Dr. Moore Goes to Washington

The Wall Street Journal’s recent profile of Dr. Russell Moore, President of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, led its readers to believe that Dr. Moore is trying to pull Evangelicals away from political engagement. Criticism was immediate, however, I held great skepticism. Perhaps it was merely an appreciation for Dr. Moore as a manifestation of the very best of my Southern Baptist upbringing. Or it may have been my inability to understand how “prophetic minorities” build “big tents.”

I knew, however, the profile could not be accurate. For instance, anyone who believes that the advice of a former Democrat from a working class home in Mississippi is “meshing” with the old moneyed and liberal wing of the Republican Party clearly doesn’t understand that particular Southern view of the world.

Dr. Moore has said on occasion that Evangelicalism will not embrace libertarianism. It is also clear he will not embrace liberalism. The common wisdom assumes that young Christians, like myself, are fed up with conservatism. But we are not. We are fed up with materialism, which is what occurs when society is detached from its Christian roots. We see both Parties laughing at death and advocating the right to sell or discard the image of God, and we cannot go on with them.

What is a Christian to do in such times? He might suggest that we “be wary of being co-opted” by the political process. He might warn against “becoming mascots” and allying with those who would turn against us. Indeed, like Pope Francis, he might tell us that now is a good time to begin practicing humility and leading by example. He might tell us “Onward Christian Soldiers” is no good without “Just as I am.”

All this struck me, as at the time I had quite literally finished writing on the political views of John Wesley, who said that when each of us come into the public square to fix the wrongs of our time, we first must “each of us lay his hand upon his heart and say, ‘Lord, is it I?’”

Even though I don’t always agree with them, I am profoundly grateful for men like Pope Francis and Dr. Moore. They challenge us to better employ the moral imagination and avoid tired ideology. Together, we may yet “redeem the time.”