Good policy resonates with all faiths: Strahl
By Deborah Gyapong
Canadian Catholic News
OTTAWA (CCN) — Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl says there’s
a double standard at work when it comes to Christians and politics.
“You never hear complaints
about the role of atheists in the public square,” the evangelical
Christian told a gathering sponsored by the Canadian Council of Churches
and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.
Whenever you hear complaints
about the undue influence of faith, it is always Christians in the hot
seat, he said.
Yet Strahl said whether God
created the universe or life occurred through a unique collision of
random material forces or God doesn’t exist are “equally
matters of faith.”
But that does not stop the predictable “overheated discussion” that seems to happen every year around the time of the National Prayer Breakfast.
This year, the release of
Marci McDonald’s The Armageddon Factor: The Rise of Christian
Nationalism in Canada prompted an additional flurry of concern about
a so-called “Christian right” manipulating the levers of
power.
Strahl, who has been in public
life for 17 years, said he has never hidden his evangelical faith. Because
he represents the Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon riding, what’s known
as the “buckle” of the Bible Belt in British Columbia, being
open about his beliefs has never been a problem.
At the same time, he stressed
it would be wrong for him to use his position as a bully pulpit to force
his faith position on others just as it is also impossible for him to
divorce his faith from his role.
He said he is guided by Micah
6:8 that says: “And what does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
“It’s part of
who I am, or if I’m honest, who I try to be,” he said.
He spoke of Jesus’
ministry as an example, noting Christians should be the first to reach
out and help others and the last ones to legislate from a faith perspective.
“Jesus broke a lot
of hearts when he made it clear he was not here to establish his kingdom
here on earth,” he said. Jesus showed us how to love sacrificially,
he did not try to legislate, browbeat or force people into his kingdom.
The kingdom of Christ is
an otherworldly kingdom, he said, noting a Christian “is not a
utopian like Marx, Lenin or Mao,” who might justify killing some
people because the end justifies the means.
Some of his constituents
find it hard to understand that he must represent all people in his
riding, not only those who share his faith. “This is not a theocracy,”
he said. “And Christians don’t want one.”
The fact that Christian MPs
serve everyone is “not a matter of water in the wine, it is simply
a job description,” he said.
Avoiding the temptation to
legislate matters of faith can be done because Jesus didn’t do
it, he said. “It does pay to remember that good policy will resonate
with all faiths.”
Strahl also had a warning
for churches and other institutions that also occupy the public square.
“Be careful of what
you say lest your words come back to haunt you,” he said.
Churches have a special role
when it comes to helping the needy, teaching their flock and proclaiming
the Gospel, he said. None of that involves supporting a particular candidate
or party.
He said he cringes when he
hears stories of pastors or priests or imams pushing for a particular
political party. What if the one they endorse turns out to be wrong,
or run by shysters? he asked. What if the policy option they advocate
turns out to be a bust?
Being wrong on these issues
will make people question whether you are wrong on the other messages
you are trying to teach, he said.
“The message from the
pulpit should have eternal value,” he said. “It should not
be couched in terms of the next election.”
“The church’s message should transcend the flavour of the day and not be guided by it,” he said.
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