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Right, left, center or apolitical? As Christians, if we are going to make informed choices that align with our values, we need to be aware of falsehoods being perpetrated in Jesus’ name. Here’s a quick take on some of those myths.
Throughout the Creation story, God looks over each thing and declares it “Good.” Humans, created last, were given stewardship over this good world and the generations to come. Today climate science offers the kind of wise Christian “dominion” the Bible teaches and Jesus sought. The broad Christian community can be an important moral and economic influence that pushes for policies to address the climate crisis. [Luke 12:22-32,Matthew 6:25-34, Matthew 25, Proverbs 1:20-22]
Because God granted humans dominion over the earth, we can do with it what we want. The End Times makes it pointless to worry about the climate crisis. By destroying our planet, destructive dominionists believe the sooner Jesus will return. It’s all part of God’s plan.
Jesus may be the world’s most famous refugee but we were all once strangers in a strange land. Welcoming and treating the stranger as we would wish to be treated is the most fundamental Christian value.
Immigration reform is needed: humane policies that welcome those fleeing danger, care for families and children, and treat the most vulnerable among us with dignity—as Christ, our Lord and Savior, so clearly taught. Dehumanization and hate aimed at immigrants is not Christian.
Because immigration drives our economy up and crime down, American prosperity, culture, and Christianity have flourished in this nation of immigrants in ways no other countries have. [Leviticus 19:33-34, Matthew 25:31-40, Deuteronomy 27:19 , Matthew 2:13-23, Exodus 22:21, Hebrews 13:2, Romans 15:7, 1 Peter 4:9, Deuteronomy 10:19, Luke 3:11]
“Love your neighbor” means protecting your nextdoor neighbor from dirty, job-stealing, violent migrants. Immigration reform is needed: government raids and round ups in homes, workplaces, and even churches; separating families; locking people in mass internment camps; then deporting them back to the dangers they’re trying to escape.
Reproductive health is a lot bigger than abortion—it includes prenatal services, safe childbirth, and access to contraception. The Bible says nothing about contraception.
As for abortion, the Bible says life begins at first breath [Genesis 2:7] and a non-viable fetus does not have rights over a fully formed pregnant adult. [Exodus 21] The right to abortion care was supported by even the most conservative branches of Christianity until it became a political organizing tool and turned into a “Christian issue.”
Making abortion illegal isn’t pro-life because it doesn’t address the reasons women and couples need or seek an abortion. It just makes abortion services dangerous. Abortion provides life-saving emergency medical care for women. Choosing to end a pregnancy is a very personal and difficult choice and a woman should be in her doctor’s office with God, not government. As for making contraception illegal, that certainly doesn’t reduce abortion and there is no law that tells a man what he can and cannot do with his body. Could we be looking at a first?
Women, their doctors, and modern medicine are taking the place of God when it comes to abortion and contraception.
Christian nationalism perpetuates violence and intolerance and provides a pathway to domestic violent extremism. It is not patriotic. Using Christianity as an excuse to divide Americans and provoke violence is a clear threat to democracy, religious liberty, and Christianity itself. Christian nationalism in no way reflects Jesus’ values or America’s foundation of religious freedom. Christians must not allow Christian nationalism to go unchecked.
America was founded as a Christian nation and should be a Christian nation today. Christians are called to take over the seven core American institutions: family, religion, government, education, arts and entertainment, commerce, and media.
Jesus calls us to stand up for the most vulnerable and work toward a more equal world. He calls on us to pay our fair share.
Yet in a country as rich as the U.S., where there is enough for everyone, nowhere is inequality more evident than in our economy. Political, corporate, and religious leaders hold onto power and wealth by dividing people and communities who share common needs, especially along economic and ethnic lines. Why? Because as Christ clearly demonstrated, when people with shared needs unite, they are a serious threat to power and greed. [Luke 8:3, Acts 2:43-45, Matthew 14 , Mark 6, Matthew 15, Luke 9, Luke 4:17-21, Deuteronomy 15:7-11, Matthew 6:24, Matthew 19:24, Acts 5, Proverbs 14:31a, Proverbs 17:5a, Mark 12:17]
The Bible tells us that God wants us to have abundant life, so if you’re not doing well, then you must be not right with God. The popular Prosperity Gospel preaches health and wealth are the will of God. Because people should be self-sufficient and independent, charity should be moved to private religious institutions so we can cut the social safety net and shrink government.
Jesus lived in a society of many races and embraced and died for all of them. Standing up for the most vulnerable requires us to understand the subtleties of systemic racism that have long-denied non-whites equal access to American institutions—like home ownership, education, and healthcare. Like the economy, racism is also a tool for those in power to isolate and divide us; then convince us to vote against our own best interests. To pursue equality, we can start in our own communities. That’s what Jesus did. [Acts 2, Revelation 7:9, Luke 10:25-37]
In America, people are no longer treated unfairly based on race. Emphasizing historic and current hardships placed on people of races other than white is racism against white Christians.
Jesus prophesied that he and his followers would need to be prepared to meet adversaries where they preached. He knew his small band of followers could win only with their metaphorical weapon: ideas. Jesus never supported owning weapons, yet today the majority of guns in the U.S. are owned by Christians. So when Christians use scripture against common sense gun safety reforms, ironically they fulfill Jesus’ warning of impending violence.
But Christians are also uniquely positioned to support common sense policies that make gun ownership responsible and safer, aligned with the Second Amendment, and in recognition of the sanctity of life.
Because Jesus warned his disciples to prepare to meet violence, his biblical prophecies support gun ownership.
The Bible is not a sex manual, and thank God for that! Modern science understands sexual orientation is a complex mix of genetic, hormonal, and environmental influences, yet nowhere is the Bible more manipulated than when it comes to sex and gender.
Prejudice against the LGBT community is very unchristian because it drives people from our pews; forces many to hide who they are; puts them at risk of physical violence and emotional trauma; and denies them their basic human right to flourish. Suicide and homeless rates among LGBT youth, especially trans kids, are shockingly high, leaving behind so much lost human potential and grieving families. The LGBT community has Jesus’ love, they deserve our love, too. [Matthew 19:12, Isaiah 56, Matthew 11:28-30, Galatians 3:28 and Acts 10]
Sexual orientation is a choice and a violation punishable by God.
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