Friday, November 2, 2012

Undecided Voters In the Pulpit

Apparently a huge twenty two percent of "Protestant" pastors have not decided on which presidential candidate they are going to vote for according to a survey by LifeWay Research. In comparison, all likely voters who are undecided according to a Gallup poll fall around four percent.

Tally Wilgis, who is a pastor in Baltimore who is struggling over whom to choose in this coming election. Wilgis says he won't vote for Obama because of Obama's support for homosexual marriage and abortion. However, Wilgis won't vote for Romney because Romney is a Mormon. Wilgis believes that is a common denominator in those pulpiteers who remain undecided. Wilgis was quoted as saying:



"When I read that survey, I don't read it as 22 percent of people don't know where they stand on the issues," Wilgis said. "I read that survey as saying that 22 percent are having a hard time voting for a Mormon."

According to the LifeWay poll, some twenty-five percent of undecided pastors stated that their difficulty in choosing a candidate lies in Romney's Mormonism. Actually it was put as "his membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day saints."

I find this so incredulous. In no way nor means would I defend Mormonism as having a part in biblical Christianity, but I find this as a reason as untenable.

I would be interested to find if these some twenty two to twenty five percent of so called "Protestant pastors" struggled with the Catholicism/Presbyterianism/Disciples of Christ of Ronald Reagan. Old "Dutch"claimed to be a "born-again Christian" but by what or whose definition? He was baptized in the baptismal regeneration Disciples of Christ church. 

We do not live in a monarchy. We especially don't live in a monarchy where the monarch is also the head of the state church. If Romney is elected I don't think he will also be installed as the "head" of the church, whether that church be the Church of latter day saints or the ecumenical, neo-evangelical church in our land.

Let me say, I firmly believe that every eligible voting American can vote for whomever they choose. I also believe that there are valid reasons for not voting for a candidate. To vote for or not to vote a candidate based solely on their "faith" or "religion" borders on pure, hmmm, what word do I want?

4 comments:

Josh Litton said...

perhaps the words you are looking for are "theocratic fixation".

David C Brown said...

What's a Christian doing voting? He's not of this world! His Man is installed already!

kc bob said...

Sounds like those 22% are having some analysis paralysis.

Gregg Metcalf said...

@ Pat - thanks. I think you are right.

@ Josh - great words, that is probably precisely what I think I meant. :)

@ David - being between two worlds, Providence saw fit to give to eligible citizens the constitutional right to exercise a vote. This is not a theocracy, therefore having been given this opportunity wise stewards use is wisely.

@ Bob - We have all probably suffered from time to time from that, but that is a very clever suggestion! :)