Remember when John Kerry quoted James 2:20 in his debate with George W. Bush back in October of 2004? I'll never forget what it was like to hear a politician quote the Bible in a presidential debate. Excitement, nervousness, hope--all together. When asked about womyn's right to choice, Senator Kerry talked about the importance of connecting thoughts to actions, belief to choices, etc. He said:
"My faith affects everything that I do, in truth. There's a great passage of the Bible that says, 'What does it mean, my brother, to say you have faith if there are no deeds? Faith without works is dead.' And I think that everything you do in public life has to be guided by your faith, affected by your faith, but without transferring it in any official way to other people."
When we act in the name of faith, like say writing a blog post about the exhaustion of false dichotomies in society, our time set apart for reflection must increase, not decrease. Faith without works is dead. Yes. Faith without brain is deadly. So let's engage in a little mental gymnastics, shall we?
People in politics, anyone in civil democratic service, must pay verbal heed to the fine-line between faith works and proselytizing. John Kerry, in proper debate fashion, called out that fine line by intentionally ending his sentence: "without transferring it in any official way to other people." Transferring.
Trans, in Latin, means: across, beyond, through, changing thoroughly.
Ferre, in Latin, means: to bear, to carry.
Transfer: to bear across? to carry beyond? to carry and bear through? to change, thoroughly, in the act of carrying and/or bearing?
Religious transference: to carry across in G-d's name? to hold up, spiritually, during times of thorough change?
Is the distinction, between proselytizing and the impact of faith works, so different? Conversion is conversion, whether it comes from the impact of words or an internal shift in response to someone's kindness and care. John Kerry asks us to think about the "official" distinctions between religious and political acts, and surely what's done in the name of G-d and what's done in the name of country/state/city must be safely measured, guarded, set apart and re-examined again and again. However, acts of faith, official or unofficial, have enormous impact that cannot be controlled, foreseen or safeguarded against. Further, when you break down the essentials of religious acts and political acts there's very little structural difference; they co-create one another through the mediating hermeneutical culture(s) that run through, impact and construct them. The persons, symbols, texts and languages of politics and religion may contain differences of note, but the similarities warn us against falsely dichotomizing them and pitting one against the other. They both have their place. For those of us in religious service, and those in political service, there's a need for acknowledgment of how our enterprises bleed into one another instead of hour long debates denying the relationship. Good job Senator Kerry. I often hear partisan banter and religious sound-byte rhetoric shutting down complex discussions about how religion and politics mingle. Who, what movements, what communities, in the public square, besides mocked and dissmissed John Kerry and evangelical Jim Wallis, will give voice to this contentious marriage in our society? Will you?
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