Faith Makes All the Difference!

Cal Thomas in the Denver Post asks a very important question, “What difference does faith make?” He asks this question as a challenge to those who would make faith a central issue in the political discourse. And by the end of the article, he suggests that we should keep the realms of the earthly and heavenly kingdoms separate when it comes to presidential politics.

And yet . . . in all realms of life, politics included, my answer to his question, ”What difference does faith make?” is, “Faith makes all the difference!” It inspires us, challenges us to reach for what’s ultimate or optimal, strengthens us in difficult times, guides us in others, challenges us to live in caring ways toward ourselves, others, and our physical world. Just because we humans are not perfect and get it wrong at least as often as we get it right doesn’t mean that faith is to blame! Just because we can’t figure out how to manage in helpful ways the many different faiths living next door to one another doesn’t mean that faith is wrong or unhelpful or irrelevant! It merely means that we are fallible humans on a journey that is not yet complete. We haven’t figured it all out yet. We regularly do damage even when we intend to do good! And presidential candidates are no exception. They are no more perfect than the rest of us!

Perhaps if we quit running from faith and faced it head on, we would realize that faith is part of every facet of our lives. We can close our eyes to it, but it won’t go away. We choose on a daily basis what we believe in, what will guide our lives, what values are worth investing in, what our lives will be about. We can make those choices intentionally or they will “happen” unintentionally. We regularly have faith in one another – trusting others to show up at appointments when they say they will; trusting manufacturers to create quality products; trusting service providers to perform well what we pay them to do; trusting teachers to teach well, parents to parent well, and so on. And if they don’t, we let our feet do the talking!

In the political realm, we let our votes do the talking. We listen to the rhetoric, we listen to the arguments, we listen to what people stand for – including their religious and philosophical and political perspectives – and we decide who we will vote for. And even when we are prayerful and intentional about these choices, even when we seek wisdom or guidance from what is Ultimate or Infinite, we sometimes get it wrong. And our politicians sometimes get it wrong as well.

Ultimately, our faith has to be in something higher than mere humans. Initiating regular conversations about faith ought to come from hearts that believe faith will ultimately save us – and we ought to be encouraging one another to grow in that faith. Perhaps that loving approach to encouraging one another and inspiring one another ought to replace the condemnation and vilification of those whose faiths and behaviors differ from our own. Perhaps we need to get ourselves out of the way and let the One(s) in whom we believe carry the day!