FOCUSING ON THE CHRISTIAN COALITION
By David R. Currie,
Coordinator

The primary elections have been held. Much has been said and written about the Christian Coalition and its impact in the primaries, and its potential impact on the elections this fall.

We are running four other articles on the Religious Right/Christian Coalition in this issue. Why? One, because fundamentalism and the Religious Right are closely related. A significant number (but not all) of the supporters of the Christian Coalition would identify strongly with fundamentalism.

Two, there is no principle more Baptist than religious liberty. Baptists have long been its champion in America and it is quite disturbing to see many Baptists abandoning our historic position.

I will not allow the pages of this newsletter to be identified with any political party because I do not believe that is ethical. I believe strong Christians should identify themselves and work within the political party of their choice. I do not believe there should be a “Christian” political party, nor do I believe one party is more “Christian” than the other.

Writing all that, I have to say I am not comfortable with the concept of the Christian Coalition. In fact, I dislike the movement strongly and believe deeply it is hurting our efforts to build the Kingdom. The organization does not seem very Christian to me. It does seem very political.

I watched Ralph Reed, executive director of the Christian Coalition, on Larry King one night. At the same time, I was reading an article in Christian Ethics Today. This is the excellent publication of The Center for Christian Ethics edited by former SBC Christian Life Commission director Foy Valentine. (To receive the newsletter write P. O. Box 670764, Dallas, TX 75367.) I was reading a speech by Kirby Godsey, president of Mercer University, in Macon, Georgia. Just as Reed came on, I read Godsey’s words:

“We are here to be God’s people. We are not here to require that people embrace the latest version of fundamentalist orthodoxy. We are here to give people hope, to bear light amidst the shadows, to teach, to live our grace. We are here to help people in Jesus’ name and to ask questions later. Caring means to heal the sick, to help the poor, to shelter the homeless, to teach the ignorant. It means setting people free of disease and setting them free of prejudice. It means looking out for people who are lonely and taking up for people who are powerless.”

I thought to myself that what Godsey was saying about applying the Gospel and what Reed was saying about applying the Gospel are miles apart. Godsey was speaking of compassion; Reed of control. Godsey was talking about grace; Reed about legalism.

I do not like the leadership of the Religious Right: Ralph Reed, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and yes, Richard Land. Their Gospel seems judgmental, lacking in love. Most significantly, the Religious Right seems more intent on controlling government than influencing government. There is a huge difference.

I know many well-meaning Christian people who are active in the Religious Right. They are active with the best of motivations. They believe in family values. They oppose abortion. They want to stop teen-age pregnancy, crime in our streets, and violence on television. These are concerns I share with them.

I do not share with the Christian Coalition their efforts that violate the First Amendment such as government money for private church schools, and efforts to legislate prayer in public schools. And I especially disagree with radical efforts to claim America was founded to be a Christian nation with religious freedom only applying to Christians. (A new organization promoting this agenda has been formed called Vision for America. The leaders of this organization include Adrian Rogers, Paul Pressler, Jerry Falwell, David Barton, and others. Its stated goal is to return America to its Christian heritage.)

Most of all, I strongly disagree with the methods used by the Christian Coalition. The kingdom of God will not be built by secular legislation. Problems of the heart cannot be corrected by the decree of Caesar. And when we, as Christians, are identified with prejudice, intolerance, and meanness, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the loser. When a “Christian” organization says supporting the Department of Education is “unChristian” and sends out voter cards accusing a fellow believer of opposing the “Christian” position on an issue, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the loser.

As Christians, we should have strong convictions on the social and political issues of our day, based on our interpretation of Scripture. We also should respect fellow Christians and nonChristians who disagree with us. After all, Jesus said the world would know His disciples because of love, not agreement on defense spending, welfare reform, and education policy. Think about it.

April 1996