This blog has kind of been neglected over the last several months. I just haven't had anything of much substance to talk about that hasn't already been beaten to death in other posts. Instead, let us get back to the original purpose of this blog. The purpose of this blog is to reflect on Christianity (Anglicanism in particular) and the experiences of being an Anglican Christian.
It is not my intention to make this a Christian political blog (there is certainly enough of them already). That said, it can be quite tough to be a libertarian and to be a Christian. In fact, it can be tough to be a Christian not be an ardent follower of the Democrat and Republican parties. The Christian Church is pretty sharply divided by secular politics today, a sad and inexcusable truth. What's even more interesting is that the extremes tend to run their respective denominations. In the mainline, you will find leadership that is almost exclusively in the progressive liberal Democrat political camp. In evangelical churches (and some Lutheran, etc.), you will find that most of the leadership that is almost exclusively in the extreme right-wing of the Republican Party. Sadly, it is my opinion that the leadership in both these camps take their politics far more seriously than their spiritual beliefs. Why do I say this? Well, you will find Christian leaders making excuses and issuing resolutions supporting the Iraq War when a Republican President takes us to war (looking at you Southern Baptist Convention). On the other side, you will find Christian leaders that were super vocal when a Republican administration goes to war and bombs countries, yet strangely quiet when a Democrat President does the same. Even more strange, you will hear of no resolutions from the mainline condemning Drone Strikes that have killed countless innocent children, yet you heard plenty about gun control after the school shootings (looking at you TEC and other mainline churches). Rather than stand up for the Gospel, which belongs to no 21st century political movement nor party, our Christian leaders are more intent on standing up for their political party and dancing around issues that contradict the Gospel. Ironically, these extreme elements have a lot in common, both spend all of their time being thankful they are not like "those Christians."
So, what do you do if you're a Christian and don't belong to the Democrat or Republican Party? What do you do if you're a Christian that doesn't subscribe to the extreme left or extreme right? Unfortunately, you are going to have a hard time finding a denomination to call home. Whether you are an independent, middle of the road, or especially when you are libertarian. You can find many blogs expressing such frustrations all throughout the world of blogging.
For those who are unfamiliar, libertarianism is essentially the belief that other people are not your property. Essentially, you have no right to force yourself or your beliefs onto others. If you have ever seen the flag with the tag-line "Don't Tread On Me," that pretty much sums up libertarianism. With the rising popularity and the rising tide of young libertarians, many have noticed that the established powers are starting to push back. It seems like every other article these days is a libertarian smear piece: "Libertarians Are Selfish," "Libertarians Are Racists," "Libertarianism is incompatible with Christianity," "Libertarians are Libertines," and on and on and on. In fact, a Roman Catholic Cardinal recently held a conference on libertarianism and its incompatibility with Catholicism. Ironic, considering some of the most famous modern libertarians are Roman Catholic (Lew Rockwell, Thomas Woods, Jeff Tucker). The head of the Southern Baptist Convention recently said that libertarianism is incompatible with Christianity. However, the war-mongering, murdering, drone-bombing, and civil rights/liberties violating Republican and Democrats are apparently perfectly in-line with Christianity! What is it about these libertarians that drives the status-quo crazy and drives Christian leaders on the right and left into a fit of rage? Well, libertarianism challenges current power structures and libertarianism doesn't require you to submit to a certain set of moral beliefs. Take gay marriage, for example. Libertarians can be both for and against gay marriage, so long as neither side uses force to force their beliefs onto someone else. Consenting adults have the right to marry and I have the right to agree or disagree with it. The fact that one doesn't have to be forced into the "correct" belief makes progressive and conservative heads explode.
So far, this post might be sounding like an apologist piece for libertarianism above all else, however, that isn't true. Libertarians just don't like being treated like they can't be Christians or they can't be concerned with the plight of the poor. The purpose of this post is the show the utter hypocrisy of those who say these things, yet advocate and apologize for their own parties/political beliefs above all else, including the Gospel. If the the church leaders want a one word explanation for why less people go to church these days it would be hypocrisy and all sides are guilty of it.
Lastly, it's important to understand that there are two types of Christian libertarians. There are those who believe that the Gospel advocates not specific political philosophy/movement and there are those who believe that the Gospel has a strong libertarian message. One of the chiefs arguments for this second group is that Jesus NEVER used force when advocating his beliefs. Considering that progressive and conservative Christians relish in the use of force, this second group of libertarians may be onto something. I have been called a child murderer by some of my fellow "open-minded" and "diversity loving" Episcopalians for supporting the 2nd Amendment.
In conclusion, I hope this blog does a lot to open-minds. Your fellow libertarian parishioners are not the evil people many would have you believe. Whether or not you agree with or abhor libertarian principles, hopefully you can learn to respect them and treat them just as you would your fellow progressive and conservative Christian brethren. Furthermore, libertarian Christians are generally not looking for a church that rubber stamps their political beliefs, we are essentially just looking for a church that isn't bat shit crazy, for lack of a better explanation.
Part 2 Coming Soon
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