I want to reflect a bit on yesterday’s post: “Political Power Corrupts The Church.” More than that, I want to try to clarify some terms.

In the first place, I realize that talking about “supporting” a political candidate can mean different things to different people. I don’t see merely voting for a person as supporting them. Many in the last election voted for Hilary because they disliked Trump, and many voted for Trump because they disliked Hilary. It was more of a vote against than a vote for. Rather than supporting one candidate, these people were opposing the other candidate. At that point, at least, they aren’t supporters of the person they voted for.

A supporter promotes that person in some way. They contribute to the cause, either by sharing ideas or actually giving money. When I talk about Christians who support Trump, I’m thinking of those who only speak well of him, share memes favorable to the president, echo his ridicule of opponents, etc. It’s not about merely deciding to vote for him in the next election as the only viable option.

The other element of yesterday’s article that seems to need definition was the Pew study about “accepting refugees.” That phrase was common at the time the article came out, being applied to the European refugee crisis. I have never heard the phrase “accepting refugees” used in relation to our current border crisis, though I wouldn’t be surprised if somebody somewhere used the phrase in that way. I would argue that it’s not the common understanding of the phrase and it caught me totally by surprise when some thought that was what was being referred to.

Finally, my concern is that Christians not allow politics to become the lord of the church, changing our outlook toward morality, toward other people, and toward what is most important.