ELECTION

Fitting, the connection between Martin Luther King Day and Obama’s election victory.
Only in America can a man, during his lifetime, not be allowed to use a public restroom in certain parts of the country, to becoming the leader of the land. This is also the first time that I have voted for a winner, which is nice. I’ve become interested in the interaction of Christianity and politics. I’ve heard various arguments of which candidate is the “Christian” candidate. I’ve mostly heard it from the “religious right.” There are many people who vote based on certain wedge issues such as gay marriage or abortion. I am pleased that some Christians now recognize that being pro-life means protecting all life, not just the unborn. People have yearned for a candidate that brings people together and can bridge the partisan divide. People want something, and someone, to believe in. President-elect Obama should be careful when he speaks of saving the world, but also should those who call him the Anti-Christ, for goodness sake. I recall after 2000 everything being divided into red or blue. I’ve been increasingly disgusted with the division, vitriol, and focus on the personal lives of candidates. I believe in civic virtue and ideas transcending bitter partisanship. I recall my freshman year in college when a world opened up to me after reading Greek political philosophy. (I realize now that was part of my search for the truth that has lead me to religion, and eventually to Orthodox Christianity) However, I’m reminded that politics is something of the world, and will be influenced by that. Sure, we pray for our leaders and our ‘God protected land,’ but we must focus on what is eternal and rely on that for our security.


"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy…This is your victory. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead…we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime…The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America…I promise you – we as a people will get there…I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it’s been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years – block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand…Let us remember…in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people…the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."~President-Elect Barack Obama