When the phrase “separation of church and state” is used in political debate, members of the Evangelical Christian community emit a frenzy of retorts.

They sometimes recite how the original intention of the ideal was to keep government from holding influence over religion, not the other way around. They often lament how unholy our nation is and how the secularists are allowing the devil to dictate our legislation. Others promise punishment will come upon the
United States from an angry God.

But who are they trying to convince?

One of the primary problems with Christian lobbyists is their passion for God. In a personal sense, being passionate about God can be life-altering, humbling and fulfilling in its purest form.

On the political front it is downright dangerous.

Passion can be an excellent motivation to evoke change, but it alone cannot be the catalyst of change for others who do not feel the same passion.

For example, if Christians want to push through a piece of legislation they deem necessary for the moral good of the country, they must be prepared with answers for non-Christians or even Christians who disagree on the nitty-gritty issues of faith.

When Christian lobbyists rely solely on their passion for God, the answer is often “Because God says so” or “The Bible is clear on this issue.”

The obvious response from anyone who doesn’t follow the same belief structure is “So?”

And thus a cycle begins. Christians become outraged that nonbelievers are snubbing the word of God and leading the country into darkness. Nonbelievers become outraged that the word of God is being forced upon them.

And nothing is accomplished.

To get beyond this impasse, it is imperative that Christians understand one important thing. God is good.

I feel the eyes rolling.

It’s true, such a simple statement anyone who grew up in Sunday school remembers singing in peppy songs is the key to this debate.

When tackling a moral agenda which is believed to be the will of God, one must ask “OK, if this is God’s will, then it must be good. So what makes it good?”

To answer that question and effect change, Christians must have more than passion. They must be armed with logic, ration and facts – and I mean all the facts, not just the ones that are convenient to their agenda. Deception will win no one in the long run. They might even discover that they were wrong the whole time or that their solution was inappropriate for the problem at hand.

But if they still stand firmly by their original belief, the answer to “why is it good” will be eons more convincing than an assault on the opposing side’s character and moral fiber.

And if Christians find they cannot answer this simple question beyond “because it says so in the Bible” they need a far stronger understanding of the material they are studying before they even consider rallying an entire nation behind a belief.

This isn’t about Christians hiding their faith or being ashamed of their beliefs. It’s about uniting everyone for the greater good. If a blind man asks you for directions, do you point your finger or show him a map? Of course not.

The same goes for engaging in debate with nonbelievers. God can be the motivation, but He needs to be minimized in the language. Otherwise we’ll just have a bunch of blind people wandering around, angry at the person who gave such lousy directions. Strike that – who gave such good directions in such a lousy manner.

So by explaining a stance with logic and facts instead of using language of one’s passion for God, one can ultimately get more backing for the good causes attributed to the will of God. And therefore Christians can highly benefit from separating church and state by getting more people on the same page for the greater good.

And if you’re not interested in uniting people for good, what is your motivation? Show-boating your devotion to God?

Shame.

Evangelism? I realize this goes against Evangelical instinct, but forcing God upon the people through legislation is not the way to change hearts.

But that’s another blog.