What do Christians and Republicans Have In Common?
By Marcia Segelstein, Guest Columnist
A Christian survey organization, the Barna Group, recently conducted research to determine what perceptions young people have about Christianity. It’s a fascinating idea from a public relations point of view: what image do Christians have among American youth? Are Christians perceived as kind and compassionate, as generous to those in need? Are Christians thought of as volunteers in their communities, as good neighbors, as tough but forgiving?
Sadly, the answer is none of the above.
The three most commonly agreed-upon perceptions about Christians were that they are anti-homosexual, judgmental, and hypocritical.
It reminds me of conversations I’ve had about being a Republican with friends of mine who are both Democratic and Christian. They see Republicans as mean-spirited, uncaring and insensitive to the needs of those around them. Because most Republicans, or at least those with a bare minimum of conservative values, don’t believe that the government is responsible for the care and feeding of every American, our detractors accuse us of not caring. We must convince them that we do care … but that we just don’t see government as the answer.
Christians, at least based on the Barna Group survey, and Republicans have an image problem.
Republicans have good reason to worry about image. They want to get elected. And in the current presidential race, they’re up against Democrats preaching feel-goodism and promising the equivalent of a chicken in every pot. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if government actually had the power and ability to ensure that no one in America went hungry, or without high-quality healthcare, or without a winter coat for that matter? Democrats tug at our heartstrings and suggest that if only they were in charge, all such suffering would cease.
And what can Republicans say to that? The truth? That it just doesn’t work that way? That government-as-nanny is not only untenable, it’s frightening? Ronald Reagan found a way to say it and get elected. George W. Bush talked about compassionate conservatism and won.
Just because Republicans by definition believe in limited government — and the limitations of government — doesn’t mean they should turn a blind eye to the problems government cannot fix. Nor should they leave those issues out of the conversation.
It’s a good thing that people care about the poor and uninsured. Republicans have to find a way of speaking to that caring instinct and explain how — in the real world — those problems can and should get fixed. They can inspire, much as JFK did when he famously suggested that we find ways to help our country instead of demanding to be helped. If he could so eloquently make that conservative case, today’s Republicans should be able to as well.
Which brings us to Christians — the ones who should be doing the fixing and the helping. Don’t get me wrong. There are loads of Christians out there doing good works, feeding the poor, taking in foster children, volunteering as doctors and nurses in AIDS clinics, and quietly going about God’s work in many other ways.
And yet we are perceived primarily as hypocritical and judgmental, particularly when it comes to homosexuality. Obviously Christians shouldn’t change their beliefs based on focus groups, as politicians have been known to do. But how do we make our light so shine before men that they see our good works and give glory to God, to paraphrase Matthew 5:16?
We need to do more, and we need to do it in the name of Christianity. We need to demonstrate that we are not just about rules and nay-saying. Isn’t that why Jesus came? To preach the primacy of love and mercy while at the same time exhorting us to go and sin no more? As churches, we need to be out there visibly helping in our communities, in our country, and in the world. A little PR wouldn’t hurt. While as individual Christians we are not to let our right hand know what good our left hand is doing, as a body of believers we should be out there making our light shine.
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Marcia Segelstein (mvsegelstein@optonline.net) a former producer for CBS News, is a freelance writer and mother. She resides in Weston, CT, and is active in her church, The Anglican Church of the Advent in Greenwich,CT.
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