct disadvantage when it came to gathering together. Over time, that very issue of a restriction of necessity being justified by it being generally applicable was violated repeatedly. But it’s the principle of such a restriction being temporary that perhaps has been most egregiously violated.

  Add to that the toxic comments of leading media outlets recklessly blaming religious groups for the spread of COVID, further polarizing people of faith from those who do not value faith or religious freedom or are anti-religious. Elites know that fear of things like Covid is a powerful motivation to manipulate public opinion toward a targeted group that they want to cancel out the influence of.

  This is vital! If we lose our religious freedoms in America, we are not the only ones to lose. If America loses its enthusiasm for defending religious liberty, what are the implications for religious believers now being horribly persecuted all over the world?

  Already diabolical harassment and murder of Christians are taking place in Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, and China and it only increased during the pandemic. One factor unites all these stories and all the suffering endured by Christians persecuted for their faith across the globe — an almost total media silence in the mainstream media. Shockingly, that silence extends to the plight of the Uighurs in China. It’s beyond question that members of this Muslim ethnic group are being herded by Beijing into “reeducation” camps that employ torture and other grotesque methods to pressure Uighurs to abandon their religion and culture. 

  Too many Christians vote economically or along party lines or even for personal benefit. It’s time for Christians and the Church to vote first for Kingdom values. It’s a crucial moment for believers across the country to understand what’s at stake and shore up religious freedom at home and abroad. If America’s desperately important policy of defending religious freedom around the world is brushed aside, it’s great news for dictators, torturers, and sinister specialists in religious “re-education” everywhere. Yet, whether the Church will step into the breach is an open question.

  It’s time for the Church to be the Church, even in the voting booth. Elections have consequences. We must vote for those who understand the importance of religious freedom whether they’re evangelical, Jewish, Hindu or Muslim. Houses of worship must never again be indefinitely closed. Indefinite restrictions on religious freedom contradict the ideals on which our great country was founded. We must vote for and support those who understand our basic rights that God has blessed us with in America. 

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