On the Church’s Left Aisle: Why I’m a Faithful Democrat

For the first time, I'm wondering if maybe the church isn't the answer to society's
problems.

I remember the conversation in college well: my roommate and best friend Ethan and I were talking about a person's responsibility to broader society.  I was arguing that no such personal responsibility exists: people are free to choose whether they make a contribution to the greater good or not.  He was arguing that it is an obligation for all people, but particularly for those of us with greater privilege and power culturally speaking, to do something beneficial for others.

A few years later I finally realized Ethan had been right, and with nothing else to do I applied to Divinity School.  My Christian faith was unsettled at the time but Divinity School fostered in me exactly what I hoped it would — the need for Christians to be socially engaged to alleviate injustice began to seem obvious.
 
Fast forward to 2008, three years after my graduation from Divinity School, which found me a fourth-year Ph.D student in Theology working on issues of racial justice.  Barack Obama comes on the scene, and wins my political loyalty with his landmark speech on race relations in the United States, "A More Perfect Union."  Before Obama's campaign, I was very politically inactive.  (Embarrassingly, the first time I voted was in 2004, at the ripe age of 27.)  But Barack Obama and the hope he brings for the next four years have been inspiring.  He's not a savior — of course not, only one God-man deserves that title according to my faith — but politically speaking he is a great source of hope to many people.

So here I am, a Divinity-school trained student, a candidate for ordination in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and hopefully soon to have a doctorate in Theology.  And yet, for the first time since 2001, I'm wondering if maybe the church isn't the answer to society's problems.  Or, at the very least, I'm wondering if maybe we who are bold enough to call ourselves Christians can play a greater role — in terms of creating change — in the political realm than cloistered away in our churches.

These thoughts were stirring when the notice about the Faithful Democrats fellowship program appeared in my inbox.  John Calvin would say that was predestined — I merely say it was serendipitous.   In any case, here I am, ready to start thinking about how the political and religious can go hand-in-hand, particularly for those of us on the church's left aisle.

Drop me a line through the site or at [email protected], because I would love to get to know the Faithful Democrats community.  As the father of two children, ages 3 and 5, I intend to do a lot of writing here about family-related issues (or, dare I say it, family values), but I would love to hear your thoughts on whatever is on your mind.