Republican Blogger in Exile

Some of you may be wondering why I have been so silent on this blog in reference to the political race, particularly owing to my once avid involvement in politics, and my role that I adopted in 2008 of "Republican Blogger in Exile." Shouldn't I be itching to be doing my part to return Republicans to power? Not really. Why is this? It is due to two main reasons.

First, in 2008, I was a novice to Biblical studies: I loved politics, but knew nothing more about theology than what I had learned in church. As I learned that Jesus was Lord, and that that term had political ramifications, my entire way of viewing the world changed. In response to this, my political positions started changing: the US was no longer my chief entity that I needed to serve. Thus, in my pursuit of King Jesus, my values shifted away from some Republican positions, I softened on immigration, war (and military spending), watching out for the poor. So, in many ways, I am no longer a Republican in exile because Republicans have been booted from office, but rather I am now a Republican in exile because many Republicans have exiled me from the party: “You don’t think freedom is worth killing over? You liberal. And you don’t think we should deport all of the illegal aliens? Why don’t you just become a Democrat?” It is important to note at this point that I still consider myself a conservative, I just don’t toe the line when it appears that my study of Scripture should lead me elsewhere.

Second, is the nature of the 2012 election. I held my nose and voted for McCain in ’08. But we had to go nominate another moderate? Romney may have truly changed his mind on abortion and other issues that are near to my heart, but the timing was far too politically expedient for me to believe it. Tie that to comments from Romney’s campaign this spring that he was an “etch-a-sketch” candidate, and I simply do not trust him. I do not believe he shares my core political beliefs, and I honestly have no clue what he would actually believe and work on once he was in office. In addition, let’s mention the elephant in the room: Romney is Mormon! Those very same people who once made outlandish claims that Obama was a secret Muslim (even though Obama has claimed to be a believer) are now the ones who are willingly voting for a man who is part of a cult. And in many cases (such as Billy Graham) the political support of a candidate is leading believers to blur the line between orthodoxy and heresy. So, I couldn’t support Romney. Combining  not falling in complete lock-step with my party and being extremely unhappy with their nominee leads to a great big “meh” about the election.

I believe Americans have a responsibility to vote. I couldn’t vote for Romney. I don’t want Obama to win either (which is why I have been almost completely silent on this blog). So my solution for myself? I wrote in Barry Creamer, PhD. Your vote is up to you: vote your conscience. Vote for who you think God would have you vote. Regardless of who wins, Jesus is still Lord, he still reigns.