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