On today’s podcast, we are going to talk about everyone’s favorite topic: politics and religion! How do faith and politics intersect? What relationship should exist between church and state? To what degree do they go together, or should church and state be entirely separate? Should churches and pastors be outwardly political? Is Jesus a Republican? Or is Jesus a Democrat? Or, none of the above?
Please listen to today’s podcast as I interview a special guest to talk about these issues more fully. The following are some high-level points of discussion from today’s podcast.
Talking Points From “The Politics Of Jesus”
- The early church made a controversial confession, “Jesus Christ Is Lord.” Today, we don’t usually think such a statement is controversial. But the early Romans were willing to kill men over this. Why is this? Why were the Romans willing to kill people over the idea of someone having a “personal Lord and Savior” and trying to love their neighbors and be a nice person?
- Is the kingdom of God separate from anything in the here and now? Is it merely a “spiritual kingdom?”
- My guest, The Theosaurus Rex would describes himself as a “communitarian liberal.” So, for the folks at home, please tell me what that is. Is that where Ron Paul is the president and Bernie Sanders the Vice President?
- Do you feel at times your personal political leanings are at odds with your theological convictions? At times I feel my conservative leaning libertarian ideas might be at odds with my theological. When I find myself getting caught up in politics, I ask “Whose kingdom are you trying to build anyway?” In professing a political view and aligning myself with a political party, am I working against the kingdom of God?
- Is God a Republican? A Democrat? Whose side God really on?
- Should there be a separation between church and state?
- Why do you think we believe God has the back of any political party, and why do Christians find themselves diehard supporters of one party over another?
- There is much chatter today about being “politically homeless.”
- As Christians in America we often think about our theological convictions strictly in American style concepts and ideas. We forget America is very different from many other nations Christians reside in, and that many in those countries don’t operate from a similar framework. How should that inform our political views?
About Today’s Guest: The Theosaurus Rex
The following guest on today’s podcast goes by a pseudonym in order to remain anonymous online. I know his real name and where he lives. But in order to protect his identity and wish to remain anonymous, I will simply use his online moniker and stage name: The Theosaurus Rex.
St. Theosaurus Rex is a “millennial dinosaur” who has a Bachelor degree in International Studies: Political Science and politically identifies as a Communitarian Liberal (socially conservative and fiscally constitutional). He also has his Master of Divinity in Christian Education from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and identifies as a charismatic Bapticostal. Eventually, he’d love to get a PhD in philosophy with something to do with Christianity in literature or cinematography. An interesting hybrid of his hippie father and scientist mother he’s been taught to always question authorities, come up with his own philosophies, and objectively look at all sides. His biggest theological influences are the works of CS Lewis, Rob Bell, and J.R.R. Tolkien. You can occasionally catch him co-hosting on two Air Smudge Collaborative podcasts the ADD Masterminds and the Wax Museum.