Saint Luke's Episcopal Church 

Dear Mr. Dobbs;

Recently you have both written and spoken about the role of the church in the political arena.  Your position seems to be that the church has no business involving itself in the affairs of the government.  If I have portrayed your position accurately you could not be more wrong.  The church surely should not align itself with one political party as part of the Christianity has done, but it most assuredly has a role to play in creating policy that is just and merciful.  Throughout the history of the Jewish and Christian people it has always been so.

Let me site a few examples to prove my point: Moses was sent by God to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to free the Hebrew slaves.  Elijah was sent by God to anoint a new king of Israel.  The prophet Amos spoke so vociferously against the king of Judah that the king sent one of his aids to tell him to leave the country and never return.  Isaiah and Jeremiah had frequent audiences with kings to advise them as what they thought God would have them do.  In fact all of the great Jewish prophets spoke regularly to the issues of their day.  They were very outspoken about the condition of society and how they thought it could be improved.  Likewise, Jesus routinely confronted the powerful in his society in order to bring about a more just, inclusive and merciful world that he called the kingdom of God.

It has always been the role of the church to be a prophetic voice in order to help make our society a bit more like the kingdom of God.  It is not only the right but the responsibility of the church to continue to raise its voice in matters of policy that are before our congress and administration.  It is the right and responsibility of the church to do so no matter the popularity of its position.  I say this because on a recent telecast one of your reporters stated that the church was out of tune with the country when it comes to immigration policy.  That most likely is true but has nothing to do with the fact that the church must speak the truth as it sees it, holding up what it believes God would have it say about immigration or any other issue.  I pray the church will never shrink from its role as the conscience of society.

If you would like to write me or speak with me about this please do not hesitate to contact me.

Warmly,

The Rev CB Baker