Do you have to be a Christian to be a Republican?

You can most certainly be a Republican and not be a Christian! I have been a Republican since I was 12, but didn’t become a Christian till I was 36.I would suggest the proud lil button on the left actually has its priorities listed backwards. Being a Republican has nothing to do with following Christ. You can be a Muslim, Buddhist, Jew, Agnostic, Atheist, Mormon, in fact the only thing you can’t be is a Democrat. Now my wife became upset last week because a pastor sent out an e-mail encouraging Christians to vote Republican. I understand why a Christian may want to encourage people to vote Republican and it’s basically the abortion issue. The Democrats are pro choice, Republicans are pro life. I was pro life before becoming a Christian. The main reason was as a teen my friends Mike, and Dan had older sisters and both had abortions. Later on both told me of their regret. They also told me of other women who had regretted it. I came to the conclusion that the stress of an unwanted pregnancy could make a woman choose abortion. The other choice, while far from a easy one, was to have the woman give birth and put it up for adoption. New born's have never had a problem finding adoptive parents so it’s safe to assume the baby will find a decent couple . The woman would go through a tremendously difficult year of being pregnant with a baby she doesn’t want, and of course the incredibly painful act of childbirth. But there would never be the later regret of wondering if you did the best you could for that baby. I also knew then, as now, that not all women feel regret. Here’s a recent study on that. Why should women be burdened with an unwanted pregnancy? For those women I answer with a question. Why not surrender a year of your life to give life to another? Could there be any greater way to invest a year then bringing another person in to the world? But before I get too far into the abortion issue, that’s where I was coming from before becoming a Christian.

As a non-Christian I did find all the focus on abortion and religious rights a bit distracting. And honestly as a Christian today, I feel the same way. In the book of Matthew, Jesus said; “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

In the book of John Jesus said to Pontius Pilate “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews.

Jesus was telling us Christians there are worldly issues and Heavenly issues. Our main focus should be on Heaven, as this is a temporary place. I recently heard a phrase I liked very much. “We should be afraid if we are in the world of the living only to be dying. However we are not. We are in the world of the dying heading for the world of the living”. Hopefully I’ve established to my Christian readers I’m one of you, because you may not like what follows.

Don’t smear Christ’s name with politics! We are all looking for the best leaders. You don’t have to be Christian to be ethical, intelligent, calm, steadfast, or any of the other qualities we look for. Republicans are supposed to fight for the freedoms of the minorities. (I know some Democrats jaws just hit the floor). If you read the Constitution (which you can in less than 30 minutes including amendments) you’ll notice it makes no mention of Jesus. The Founding Fathers, all of whom were Christian, (Franklin and Jefferson were Deist's which is sometimes mistaken for atheist) always asked for Gods blessings on this “great experiment” of a nation but understood this was mans work.

Let’s keep the country free so all people of all beliefs, can tell their story here. Freedom of speech is what we need to fight for. As a Christian you lead people to Christ with the Gospel not by court appointments. There’s a lot more to be a Republican than being pro life. However if you’re hot button is abortion, till the opportunity comes for the Supreme Court to change Roe v. Wade (which may not happen in your lifetime) you’ll be better served to argue your points to young people in your neighborhood. And like campaigning for office, empathy and humility will further your discussion better than arrogance. I'd really enjoy reading your comments. I'm hoping this new blog of mine will spark conversation among Republicans and if that's going to happen it will start in the comment section.