Boy do my wife and I have a political disagreement these days, perhaps the only one we’ve ever had. I am as enthusiastic as I can be about James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for the US Senate in Texas. Jane doesn’t like how Christian his political talk can be. She doesn’t like him quoting Christian scripture because this isn’t a Christian nation. Of course it isn’t, but at last, at long, long last, a prominent public figure is basing his political positions on true Christianity. Not bigotry. Not misogyny. Not racist white Christian nationalism, none of which are truly Christian. Talarico is a Christian who gets it right. He preaches peace and distributive justice from a true Christian perspective. He is a Presbyterian seminarian, and it is obvious that he got good, progressive Presbyterianism, not the conservative, unintelligent Presbyterianism that is also present among us.
If people will listen to Talarico, they will hear a Christian voice that has been far too silent for far too long in this country. They will hear that Christianity is about love. Love of neighbor with everyone as our neighbor. It is about benefits not bombs. It is about equality, with no oppression of anyone. Ever. They will hear that actually is what we can call Great Commandment Christianity not Pharisaic bigoted Christianity. Intelligent, thoughtful Christianity not unthinking Biblicist Christianity. They will see how radically un-Christian so much of public American evangelical "Christianity" truly is.
So once again
I say: Thank God! There is at last a ray of hope in American politics. There is at last a truly Christian voice in American politics that is actually getting a hearing. So no,
dear. Talarico’s Christian talk is not something to worry about. Not at all.
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