Notes From Jon

Well, I’ve been working hard to keep my political preferences hidden in most of my public life (except maybe on Facebook, and even then I didn’t go all out or anything).  Honestly, I’ve come to view elections a lot like I view football – I have that nervous, queasy feeling in my stomach today, waiting to see who will “win.”  I’ll be watching this evening to see the results.  And like most of you, I’ll be VERY GLAD when it’s all over.

For reasons I’ve previously mentioned, I’ve been careful not to be open in declaring my position about this election, even though I’ve got pretty strong feelings about it.  I made a contribution, however small, to the campaign of my choice because I believed in it – and still do.  But no one knew about that donation except me and my Visa card.  I didn’t put up yard signs, didn’t make phone calls.  I recognize the power I have as a spiritual leader, and I know that by advocating a particular candidate, I might have undue sway on someone in the community (either for OR against, depending on how they feel about me!).  I’d rather use that influence for things that will make a difference.

And no matter who wins, I will support them in whatever ways I can.  I don’t subscribe to the whole, “don’t blame me, I didn’t vote for him” mentality.  It’s a cop-out.  It’s as if we could say, “Since I didn’t vote for whoever is in government, I don’t have to abide by the rules of law, and I have no responsibility for what our nation does.”  If you didn’t vote for Bush, and if you blamed him for the current economic crisis, does that mean your retirement account is immune from the stock market fallout?  Of course not.  We’re all in this together, no matter who we voted for.

Now I’ve cast my vote, and so have most of you.  So at last, I feel like I can “vent.”

I voted for Obama, and I’m going to tell you some of the reasons why.  I am NOT going to slam John McCain – in fact, I have a lot of respect for him.  He has an amazing story as a soldier and as a US Senator…

[Edit: I've decided not to post my reasons here.  If you really want to know, email me and I'll share them.  But I think the above says enough.  This blog is primarily an outlet for my writings and musings about faith.  And while I viewed this election very much as a matter of faith, I also see that it was polarizing for people of faith.  I don't want this to be a place for that.]

As I sat in the coffee house a couple of days ago working on my sermon, a man came in who was obviously the delivery man from Sysco or some-such. The TV caught his attention as he came across the room – coverage of upcoming primaries happened to be on at the time, particularly a look at Hillary Clinton’s recent campaign ads. With a big sigh, he went to the counter and began unloading his things, then started broadcasting his political views to everyone.  Since it was impossible to work or to carry on a conversation while he loudly ranted, everyone listened – though most of us pretended not to. The unfortunate woman behind the counter had no choice but to acknowledge his tirade.

“Can you believe we might have to choose between some woman for president and this athiest guy?”

“Hmmm,” she said, looking down at the order form she was filling out and keeping her thoughts about his comment to herself.

“I mean, she’s some kind of communist, and he doesn’t believe in God. Wouldn’t even take his oath on the Bible, can you BELIEVE that?” he asked, though he wasn’t really asking. And no one answered. He then proceeded to unfold his theory on how Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton (or both) are somehow the Antichrist, using references to the book of Revelation.  His prediction for the November elections – Obama will be President and Clinton the VP, and the world will come to an end sometime in 2009.

I seemed to recall getting both “Obama the Atheist” and “Obama the Muslim” emails forwarded to me, and figuring from the sources of those emails that their claims were false. But just for fun, since the Coffee Shop Pundit wouldn’t allow me to work, I decided to check out the stories for myself. Turns out this guy knows a lot more about Revelation than he does about the candidates.

I was reminded of the little fliers that the Christian Coalition of Alabama used to send to all the state churches every voting season – a “Candidate Report Card,” covering only issues which they deemed “important to Christian voters,” and sometimes smudging the truth a bit. Those made me chuckle, too – until I started seeing editorials and talking to friends at seminary who were using arguments and language that was all too familiar. It was upsetting to know that lots of folks – even my educated seminary friends – let “Christian experts” do their election research for them.

Silly as the coffee house episode was – and I did chuckle while he ranted for a few minutes – it ended up leaving me thoughtful and, honestly, a little scared. I take facts from email about as seriously as I take facts from cartoons. But if the number of these emails I get a week are any indication, someone out there obviously believes this stuff.

What else would these kinds of people believe if you sent it over email? All you have to do to convince some people is use big words and say you know someone at the CIA who confirms it. I’ve read (and heard with my own ears) people IN THE PULPIT make statements that they obviously got from these kinds of sources. And you know that if you hear it from the preacher AND you saw it on the internet, it might as well be written in the Bible.

The reporters and pundits say that religion and the internet will be big factors in the outcomes of this election, and I think they’re right. I’m just not so sure it’s a good thing…