By Nathaniel Gamble
Two basic questions confront church members in the United States this election season: should I vote and, if the answer to the first question is yes, how should I vote? Given the current acrimonious relationship between our two major political parties and the fallout from it that tends to show up at the dinner table, the office break room, and even the church pew, it can feel overwhelming to figure out who and what to vote for–and even why, or if, you should vote at all! It would be foolish to pretend that we are not living through a difficult social and political time, which is why answering these questions is so important.
What complicates this picture is that the membership even in Seventh-day Adventist circles is not politically monolithic. Some of us are various shades of red, while others of us prefer assorted hues of blue. Perhaps this will surprise some church members, but this Conference also hosts a robust strain of purple Seventh-day Adventists: individuals who lean Republican on some issues and Democrat on others. The questions of whether you should vote and how you should vote are simply another way to ask, “How do we stay together as a people, and how do I keep my friendships with those who may believe very differently from me politically?” The answer is found in our identity as those who belong to Jesus.
Should you vote? Definitely! It has long been a principle of the Seventh-day Adventist Church that a free conscience is a gift from God–and the free exercise of that conscience in making decisions and electing choices, regardless of how well or poorly those choices are made, is of utmost value to God. Jesus did not die only for your sins; he also died – and rose again! – for your freedom of conscience. And this also means that Jesus died for your neighbor’s freedom of conscience, whose politics you may or may not like. Relationships are kept intact, and unity among people is achieved when individuals are free to exercise the dictates of their conscience, while also lovingly respecting the intentions of others.
Considering this, how should you vote? You should vote as someone who is supremely loved by Jesus. The idea that one political party is for God and the others are not erroneous. Likewise, the notion that one way to vote on a given ballot measure is automatically godly and all others are automatically demonic is disingenuous. Sometimes, it is very clear which decision brings God the most honor; usually, however, the decision-making process is messy, and people must simply make the best choice they can from a slate of less-than-ideal options. The best way to vote is to ask Jesus to be in the voting process with you. Then make the best choice you can, entrusting yourself and your decision to his mercy and faithfulness.
The options we get to choose from in the voting process are not always beautiful or comfortable. But the continual ability to vote, wherein we freely put our conscience into practice, is a beautiful gift given to us by God. Don’t let the occasional discomfort of voting dissuade you from exercising your conscience and respecting others as they exercise theirs. The worst electoral mistake you can make is not voting at all.
–Nathaniel Gamble is RMC religious liberty director. Photo by Dan Dennis on Unspash.
