Cost-benefit analysis

Christianity is at war with the world. In this touchy-feely age, it's hard for Christians to get behind that statement. For all the crap show this election has turned out to be, I'll credit it for getting people riled up and getting their consciences going.

Nearly every day, I hear or read from a prominent Christian making a case in voting for Donald Trump. The most frequently heard argument I hear is with regards to Trump's supreme court choices. Between he and Hillary Clinton, he is the more likely to appoint  judges who will protect the unborn and preserve religious freedoms, two of the more popular issues within the Church's circles. To be perfectly honest, I think this is a strong argument and it's one that I struggle with. Most days I'm asking myself, "What cost am I willing to pay with a Trump presidency?" I can never give an answer.

I want my religious freedoms intact. I want life protected and valued, in and out of the womb. I want it so badly yet I don't know if the cost is too high. Could Trump do right by this? Could he do more wrong in the process? I'm not looking for a perfect president. I'm looking for a moral president. I frankly don't see that in either Trump or Clinton. I see it in other candidates, but their chances are highly improbable.

So the options are presented to me thus:

A) Vote for the immoral candidate who can win and promises to champion moral causes.
B) Vote for the other immoral candidate who can win and will undermine said moral causes.
C) Vote for the moral candidate who has virtually no chance of winning but will champion moral causes.

Does this end justify the means? I wish I knew. History shows that Christianity flourishes in adversity and oppression. If there is a Clinton presidency, we may be heading in that direction. We may have to fail first before we can have a greater success.

-L. Travis Hoffman

10/17/2016

Yes, we need to forgive Trump.

Here we go again. Donald Trump has given us yet another reason to not want him as president. More foot-in-mouth action for all!

To be fair, this was in 2005. A person can change a lot in 10 plus years. In fact, his whole shtick in this election is based on that very idea. A man that was a leftist Democrat has had a change of heart and is now a (pseudo) conservative Republican.

I read a comment on facebook comparing Trump's sins to that of David. This analogy falls flat, however, when you consider that God chose David as king because of his character and strong moral fiber. It wasn't until later into his rule that he committed adultery and murder. It was because of his character that David sought forgiveness and lived on to be a great ruler. With Donald Trump, we have only his promise of reform in the face of an ugly history. Even with his alleged recent salvation, it doesn't inspire much confidence in this Christian.

His words were and are disgusting. I stand by my viewpoint that Trump is not the moral ideal choice where one's vote is concerned. The history of his character can testify to that. With all that being said, it would be wrong not to forgive him. He's apologized and asked forgiveness. We within the Body of Christ owe him that much. Whether he's deserving of the presidency is another question altogether. I believe he needs to show the country and the Church his sincerity first before asking for our vote. For him, that might mean waiting at least another four years.

-L. Travis Hoffman

10/9/2016

Vote like a Christian.

This will be the first presidential election in my adult life where the candidate's loss will be attributed largely to a  third-party vote. The Republicans or Democrats aren't willing to accept responsibility for the fact that their respective candidates are wholly unappealing.

They aren't getting off the hook that easily. Why should they? First we have Donald Trump, a man with a history of womanizing who has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth when it comes to women and the disabled. His views are also not particularly conservative and we have only his word to trust, which is asking a lot. Then we have Hillary Clinton, a corrupt career politician who prizes her job security over national security. She's also a rape-enabler, she cheated in the primary, and takes money from questionable people.

One of these two people will be elected as our president in November. The third-party nominees have no mathematical chance of winning. It's a fact. That doesn't mean we shouldn't consider giving the latter our vote. Our Religion is not one that is founded on pragmatism. Neither should our voting.

Imagine a scenario where the two candidates were both pro-slavery and one of the third-party candidates was an abolitionist. Even if the latter had no chance of winning, would they not be the most moral choice in which to vote for? Of course they would.

Many Christians, sadly, have sold out their principles for a more certain outcome. That's right, I said it. Sold out. I'll grant that avoiding a Clinton dynasty by voting Trump is a tenable position, but it's a vote built on fear rather than faith.

Was David a certain outcome against Goliath? Was Moses a certain victory against Pharaoh? How about Gideon? Was Christendom itself a sure thing against virtually every oppressive government that's existed since its advent? We should be asking ourselves these questions. Most importantly, which candidate is best representing the values that Christ wants in our world? So what if the person doesn't win. We get and will continue to have ungodly politicians.We can at least go on with our day knowing that we have some integrity.

-L. Travis Hoffman

10/3/2016

The point of this entry is not to say, "Vote for ____." Rather, as I always try to do with my blog, is stimulate the Christian mind and spirit and hopefully get both working on the same page.