I feel ambiguous about voting.
Christian rhetoric regarding voting is rather one dimensional in my experience: “It’s your Christian duty.” I understand the argument. As Christians, we are concerned with culture, and in the US we are privileged to participate in the process of culture-shaping policy. That makes sense to me. What often does not make sense to me is policy; or at least, policy is rarely as clear cut as it’s made out to be.
I’m an intelligent person, but I feel like a rather incompetent voter… I don’t mind making educated guesses, but I feel like my guesses aren’t very educated. I find it difficult to find the facts.
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| Drive-by debates. |
I recently had a handsome young politician knock on my door and ask if he could count on my vote.
“Who are you?”
I’m pretty sure that isn’t what he wanted to hear… but he began to parse partisan-laden language about one particular platform, which I soon understood was supposed to tell me everything I needed to know because then he asked if I would put his sign in my yard.
Helpful information is scarce, and sifting through rhetoric to actual ideas feels nearly impossible—If a person discusses ideas (in the woods or wherever) and there’s no one there to listen, is democracy sound?
There are other concerns and questions I have regarding this issue, but I’m not sure how to articulate them. No one seems to have very much patience with my questions… after all, you don’t question your Christian duty.
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About The Author
Renea McKenzie
(Editor in Chief) is a poet whose work often centers around the relationships between nature and the city, loss and love, faith and protest. She holds an MLA in English Literature and an MA in African American Studies. In between her two Masters degrees, Renea took a "gap year" to study theology at the famous L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland. L'Abri is also where she read the Harry Potter saga for the first time and fell in love with the characters and the story's triumph of sacrificial love. Renea leads an incredibly talented creative writing group at her church and spends a fair amount of time binging books and Netflix and swing dancing at the historic Sons of Hermann Hall.
Um, but if your Christian duty to vote is about culture-shaping, then doesn’t that mean that your vote should be an informed vote? Doesn’t this entail asking questions to discern how your vote might contribute to shaping society?
(Or is this a silly question from a Brit who doesn’t really get the polarisation of American politics?)
It’s difficult to be an informed voter. Political leaders just want to give you rhetorical flourishes and battle-cries. To actually understand issues well enough to vote on them is difficult.
Then, as if that’s not bad enough, smart people are divided on how these issues should be handled. That makes it difficult to know if there is a right answer.
I find this site helpful, though it is not perfect. http://www.ontheissues.org/default.htm
I really do not care for political rhetoric and I find it odd that so many platforms are built around issues that will likely not be on the table. So many people get bogged down in whether or not a candidate is pro-life or if she is opposed to gun control. It would be better if politicians spent more time discussing actual issues that they have the power and ability to solve.–Scott Shiffer
Re: David, Adam, Scott: Exactly.
Scott, thanks for the helpful resource.