The Impact of our Vote

We as Christians, in how we have formulated our decisions to integrate a man into the Presidential office, have fared little to no better than our secular neighbors. By far, so many of us (myself included) have appealed more to rhetorical skills, emotional appeals to the masses, popularity for certain groups, and have done little to nothing to investigate his credibility and competency – on behalf of being president – on the issues of ethics, economics, critical thinking skills, and etc.

Why should we think we’d gain a better President in the next era if we neglect crucial areas that ought to determine how we vote? We ought to start examining and reevaluating our expectations as to the kind of President we really need for this country. The expectations, I contend, are not to be uniquely Christian. By that, I mean for the President to be Christian. Religious commitment does not guarantee an effective leader for our nation. We as individuals, groups, families, and communities, ought to come together and start using critical thinking skills and knowledge to make decisions that will inform us as to who we choose to vote for. Too many Christians vote for a man to become President simply because he’s a Christian or claims to have the same values as they do. That requires very little intellectual effort and frankly makes so many of our choices shallow and superficial. It’s almost as if carrying the title I am a Christian guarantees a free pass to becoming President.

We can change the way we have been going about doing this. First, we need to do more than just pray. We need to utilize our intellects – which is central to any decision we make in life – to dive deep into the issues undergirding our nation. We can do that by subscribing to a research journal that carries articles that talks about contemporary issues that affect us directly and indirectly. Second, we can try researching through finding out the background of our Presidential candidate, discover the core values he holds to, find his educational background, and try to gain some insights from his goals for the country if he were to become President. Third, we need to separate – what oftentimes is the case  - our hopes of him fulfilling our desires from the real issues confronting American culture and ourselves. So in short, we need to quit basing our decisions on popularity, political party – which doesn’t inherently define credibility -, religious views (his personal beliefs about God have little place in his presidential responsibilities given the separation of Church and State), and start basing them on economic situations, legal procedures, moral institutions, educational rules of conduct, religious freedom and rights, and so forth.

If we adhere to these things sincerely and faithfully, then I believe we’ll be in a better position to reasonably and justifiably vote for our next President in the United States of America.