There’s a very interesting discussion arising in a number of places including: Fr. Chris’ , Pastor Bob Cornwall’s, and “EcuBishop”‘s blogs about the appropriatness of religious figures endorsing, or being seen to endorse political candidates.

Hmmm . . . . I’ve been thinking about this for the past day now, and I must confess I’ve never been comfortable when I’ve seen religious figures getting too close to, or worse – publically endorsing a politician.

My starting point here is not with the “politics” of it all – though I do firmly believe that it is our civic duty to participate in the political process wherever we live, just as I believe that we ought to participate fully in the life of our chosen faith community and its tradition. Rather my starting point is . . . I think. . . . vaguely theological, and largely ecclesiological (I’m not 100% certain that I’ve thought it through enough yet to fully associate it within these two categories).

First, with a nod to Bp. Tim Cravens whose comment over at Fr. Chris’ place resonated strongly with me – I’d like to take a moment and reflect on the fact that once ordained – regardless, I would like to think, of one’s particular tradition, you are no longer as “private” as you once were. As a bishop, I know that there is never a moment when I do not represent my faith, and my OC/IC tradition. With or without the physical collar, when people know I’m ordained, and when people don’t even know my name – there is no escaping the fact that I represent something other than “just me”.

When a bishop, a priest, or pastor publically endorses a political candidate he becomes the cause for division, and thus limits or reduces his abiblity to call people across the political spectrum to the cause of the Gospel – precisely because that endorsement becomes a point of reference from which people derive their understanding of everything else he might say (related or not). He ceases to speak to that which is bigger than himself.

The message of the Gospel cuts across the political divides, there is no Jew, nor Greek, free-man, nor slave, Republican, Democrat, Tory, Labour . . . there is just the body of Christ. Those of us who are called to serve in an ordained capacity must speak only to this audience – the body of Christ, not the body politic – for when we cross the border into the civic arena, we surrender our authoritative voice, we drag the message of Christ down to the level of the mundane, and we cease to be effective in calling the whole body to live our baptismal vocation; rather one portion will hear us – because they too have chosen that civic candidate, and the other will ignore or deride us because they have painted us with a civic political brush, and no longer see us as a voice of the “catholic” assembly.