Religion + Politics = oil + water

Religion and Politics should not be mixed. Religion is personal, it’s how one views the world from a spiritual perspective. Politics, on the other hand, is how one views the world from a civil perspective. That’s not to say that religious people cannot be politicians, nor to say that politicians cannot be religious.

Any person is going to be the sum total of who they are. No politician can say that their religious beliefs will not influence their political behavior, nor can any religious person say that politics has no influence on them. But to tie them together, inexorably, is, I believe, a big mistake.

Many political wars have been fought “in the name of” religion. Read about the crusades, for example. And at many times in history, religious institutions have controlled the civil area (Middle Ages, Popes, “Holy” Roman emperor–figure it out, put two and two together!).

Though you cannot separate the two, I believe that politicians who wear their religions “on their sleeve” should not be trusted. Nor, for that matter, should we trust religious leaders who align themselves with a political party. It’s just not a good mix. One will always be beholding to the other. You cannot mix the two and always serve both. Who was it that said “man cannot serve two masters?”  And who said “render to Caesar….?”  Think about it!

Comments are closed.