Sowing Discord and Tension By Political Parties and Others

I have long lamented the fact that no one heeded the calls, and warning, of our first President, George Washington, in his farewell speech at the end of his term.  During his Presidency, Washington and the other framers of the Constitution and of the Republic, itself, often warned of the dangers of political parties.  In the 1790's most Americans remained convinced that political parties were a detriment to good government.  The founding fathers had neither desired nor planned for the rise of political parties.  James Madison argued that one of the strongest points of our Constitution was that it would prevent the development of political parties.  Most Americans assumed that should political parties come into power they would act strictly on selfish goals at the expense of the American people.  Sound familiar?

George Washington pleaded for political neutrality.  In his address, he stated, "The alternative domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid anormities, is itself a frightful despotism. Sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purpose of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty."


I love the final paragraph, which turned out to be prophetic: "It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration.  It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindle the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection."  His warning and description in his words is a perfect description of our country today, because of political parties.  But, he was more direct in earlier comments.

"I have already intimated to you the dangers of parties in the State.  Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally.

"This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind.  It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy."

I find it disturbing that so many Christians are speaking such hatred and malice in their calls for the political arena.  The Bible says we fight our battles on our knees, and our fight is against principalities and powers of darkness, not against other human beings; even doing so in the name of concern for our country, when we speak hate and bitterness and animosity toward others because of their political beliefs, we are falling far short of the standard we are supposed to bear.

I love my country, and I want to see it prosper and to be a place where every person on the planet can point as an example; however, my heart is not in America, it's in God's Kingdom.  I long for the day when we shall be swept up into His heaven, but until then, I will work to see that America is the best she can be by loving and encouraging my brothers and sisters, as well as those whose political agenda may be different from my own.  After all, as my Mammaw used to say, "you draw more flies with honey than you do with vinegar."