Dobson's Choice

I don't usually delve into religious topics here, but something happened last week that I found profoundly disturbing. When a number of evangelical leaders met to discuss the current crop of GOP Presidential candidates, Dr. James Dobson made a comment that seemed out of character; out of Character for both Dr. Dobson specifically and for a minister of the Gospel in general. Observing the reaction that fellow Christians had to the comments resulted in a number of disappointments. This is an attempt to explain why.

One Sunday morning in the not too distant past my Pastor told a story that left a stark impression. He spoke of an experience that he had as a young minister attending a youth conference. A speaker at the conference was speaking on the topic of sexual purity. That's a good topic to discuss at a youth conference. The damage done to so many young lives through bad choices in this area is incalculable, and the pressures on young people to make bad choices in this area are immense. At the beginning of the speaker's presentation he held up a single long stemmed rose before the audience. He admired the beauty of the rose, the rich red velvet petals, the glossy green leaves, the sweet perfume of the bloom. He then took the rose and handed it to a student in the audience. He told him to admire it, to smell it, to feel the softness of the petals, and the smoothness of the leaves, and then pass it around for others to admire and appreciate while he delivered his message.

The minister spoke to the crowd of young people about the importance of saving themselves for that special someone. He told them of the treasure that each of them were in their purity, and the special gift that they alone could preserve for their marriage. He told them that they were like that rose; something pristine and beautiful, to preserve. And at the conclusion of his message he asked the audience to return the rose to him. The rose was brought to the stage and placed in the ministers hand. Again he held it up before the crowd. No longer a thing of beauty. The leaves bent, twisted or missing. The petals bruised and all but gone. The sweet smell diminished by being passed from hand to hand. The minister looked out at the crowd, held the rose out before them, and in a voice of admonition he asked them "Who would want this now?". And then he left them there.

The story grieved my spirit when I first heard it, and it does so again now as I write. Jesus is who wants that broken rose. Jesus does not just leave us there. The minister in the story had no idea how many broken roses may have been sitting in his audience desperate for a word of hope, only to be left convinced that they were hopelessly undesirable. It is a fundamental tenet of Christianity that we are each in one way or another a broken rose. Our joy, and our hope, is that in Christ we are pristine and beautiful through His grace. The broken roses that turn to Christ are not forever broken roses. Or as the bible says "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

Pastors don't walk around among the congregation on Sunday morning reminding brothers and sisters of their past sins. It simply has no place within the faith. I have known people in some churches that had pretty bad reputations from before they found Christ. I have known Christians that made really big mistakes after they were saved. Christianity is big on redemption because perfection does not exist in humanity. Christianity teaches that nobody passes go without grace. Nobody. Not Callista Gingrich. Not James Dobson. Ministers have a tremendous responsibility. They are ambassadors of Christ to the world. It isn't a role that they can step in and out of based on a particular circumstance, or because they really, really, like a particular political candidate.

I like Dr. Dobson. I like Newt Gingrich. I actually know very little about Callista. I do know that all three of these people profess to be members of my Christian family. The issue that I have with this situation goes beyond who made the comment and about whom the comment was made. The thought of a minister, any minister, telling a sister in Christ that her past sins have left her an undesirable and broken rose, just leaves me profoundly saddened. It isn't Christlike, and it isn't biblical. Dr. Dobson held Karen Santorum up as a beautiful rose before his audience. Then he held up Callista Gingrich, pealed away God's grace to reveal her brokenness, and in a voice of admonition he asked them; "Who do you want as your first lady?" Dr. Dobson had no idea how many broken roses may have been within reach of his voice, or of the impact that his words may have had on them.

The Psalmist wrote "as far as the East is from the West, so far has he removed our transgressions from us". It is not the direction of the Spirit that motivates us to hunt down the past sins of fellow believers and put them on display. We do not represent Christ when we bind our brothers and sisters in the shackles of their past sins. Politics can test our most deeply held principles, and tempt us towards worldly victory through spiritual compromise. As Christians we should be reminded that we are not called to be representatives of our favorite political candidate, but representatives of Christ to a desperate and hopeless world.