My first post of this blog explains that the goal of my blogging is to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. It occurs to me that a post encouraging and enabling my family and Mormon friends to be actively engaged in the political process would serve to support that goal. Although my family and Mormon friends are the primary targets for this post, any civic-minded reader may find it useful, especially the collection of links towards the end.
I recently became aware that some Christian churches encourage their members not to participate in the political process based on their interpretation of the bible. Some references they cite are: John 18:36 (Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world); Matt 6:10 (we are waiting for the kingdom of heaven); 2Cor 4:4 (this world is Satan’s kingdom); Matt 6:24 (no man can serve two masters); Psalms 133:1 (participation in politics sows discord); Acts 5:39 (since God sets up rulers, by voting we may inadvertently be fighting against God); and Rev 18:4 (we are told to come out of Babylon and partake not of her sins).
The purpose of this post is not to debate various interpretations of the bible with regard to our civic duties. Suffice it to say that my church's interpretation of the bible does not require political neutrality and/or inaction on the part of followers of Jesus Christ. Later day revelation and living prophets have been clear on the matter. To review what our church teaches with respect to our civic duty, watch the short video below and read D&C 134. Read also D&C 98:6, 10.
The LDS Newsroom features an article on the church’s political neutrality policy. Consistent with the references above, the article discusses the role that citizens should play as “responsible citizens” and uses language such as “including becoming informed about issues and voting…” and “[engaging] in the political process.” Note the word including which denotes that the activities mentioned are not an exhaustive list.
The political process is much more than just voting in elections, yet I suspect that for the majority of our society, that is the only level of involvement. Worse, some or many of these cast their votes without arming themselves adequately with information on the various candidates and issues. Founding father James Madison wrote:
”A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.”Statesman Daniel Webster observed:
–Letters and other Writings of James Madison, vol. 3 (276).
”If the citizens neglect their duty and place unprincipled men in office,the government will soon be corrupted; laws will be made not for the public good so much as for the selfish or local purposes.”Finally, consider whether or not Thomas Paine was thinking of a biennial trip to a voting booth when he used the word “fatigue” in the following quote:
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."Here are some ways that I recommend everyone be involved in the political process:
- Study the Issues
- Know how congress works
- Contact your elected representatives
- Attend town hall meetings & Watch debates
- Write letters to the editor
- Initiate or sign petitions
- Get connected with likeminded people
Study the Issues
Townhall.com features an “Issues” menu with links to various content relating to many issues. NRA-ILA provides valuable information pertaining to Second Amendment issues. A specific Google search (e.g. “Autoworker’s Bailout”) is also a simple way to begin researching and studying issues.
Project Vote Smart is a site where you can research the voting record of your elected officials. Many other organizations track voting records for their members. While you may not affiliate yourselves with their groups, don’t hesitate to utilize their free online resources if you run across them and find them beneficial. For example, I discovered that the John Birch Society provides some user-friendly, voting information on their website.
Many political organizations rate elected representatives on how they vote compared with their organization’s agenda. Examples include Citizens Against Government Waste and the American Conservative Union.
THOMAS "was launched in January of 1995, at the inception of the 104th Congress. The leadership of the 104th Congress directed the Library of Congress to make federal legislative information freely available to the public. Since that time THOMAS has expanded the scope of its offerings" to include many features and resources for those who wish to research congressional activities.
Know How Congress Works
A good starting point is to read the Constitution. Google (e.g. “how congress works”), Wikipedia, and Citizen Lobbying Kit are also good references.
Contact Your Elected Representatives
If you know the name of the representative you want to contact, a Google search (e.g. “Senator Brownback”) will provide you a link to the representative’s personal website. There will be a “Contact Me” link or some other such link on the front page that will open up a straightforward form with which to send an email. You can find these websites and add them to your favorites or bookmarks for future use.
If you don’t know the name of your representative or senators, try Congress.org. On their pages you will find a query window to enter your home zip code into. This search will bring up a list of all of your elected representatives. By clicking on each representative, you will have access to valuable information about each one, including an option to contact him or her via email.
You can also search for your congressman and senators on the official U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate websites.
Most people forget the positive re-enforcement aspect of communicating with elected officials. This is as important as letting them know when we are displeased with their actions or are urging them to vote this way or that. If you’re lucky, “ata boys” will make up the bulk of your correspondence with your elected representatives.
Write to Publications
The days of sending a letter to the editor or Op Ed to a newspaper via snail-mail are almost gone. Email is too easy and Congress.org makes it even easier. They provide a clickable map of the United States which will in turn list most if not all of the local newspapers and provide forms with which to email letters to editors, etc to the newspaper of your choice, or several at the same time! Townhall.com offers a similar service.
This just scratches the surface of what is available to assist us in fulfilling our civic responsibility to be engaged in the political process. If nothing else, I encourage everyone to become adept enough to fire off an email to an elected officials in a matter of minutes if occasion arises. Read the tips included in the Citizen Lobbying Kit. Consise messages are best. I firmly believe that our representatives need to hear from us often and freedom will benefit if they do.
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