Focus on the Family distributes bulletins that are handed out in many Churches across Canada and the United States. It contains small pieces of wisdom on Christian and family living. I was quite angered to find that they are abusing their trusted position in the minds of Christians to spread blatantly republican propaganda. The following story appeared in this week’s bulletin:
Before You Vote by Tom Minnery
You know you should vote, but how can you tell whether you’re voting for the best candidates? Here are some thoughts and questions to consider:
Separate principles from policies. Achieving noble goals like world peace or affordable housing requires how-to policies. Would the candidate’s policies likely increase the size of government? New programs usually mean higher taxes and more waste.
Does the candidate have a Christian world-view? Is he pro-life? Does she firmly support God’s definition of marriage? Does he believe that parents have ultimate say over what a child learns in school? A candidate’s positions on such issues are important.
Political parties matter but may not define a candidate. Sometimes a candidate takes a stand that his party does not. Some conservative Democrats were elected to Congress in 2006 by pledging to stop the wasteful practice of earmarks in the budget. But neither major party had the will to stop this.
…
It goes on, but I want to focus on these first three points to start.
Their first “thought to consider” (Separate principles from policies) is an underhanded way of scaring people away from the Democratic party.
New programs usually mean higher taxes and more waste
In plain English, this statement says that the Democratic party, if elected, will bankrupt the United States. This is a common form of fear mongering that Republicans have been using for years to scare the public away from Democrats.
So what does this recommendation have to do with Christianity? In fact it seems to fly in the face of teachings that we take care of the poor. Hence their first “thought to consider” is unrelated to Christianity, at best – at worst it is opposed to Christian doctrine.
The next thought speaks to the issues that should be important to a Christian (Does the candidate have a Christian world-view?). A good question to ask. But then they proceed to outline the important issues:
- Gay marriage
- Abortion
- Teaching religion in school
Hmm… If this list were comprehensive, then it would be clear that a Christian should vote Republican. But it is not. What about issues such as caring for the poor, ending bloodshed abroad, health care, education, etc… . These issues are not mentioned because the Democrats are (at least arguably) stronger on these issues.
The last “thought” (Political parties matter but may not define a candidate) is meant to demonize Democrats who profess to be Christian. In plain English it reads: “Don’t be fooled by Democrats who claim to be Christian. They are just as evil as their Democratic contemporaries.”
At the end of the article, they have the gall to refer you to their website that is purportedly “non-partisan”, to help you make your voting decision.
This article is deceitful (claiming to be non-partisan), and shameful from an organization such as Focus on the Family. If its views truly represent the issues that are important to Christians, then Christianity is in trouble and in danger of becoming irrelevant. The heartfelt concern that a Christian has over the definition of marriage would be a little more credible if he shows the same concern over the horrors of poverty and inequity in society.
Based on this article, I conclude that Focus on the Family is a partisan political organization that caters to upper middle-class white people and uses its trusted position to disseminate its right-wing propaganda.