Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

September 17 marks the one-year anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. Working as I do near New York’s financial district and across from Wall Street, it’s impossible to ignore the people that have gathered in the parks or occasionally march down the street.

Likewise, in the middle of election season, we have to work pretty hard to ignore politics in our communities. Not too much different than walking through a protest march pretending it’s not there.

Though I fully support the separation of church and state, I don’t believe we should avoid politics in our church communities. I think that our values – those of love your neighbor as yourself, and care for the poor – should inform how we vote, and how we approach politics. I don’t want to argue that Jesus was a Democrat or a Republican, or that Jesus would march with Occupy Wall Street. What I do think is that ignoring politics completely abdicates our responsibility as citizens and as Christians who should be considering how policies affect others and the earth God has given us.

I have a friend who is a priest and often posts his political opinions on his Facebook page. He is very clear that the opinions are his, not those of the church where he works. His posts are honest and thoughtful and they never belittle those who disagree with him. I think he is a model for how political discourse can work in our communities: honestly, openly, with civility, and without rancor.

Mainline churches (and our Facebook pages, too, I guess) are one of the few places where people who disagree politically still gather in community. The church should be a place where we can have civil conversations about things that matter: and politics matter. They aren’t everything, but they affect our lives, and the lives of the poor (whom Jesus cared about deeply) directly.

Of course, our church communities should be safe places, where we can be civil and kind to each other. We should be careful about what we say and how we say it, and it’s not always the right time to talk about politics. Priests shouldn’t (and legally can’t) advise their congregants on who to vote for (there is an article with some resources for churches in this political season up on Vital Practice here and additional resources here).

At the same time, it is sometimes cowardly to avoid certain topics simply because they are uncomfortable (as we all sometimes do). Rather, church leaders can be models of good political discussion, the kind that increases understanding rather than builds barriers.

I don’t’ believe Jesus would stay quiet about important topics just because someone might disagree. I don’t think he would see protestors on the street and pretend they weren’t there.

He’d speak, he’d teach, and he’d love even those who couldn’t stand to hear his words. Not that any of us is Jesus, but we can speak, we can disagree, we can learn about each other and be better citizens and Christians. And, following in the footsteps of Jesus, we can continue to love each other even after the protests have ended and the elections are over.