Christianity and Politics: A Synergy

By Msonter Anzaa

In the world today, there exists a divide between those who believe Christianity and politics can work together and those who think the two have nothing in common. Some Christians consider politics as one of the worldly things followers of Christ must abstain from. This article looks at arguments on both sides, articulates how Christian values can be brought into politics for national development, and argues that this is in fact, the mandate of Christians.

Those who argue against any relationship between Christianity and politics believe – and rightly so – that politics is a dirty game full of darkness. In Nigeria, it comes with murder, corruption, deception and juju. These are obviously not Christian values. Individuals in this group believe a good Christian cannot be a politician, and a good politician cannot be a committed Christian. They are very spiritual-minded but have lost concern for their physical environment. They are not concerned about government policies and roles they can play. They are so committed to prayer that they have lost the place of action in their lives. This hardly seems to me to be the Christian calling.

To begin with, Christians are called to be the light of the world (Matt.5:14-16). Do you notice that the value of light is tested with darkness? Light has no value in itself until it is brought to where there is darkness. And if politics is full of darkness, is it not logical that Christians should take their light there? Little wonder then, that we continue to have moral problems at the height of authority. This is because highly moral individuals feel too holy to involve themselves in politics and governance. But Plato warns that “The punishment of wise people who fail to participate in the affairs of their state is to live under the government of the unwise.” Equally, the punishment of moral people who refuse participating in the government of their country is to live under the government of immoral people. It will be quite ironical if Christians hold massive crusades, praying for change in Nigeria, and then turn round to refuse participating in government affairs. Would they expect God to use evil men to change the nation? In his book, Strength to Love, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King (Jnr) states that, “We must learn that to expect God to do everything while we do nothing is not faith, but superstition.”

The Nigerian church must not only concern itself with salvation for the soul of man; it must also concern itself with the comfort and dignity of his body. Rev. King notes that the church has “often been so absorbed in a future good ‘over yonder’ that it forgets the present evils ‘down here’.” He says, “We must come to see that the Christian gospel is a two-way road. On the one side, it seeks to change the souls of men and thereby unite them with God; on the other, it seeks to change the environmental conditions of men so that the soul will have a chance after it is changed.” He argues that, “A religion that professes a concern for the souls of men and is not equally concerned about . . . the economic conditions that strangle them, and the social conditions that cripple them, is a spiritually moribund religion.” This is demonstrated in the ministry of Jesus himself when he fed the people he taught. At one time, the disciples asked him to send the crowd (of 5000 men) away to go and find food for themselves. But Jesus said, “You yourselves give them something to eat” (Matt. 14:15-16). In Matthew 15:32, “Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I feel sorry for these people because they have been with me for three days and now have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away without feeding them, for they might faint on their way home.” Here again, he fed them. This demonstrates that it is not just enough to promise heavenly treasures in eternity; it is also important to meet the earthly needs of the moment.

There is another irony arising from the separation of Christianity and politics. It suggests that all Christians are not politicians and all politicians are not Christians. So if the President for instance, accepts Jesus in his life and becomes a true Christian, he would have to leave office! The Vice President gets sworn in and soon becomes a good Christian too. He too leaves office since true Christians shouldn’t be in politics. In the end, how effective can Christian values be in effecting positive change in the nation when Christians are required not to be in positions of influence and authority? In that situation, the resulting vacuum will be filled by evil men who care nothing about the welfare of the society. Meanwhile, the President and the Vice President, now out of office, will commit themselves to praying for good governance and peace! It’s a big irony.

Finally, it is obvious that the light of the world must be used where the world’s darkness lies. Christians cannot fulfill their mandate if they exist in isolation. We must integrate and fully participate in the affairs of the state. Only then can we bring our heavenly values to bear on this earthly society.