By Joseph J. Bucci ——Bio and Archives--September 9, 2024
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I am an evangelical and an informed voter. Those things actually came together when I was in college. My undergraduate major was in Political Science; and during my college years I also made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ. So those two considerations, at times aligned but often at odds, have always influenced my view of politics and informed how I vote.
The issues that are important to my faith and that reflect my values are most important to me. I am concerned about the character of the individuals who seek elected office, because it is my hope that they will not just talk about values but live out their values, as the scripture tells us to do (James 1:22 NIV).
So during the heyday of the Christian Collation and similar types of groups, evangelicals had their sway and influence on the Republican party. But that is not the case any longer. Donald Trump has made the decision to moderate his views on one of the most important issues to evangelicals, which is abortion (Beaumont and Fernando, 2024). The progressives have won that battle: A majority of Americans support the idea that Abortion should be legal in all or most cases (Pew Research Center, 2024).
So for the party that stands against abortion, this becomes a losing proposition in national elections. While there are other important issues, the Left uses abortion like a marauding mastodon to overshadow other issues of substance. I say that because although I will probably vote Republican, I fear for American’s long-term health. This is a matter of life and death, both for the innocent victims of abortion, as well as for our nation.
Life is a gift given by God to parents and to the world, where an individual grows in maturity and strength to express their abilities and talents in service to others. Jesus experienced a similar trajectory in His development, because God protected Him from harm (Luke 2:52). God has breathed into the dust of the Earth and formed a man first and then a woman, to inherit the world that He created and steward its resources (Genesis 1:27-30 ESV). The gift of life is not simply breathing and walking on this earth, but living in such a way to respect and reflect the beauty of the God who created us in His own image (Genesis........