The most important person in this election is not on a ballot box. He is the person seated next to you. He is the scruffy old man who picks his nose publicly as he moves from one dumpsite to another in search of a meal. She is the lady with six children and a salary that cannot be stretched past pay day. He is the newspaper vendor who bears the brunt of the rain then dashes across town to his second job as a watchman. She is the lady next door, the one you have never had the guts to speak to.
This election, if political analysts are to be believed, involves high stakes. I suppose that can be said of every other election because an election is like a short term marriage. You sign the dotted line only to realize that your spouse has bad breath, cusses like a sailor and stashes his dirty socks under the bed. Of course, you want out but there is the little matter of the law so you are stuck with who you are dealt with until another election puts you asunder.
In two weeks’ time, we shall gather before God and men, alongside other men and women to give this another try. We shall choose a team with whom we hope we can weather the vicissitudes of life. There is no shortage of analyses on what the past five years have been like. The good, the bad and the ugly is evident to anyone who is willing to look and see. Lately, I have been thinking about how we decide on who to vote for. I have been thinking of us, we who are called by the Light of the World to be the light of the world.
Years ago, I was a part of a congregation whose leader was convinced that we had a mission to take over the government. This mission was often communicated in the form of prophecies to the church. The prophetic word, as I would learn later, has its place but this was an instance in which it was openly being abused. As part of his plan for takeover, he was raising leaders who were like him. According to him, God had a special mission for his church (our denomination) which he would only accomplish once we became influential people in the society. I know that sounds ridiculous now but back then, we were the “chosen” ones and he was the “chosen” one.
It did not take long for that plan to crumble along with the vision bearer but I have heard that narrative in so many churches. It sounds biblical, right? After all, aren’t we a royal priesthood, a holy nation and a special people to God (1 Peter 2:9)? Looking back at our congregation, we were so trapped in the idea of having power that we did very little with what was within our reach. That prophetic word had become the seed of conceit mixed up with ignorance. We did not have the faintest idea as to how a government works. The few members of the congregation who knew were busy growing their own little empires at the expense of others. Our desire to take over was based on the promise that God was doing something special and he needed this group of exceptional people to do it. This could not have been further from the truth because God is always working, always redeeming and he does not need people. He chooses people, equips them and does his work on earth through them (Ephesians 2:10).
The undoing of that prophecy was that it was built on exceptionalism. You have probably come across one or more variants of this brand of “Christianity” in church settings. It is an insidious vice that is masked with the relevant scriptures. Exceptionalism shields its followers from the world while making them believe that they are special to God. Don’t get me wrong, anyone who believes in Christ is a new creation as Paul preaches but this brand corrupts this. Its preachers have a grasp of the scriptures but are quick to detach it from its historical and cultural contexts.
It is individualistic, predatory and power driven but the power in it is nothing like the power that was demonstrated by Christ who did not consider equality with God as something to be grasped (Phil. 2:6-7). It teaches servant leadership while trampling upon the foundations of servant hood through pomposity, false humility and self-aggrandizement. It’s authoritarian in nature, leaning on some portions of the Old Testament structures while failing to mention that Christ was the fulfillment of the law and He chose to lay down his life for the sake of others. It teaches accountability yet it does not practice any form of accountability. If this is acceptable within the church, then how low will the bar be set when it comes to political offices?
If exceptionalism is the basis upon which we choose leaders, then we will vote to feed its demands upon us. This plan could be anything from a plan that is based on tribal preferences to a plan based on personal biases. We will delegate our authority to interrogate our leaders in spite the fact that God has given a spirit of love, power and sound mind and he expects us to prayerfully and mindfully exercise it. We will skip our duty to love our neighbour as we love ourselves by voting without considering the implications of our choices on their lives.
My neighbour, if the parable in Luke 10:25 has taught me anything, does not share my religious beliefs, tribe, physical address, social status or views on matters of life and the afterlife. My neighbour is the nameless widow who has been displaced by a famous political figure because her plot is in a prime part of the city. My neighbours are countless men and women who cannot access good healthcare because they cannot afford to pay for it. My neighbour is that lady with a thick layer of make up on her face that hides the pinch of the rising cost of living.
If exceptionalism has deep roots within the church, then it is hard to quantify the extent of its twin, tribalism has taken root. I do not subscribe to the school of thought that states that we are #tribeless because, whether we like it or not, we were all born to a particular ethnic community. The Bible, in all its authority, does not exclude the cultural context within which God birthed and fulfilled his plan for the redemption of humanity. That says something about our tribes and our cultures. They are important but when a tribe becomes the basis upon which we relate with others, we have lost sight of God’s redemption plan for the earth.
Tribalism has been here long enough to have a town named after it. It does not because you and I are oblivious of how deep the tentacles of tribalism have taken root in our souls. Consider this for a second: You lose money in a business deal. Two of your partners were from the same ethnic community. What goes through your mind whenever you come across members of that community? What led you to that conclusion? Is it free from biases? Would you confront those biases if you knew they existed?
I have seen posts on social media and other forms of media, rallying Christians to pray for this country. That is important. The scriptures command us to pray without ceasing. However, we must be alert to the effects of faith without works. I am asking myself the hard questions as I think about the upcoming general elections:
What patterns of thinking are shaping my decision to vote or not to vote for particular candidate?
Are these patterns sound, noble, true and praiseworthy?
How will my decision to vote or not to vote affect my neighbour?
Do I view my citizenship as an expression of stewardship? Am I being faithful as a citizen?
Corazon Achieng 