Trust Not in Princes

Why are politics becoming so radical?

This past Saturday, July 13, the world was shocked with the news that a gunman attempted to assassinate former president and presidential candidate, Donald Trump.  Many are now asking how this could happen and how things could get to the point that someone would think that murder is the best solution to political problems. 

Of course, this is not really new.  In the relatively short span of United States history, four presidents have been assassinated with one unsuccessful attempt to kill Ronald Reagan.  Lest we pin this as a US problem, this type of thing has been common in history.  In fact, there were 77 Roman Emperors and 37 of these were assassinated!  So, political violence is hardly a rare thing.

Still, one might ask, why are people willing to kill a governmental leader?  Sometimes it might be a matter of revenge, but usually it is in order to get the person they want into power.  This seems extreme to many, but this is often the way of the world.

Also, it certainly seems like violence is on the uptick.  Death threats are now a common occurrence, and neither side of the political spectrum is innocent.  It has almost become cliché to say that politics are becoming more and more divided.

The Root Problem

While many point to problems such as social media and the nature of the internet as forces that can help foster divisions, these are not the root problem.  These cannot be the root, because political violence is as old as politics. 

Some have pointed out, and I think correctly, that the nature of rhetoric today is toxic, and not just by the politicians, but also by most everyday people.  This is not just an American problem either, as the hateful rhetoric has risen in Canada and Europe as well.  Today, people tend to treat political disagreements as an existential threat.  While most don’t say it directly, some do.  We have heard people argue that if this or that candidate or party isn’t elected, it is the end of democracy. 

As things have gotten more and more heated, the divisions grow, and soon doing something radical, like trying to assassinate a candidate, seems to make sense.

The real problem is that we tend to treat this world as the ultimate reality.  If this life is all that there is, then we can justify whatever will make this life better.  The Romans didn’t believe in the afterlife, so it shouldn’t surprise us that they were willing to assassinate emperors that they didn’t like.  In much the same way, many today treat this world as the ultimate reality.

In Psalm 146 we are told “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.”^[1] God’s point is that our trust should not be in worldly rulers who rule for a few years, and then are gone.  Rather, our trust should be in the King of Kings who is eternal.  Dostoevsky in The Brothers’ Karamazov observed that “If God does not exist, anything is permissible.”  Not only that, but anything can be justified, including assassination!

Keeping Politics in Their Proper Place

This is not to say that we should be unconcerned about politics and the matters of this world.  Rather, we need to keep them in their proper place.  When Jesus was asked “which is the great commandment of the Law?” He responded “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”  But Jesus didn’t stop there, “And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:26-40).  Loving our neighbors as ourselves should be the proper motivation for our political involvement.

We, therefore, should be concerned about trying to get the best people elected to office.  We should care about what leaders will be the best for our countries and the world.  There are important questions as to our direction that need to be carefully thought about.

However, this is the second greatest commandment, not the first.  This should inform us as to how we think about politics.  They are important, but secondary.  Horrible leaders, such as Stalin, Mao, and Hitler, have done terrible things, and if possible, these abuses should be prevented.  However, these men have come and gone. 

On a simpler note, I have heard predictions on both sides in the US that if this person is elected, it is the end of the country.  And what happened?  The “bad guy” got elected and the terrible things predicted didn’t happen. 

We are called to pray for our leaders (Romans 13) and should be involved in electing the best we can.  However, our trust is not in them, but in God. 

Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul!

I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.

When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,

who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;

who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.

The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.

The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations.

Praise the Lord! (Psalm 146)

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^[1] All Bible quotes from: The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016).