I’m a Christian, but I’m not a Republican. A decade ago, that idea was not as polarizing as it is today. Families and friends could be from different parties and still get along, without their faith being questioned. Politics were not brought up much in church, if at all. I vividly remember church sermons where the pastors talked about the different political parties and how none of them were mentioned in the Bible. In fact, we were supposed to use Biblical principles to drive our voting and support no matter which party we were in. How to vote on certain issues was not brought up in church either.
Where has that attitude gone? Now, it seems to be the opposite. To be a Christian, one must be a conservative Republican no matter what. If you’re not, you’re banished. If you have questions, concerns, or express anything that could be seen as different from the party line, you’re banished. Your faith is questioned because of how you vote. It’s like conservatism and Republicanism are more gospel to some Christians than the actual Gospel.
For me, I started straying from the Republican party in my 20s. Ultimately, I became an Independent after the 2008 election. President Obama won that election handsomely. After that, I thought surely the Republicans would take the loss, regroup, and figure out how to win the next election. They did not. From what I remember, their response was expanding the Tea Party movement. That ended my time as a Republican. (I was one briefly when I moved to Wyoming, so I could vote for Liz Cheney in the primary. I switched back after she lost).
Thanks to my public grad school, I also started questioning a lot of the political beliefs I’d grown up with because I was around all sorts of different people with different belief systems. I realized that government programs weren’t inherently bad, and a lot of them actually helped people. I even benefitted from some of them. My year working at the University of Guyana, in Georgetown, Guyana, was made possible by a government program (RIP USAID 
I hate that today for so many people to be Christian is to be Republican no matter what the president and leaders do or say or support. If any of them are not Republican, nothing done during their terms is good. Not to mention, if a Republican doesn’t win, the election must have been rigged.
One of the things that boggles my mind the most is seeing Christians spending more time focused on following their political ideologies rather than on following the Word of God. They put more importance on what they believe politically and vote for rather than the state of their heart or what God says to guide their actions.
Their faith is based on their political beliefs and not the other way around. Nowhere in the Bible does it say we must support the Republican party no matter who leads it or what policies it supports. Nowhere in the Bible does it say we must support the Democratic party no matter who leads it or what policies it supports.
Rather, it says:
Micah 6:8 – He has told you, mortal one, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?
*To me doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God means following His commands, being humble, and focusing on kindness towards others.
Matthew 22:35-40 – And one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him: “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND. This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”
*It says “LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” It’s in all caps, which says to me, it’s really important. It also doesn’t specify the race, belief system, or gender of my neighbor. Meaning to me, none of that matters, so I’m being told to love everyone as I love myself.
Matthew 7:12 – In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
*Same here as the verses in Matthew 22. I’m supposed to treat people (all of them since none are specified) as I would want to be treated.
Ephesians 4:32 – Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as Christ also has forgiven you.
*This verse gives more specifics as to how I am supposed to treat others. I’m supposed to forgive them, like Christ forgave me as well as being kind and gentle.
Colossians 3:16 – Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
*Letting the word of Christ richly dwell within you is to let it encompass your words, thoughts, and actions. From it, you gain wisdom that you teach and admonish with others. All the while, being thankful to God and praising Him. His word and using it in our lives is what we should focus on. Nothing else!
I am not perfect with following all of these verses in my daily life. I struggle with it all the time. What I do not struggle with, however, is picking and choosing who I will help or how to twist my beliefs to fit a political agenda or a leader’s actions. Why? Because God’s Word and His commands trump anything else no matter my political party.
Glimpses from the Other Side 