I’m reading that, based on an uptick in spiritual interest, our nation is experiencing a religious revival. 

It’s understandable. There’s nothing like the specter of death (will the world still be here tomorrow?) to prompt a search for answers to existential questions that, heretofore, we’ve never slowed down long enough to ask. 

Questioning is not a bad thing, I’ve discovered. “Seek and ye shall find.” But don’t settle into a rut. There’s always more to learn. Even the boogeymen on the other side of political and religious divides can have something to offer, if we’re willing to listen.

I’ll play the boogeyman first.

I was raised in a fundamental Christian church, one with a rigid belief system, compared to most. My parents didn’t vote — something to do with not involving oneself in the world’s political system, I understood.

For someone who didn’t vote, my Dad was avidly interested in politics. On presidential election nights, he sat up late, ear to the radio, waiting for a clear winner to emerge.

We didn’t have a television either, but we did lots of reading.

Every night, Dad brought home copies of the daily newspapers in the city where we lived. I was lucky enough to grow up during the 1960s – so the headlines and images were lurid, probably too graphic for a kid to be looking at, but there I was, learning about massacres in Vietnam, the assassinations of national figures and seeing photos of racially motivated riots and Vietnam War protests happening in streets across the US.

As a child, I never understood the rationale for the Vietnam conflict. The war — as it was called — was always there, a background track running throughout most of my childhood.

Killing other humans, even when it was government-sanctioned, I was taught, was morally wrong. I still feel the same way. However, I also picked up the impression that protesting those same wars was wrong, too. Kind of a catch-22.

“God puts in power those he wants in power. Who are we to question?” 

That all-purpose rationale both excused us from voting and from carrying picket signs.

After I got married and began attending a different church, I was shocked to hear, directly from the pulpit, that voting was a person’s Christian duty: to not vote was a sin. Furthermore (it was implied), a good Christian should vote Republican. That was my first exposure to Christian Nationalism: the wedding of religion with national politics, an unholy alliance that grants government the ability to speak from pulpits in churches across the nation, to gain the ears of parishioners for political gain, and to coerce those reluctant to fall in line.

I’ve had lots of years to process that input and to watch where it has led.

During that time, I’ve voted in some elections and sat out of others, with no particular qualms either way.

Some say that God uses the ballot box for his purposes. Maybe he does. But, if so, can’t he use peaceful civilian protests, too? Don’t get me wrong; I’m much more comfortable behind my keyboard.

History bears out that civilian protests played a large part in influencing public opinion and ultimately affecting government policy in Vietnam. Under pressure, President Richard Nixon began withdrawing troops when he took office in 1969, a process that took long years, many more deaths and multiple protests to accomplish.

The Apostle Paul said, “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men” (Romans 12:18 KJV).

Sometimes, Paul implied, that wouldn’t be possible.

Some say that Christians shouldn’t muddy their feet in earthly matters. But where does such an other-worldly attitude leave justice? We face problems, here, that call for solutions. To do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with God are requirements, says Micah 6:8 (KJV). Sometimes that edict leaves no room for neutrality.

And, Christians, what are we to do when our leader is using God’s name for political advantage and to commit atrocities against innocent people here and abroad? Breaking the commandment to “not take the name of the Lord, thy God, in vain” can have real-life consequences for citizens of nations whose leaders justify crimes against humanity while flying God’s banner.

We can’t pretend not to see.

Our days appear numbered. No wonder more people are turning to religion.

Options, at this point, are limited.

But, if we’re still around for the next presidential election, and you’re adamant against voting for a Democrat, consider not voting at all if spirituality is the only reason.

There’s no Biblical mandate to vote or not to vote, so stop being a tool in the arsenal of an administration run amok – one using God’s name to leverage your vote.

Sheila Harris is a long-time Barry County resident and a sales executive and investigative reporter for the Cassville Democrat. She may be reached at [email protected].