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| Politics | 66% | 141 votes | Total: 214 votes | |
| Faith | 34% | 73 votes |
Politics
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Add to FavoritesPolitics reflects faith. What is politics? It is the art and science of governing, or doing something within a certain set pattern that is intended to achieve certain civil and societal outcomes. As one practices politics one's faith is revealed. What is faith? In this context faith is one's religious and moral beliefs. Every one has faith, and every one practices certain politics. It is the politics that one practices that will reveal one's faith. Senator Kerry is Catholic, but he supports abortion, a practice that is anathema to the Catholic Church. His politics does not support a tenet of his faith, but he still professes the major teachings of his church. It is in one's politics that others will find your real faith.
Politics seeks to outline ways that things should be done in the realm of governance. It seeks to provide rules and social laws to determine how best to achieve goals that are in the best interest of a country. When one has determined what is best for a country one is forming both a faith tenet and a political agenda.
Ruling on the basis of one's faith is a surely needed fixture in our society, however difficult it may be. But to rule according to one's faith is not the most popular way to rule. Each faith has various adherents who interpret the practicing of the faith in different ways. Today words such as "extremists," "fundamentalists," "liberals," and "conservatives" conjure up images of firebrand individuals or calm, steady individuals, depending on who is being labeled and who is doing the labeling. Some people see it as God's will to destroy the "heathen," whoever the "heathen" maybe. Others in that same faith tradition will show how the founder or spiritual leader of that faith eschewed that type of thinking. But once a leader reveals his political views one can immediately see where those declared policies will lead. I consider myself a "fundamentalist" but not of the Evangelical stripe; I am also a democrat, but of a republican stripe. It is not so much one's declared faith that will determine who you are or what you vote, rather it is the way that you think a candidate will practice his or her politics in the advancing of the cause of the country.
All of our leaders in the past two campaigns boasted of their religious affiliation. However, none of them have really done what the leader of said affiliation advocates in his teachings. Furthermore, the things that such affiliation would demand would be considered anathema by the rank and file public, especially those who consider themselves Evangelical Christians. Politics is always the better route to go, because then one would know for sure that the direction the government is going is in keeping with the political espousal of the leader, and not his or her faith, which usually will be eventually denied while said leader is in office.
Learn more about this author, Aleggs Sander.
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Faith
Yes, of course. It is important for the voters to know everything possible about the candidates that are running for office. In many ways a candidates faith can be a big issue, although to many of us, in a general way. The exception to that would be if the candidates faith was to an unusual extreme or what would be considered fanatical.
So what does a persons' faith have to do with how they do their job? In the case of politicians, it has a direct bearing on their work. More so than many other professions. Many of the issues politicians deal with and vote on, are directly linked to morals and values. For this reason, their faith is very important to the voter.
As we all know, in the United States, freedom of religion is one of our basic rights and that's how it should be. However, we are all influenced in our daily lives by our faith and beliefs. While we are not interested in taking away anyone's freedoms, when it comes to candidates, it is essential that the candidate and the voter have similar beliefs. We are also aware that faith does not always involve religion. Atheists and agnostics have faith too. Faith being a firm belief in something, we all have that. A set of values and morals we live our lives by. This is the knowledge we need to have when picking candidates we want to support.
It is not whether a candidate is Catholic, Protestant, Jewish or any other religion that influences us, in most cases, but rather, how that effects their ethics, morals and values. Are their principals similar to mine? Will their code of ethics make them draw a line as to what lengths they will go to in order to achieve their goals and ambitions?
When it comes to short comings or mistakes they may have made in the past, I would much rather hear it from the candidate "up front" then to hear it from an opponent or the press, leaving me to wonder if they were trying to hide it. I'm of an age that enables me to be aware that we have all made mistakes. None of us gets through life without doings so. Just be honest and move on. That way when the exaggerated version finds it's way to the evening news, I am somewhat prepared.
If politicians have learned nothing else over the last few decades, they should have learned that their life has now become an open book. The American people are going to know everything that can be dug up about them. Between the press and their opponents very few things, if any, can be kept secret. From John F. Kennedy forward, we have seen the folly of politicians trying to cover up and failing miserably. I am more interested in how a mistake is handled, than I am in the mere fact that one was made. How did they deal with it?
Most of us have specific traits we want to see in our candidates. These vary from voter to voter. What is most important to one may not be what's most important to another. I want my candidates to be as open and honest as they can be. I want their values to reflect mine. Also, I want my candidates to have compassion. A person without compassion will not be effective when dealing with certain situations. Our politicians deal with many sensitive issues.
I believe many of us now are not so interested in the political parties as we are in the ethics and views of the candidates. I am much more interested in how a candidate feels about things like freedom, health care, national and homeland security, the national debt, than I am about whether they are democrat or republican or whatever. How would they handle the complicated foreign affairs while preserving the values and image of this country. These are all priorities, in my opinion, when choosing politicians.
With local politics the issues may be different then at the federal level, however, the criteria for selecting suitable candidates remains the same at all levels.
Many of us become disillusioned or disappointed in the candidates we have chosen. It seems we are always wanting perfection. We have a hard time accepting the reality that no one person can be without fault. The best way to avoid disillusionment is to research your candidates thoroughly. Keep in mind that nobody is ever going to be perfect in every aspect.
Learn more about this author, G. Schettino.
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