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Walking Away from Gomorrah With a Song

August 9th, 2010 | 2 min read

By Matthew Lee Anderson

I’ve got some thoughts over at Christianity Today on the proper response for evangelicals to the recent ruling on Proposition 8:

Practically, I think we have relied too heavily on the will of the majority as our foundation for our legal actions. While political orders must on some level be representative of the people to be legitimate, our founding fathers set up a representative democracy for a reason. Without rejecting efforts like Proposition 8, politically conservative evangelicals should shift their focus toward equipping the next generation of leaders with the philosophical and theological training they need to affect society and government from the “top-down.” Majorities are unstable, and while traditional marriage has the upper hand now, it may not in 20 years.

In other words, for every dollar you send to ACLJ–and this is no insult to them or the work they do–you should send two to the bright kids in your church to help them get a decent education.  If you want some kids to support, send me an email.  I can list a dozen very bright students right who struggle to fund the sort of education that they need to make a dent.

That’s the long-term tactical solution.  In the short term, we need to recognize the gravity of the decision without being co-opted by despair or discouragement. America may be slouching toward Gomorrah, but that only means we should be singing as we walk the other way.

It’s a spiritual point as much as a tactical one.  Hand-wringing might fire up the troops, it rarely wins converts.

On Friday, I suggested that T.S. Eliot’s exhortation is appropriate for those disappointed by the ruling:  “”Teach us to care and not to care.”  Regardless of how it seems at any given moment, Jesus is still Lord, and as long as he is, the children will be alright.

Matthew Lee Anderson

Matthew Lee Anderson is an Associate Professor of Ethics and Theology in Baylor University's Honors College. He has a D.Phil. in Christian Ethics from Oxford University, and is a Perpetual Member of Biola University's Torrey Honors College. In 2005, he founded Mere Orthodoxy.