Social Responsibility: Government or Church?
Politics today are blamed for much of what goes wrong in our country and our world. Democrats blame Republicans and vice versa. Both parties feel a different way about how the government’s resources should be used. Many church members take a strong stand on one side or the other. As a member of the universal church, I am involved. It is easy for us to say that the government should be taking care of the poor, or the government should enforce moral values. But is that really the job of government, or is that the job of the church? While we may want to sit back and say that politicians should take care of this issue and that issue, in reality many of these issues should be taken in by the church.
The Republican Party tends to take the stance that the government should be involved with traditional moral values such as gay marriage or abortion. The Democratic Party leans toward government activism and social change. The Democrats put more money toward programs for the poor while the Republicans put their attention on allowing you to live a gay lifestyle or have an abortion. But are either of these the responsibility of government? As defined in Political Science with Mr. Wentling a “state” (or country) is a body of people organized politically who are living in a defined territory that is sovereign. Garet Garrett said, “Formerly government was the responsibility of people; now people were the responsibility of government.”
Regardless of party affiliation everyone would agree that the government has responsibilities, but the church is responsible for many of the things we blame politicians for doing poorly in. Maybe the reason politicians fall short of our ideals is that it was never their job to handle these issues.
Democrats are pushing for more money to be given to the poor of our country. It seems like a good idea, because the people of our country who are not well off need support. However, according to Jesus, the church should be taking care of the poor. Multiple times in the Bible there are references to the churches responsibility to help the poor. In Matthew 19:21 Jesus said to the rich young ruler, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." But this issue is not limited to the poor people living on our streets and in our slums. After Hurricane Katrina took ravished New Orleans, the government sent in workers to help in various ways. A few years later the area is still feeling the effects of the hurricane, but the media has moved on to other news and few people give a second thought to the people who are still trying to get their lives back to normal. There are still a few church organizations working on the area, but the area has a long way to go. Some people fault the government for not responding and giving enough support. But I think the church could have done a much better job. The Bible is clear that it is the church’s responsibility to help those in need, not the responsibility of the government.
Many people classify Republicans as the Christians, which is partially because many of the Republican planks stem from Christian morals. Republicans are pushing for laws restricting gay marriage and abortion. The government does not have the Constitutional power to enforce a law that would restrict someone’s rights. And yet many conservative evangelicals are trying to get the laws put in place. But maybe the law should not be there anyway. If the church would set a moral standard for the world, the government would not need laws enforcing morals. If Christians would rise up and provide the care and support that is necessary, many abortions would be prevented. Forcing morals on someone is the similar to forcing beliefs on someone. It is not an effective way of resolving the issue, because many times we try to correct the surface level problem when the real issue is the root level problem. If the church were to set a better example for the world and provide the necessary support, the root problem would be eliminated and therefore surface issues would also disappear. Some people would say that those who are not Christians might not know that what they are doing is wrong, so we should enforce the surface issues. But if we provide care and information, people would at least know what they were doing.
If the church would do a good job of caring for the poor and establishing a system of moral values, there would be absolutely no reason for the government of the United States or any other government to be involved in such issues. We, the church, need to stand up and take on the responsibilities that have been handed to us. We have a great responsibility that requires attention. The church has fallen behind, and the government should not be faulted for trying to take on a job that is not its own. The church should not get involved in areas that relate to the purpose of government, but at the same time we need to show that we can live the greatest commandment (love) in our daily life. This way, church and state can function together instead of coming into conflict with each other. It’s time for the church to step up it’s game.