The Gospel According to Matt

The last phase of the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag says “With liberty and justice for all.”  It’s a lofty idea and a noble promise, but it hasn’t always been such in America.  There have been whole people groups who have been denied liberty (at least for a time), and there have been whole socio-political groups who have been denied justice (and/or have escaped the arm of justice).  But the promise and ambition still stands.  We want to be “one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all.”

I believe in that very pledge and promise.  I believe in that ambition.  And that’s why I’m a Conservative—because I believe that the very best way to create “one nation under God with liberty and justice for all” is to create a nation that is colorblind (but not colorless), a nation that is protected by a small government whose primary purpose is blind justice (punishing those who do evil and rewarding those who do right, per Romans 13:3-4), and a nation where people have the freedom to make their own way in the world without the fear of government intervention or intrusion.  That’s Conservative because that’s clearly the kind of government that the Founding Father’s (with all of their strengths and some of their weaknesses) aspired to build.

Somewhere along the way, however, our Government has turned into a kind of “Big Brother;” although not so big, not so corrupt, and not so oppresive as Orwell envisioned in 1984.  I still respect our government, and will continue to honor our leaders, nontheless I fear that it will someday evolve and progress into something akin to the Orwellian Vision.

I’m not an anarchist in any way (I believe in the rule, righteousness, and importance of Law) but I do have some libertarian leanings.  Nor am I Republican, because I no longer believe that the Grand Old Party that liberated America from slavery has my values and interests in mind (our President, whom I believe is a good man who makes his decisions based on his conscience, has built the biggest federal government in American history and has failed to fight many of the battles I hoped he would).  And the DNC is even further from my values than the RNC/GOP.

So where does that leave me?

It leaves me as a Conservative without a viable party.  It leaves me as a citizen still willing to die for the right to vote and still willing to believe in the promise of the Pledge.  It leaves me as a minister of the Gospel wondering if the future will continue to protect my right to live, express, share, preach and “contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 3).  It leaves me to contemplate the fates of George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich (one corrupt Republican governor of Illinois and one allegedly corrupt Democratic governor of Illinois)—anecdotal evidence that big government has the power to corrupt leaders and empower corruption.  But if they can end up in prison where they belong (allegedly), then we can still have some hope for justice.

About liberty for all?  Only time will tell.