With the American presidential election and a down election looms, United Methodists are making a final effort to encourage their Wesleyan brothers and sisters to vote as a sacred duty, using Christian values ​​and character traits as a guide.

Officially, the denomination, its churchwide mission and ministry units, local congregations and clergy are prohibited from supporting any political candidate under the restrictions of nonprofit tax rules. However, religious institutions that obtain coveted 501(c)(3) status from the Internal Revenue Service are permitted to hold candidate forums and testify publicly about their beliefs. United Methodists are free to express their opinions and partisan support.

“Since mid-summer, United Methodists have denounced the fact that the former president does not represent traditional Methodist values.

Many United Methodists have used their ability to criticize American politics and examine the character of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. A quick online search for Trump supporters revealed no United Methodists publicly supporting the former president in the first five pages of results. A similar search also found no public support for Harris in the first five pages of results.

Further research for Harris United Methodist criticisms yielded no results. Instead, a similar search for criticism of Trump showed that United Methodists have been speaking out since midsummer about how the former president does not represent traditional Methodist values.

The Council of Bishops took an unusual lead in the political landscape on July 16 when it issued a statementcondemning political violence after the first assassination attempt against Trump. The bishops called on United Methodists to “pursue peacemaking” in their civic efforts amid the nation’s political polarization.

The bishops’ statement was followed in August by reports from three UMC regional units of campaigns emphasizing kindness and the establishment of civil relations during the electoral process.

James Howell

As the election cycle progressed, however, some United Methodists have written and spoken more forcefully against the themes projected by the Trump campaign. Two prominent commentators were James C. Howell, senior pastor of the Myers Park United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Kennetha J. Bigham-Tsai, resident bishop of the Annual (Regional) Conference of the Iowa UMC.

Author of 17 books and church resources, Howell has published a series of more than 20 “Reflections” under the title “The election, your spirituality and the soul of our nation”. Its topics include tribalism, race, guns, war, the economy, the environment and immigration, as well as personal character, citizenship and an “absolute obligation” to participate in politics by voting . He has not endorsed either presidential candidate, but his thoughts on how Christian values ​​influence society stand in stark contrast to prevailing attitudes. Among his observations:

Should we insist on the stellar character of leaders? Or do we want anyone to do the work we want? Do we have the sensible but perilous idea that a politician who is not perfectly honest but a little crooked will actually do things in a crooked world? … We must, over time, bring out exemplary candidates in terms of life and morality. Not perfect or 100% holy (since no one is), but the kind of people you hope your children grow up to be. We must, over time, be the kind of citizens and voters who care, who insist on their character and who simply will not vote for those whose ethics are under threat.

Kennetha J. Bigham-Tsai addresses the 2020 General Conference pre-briefing in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.)

In her Article from October 15, Bigham-Tsai hit on Christian nationalism and its influence, citing the core beliefs of United Methodism.

We strongly denounce political violence, which severs community ties and supplants the rule of law. We also denounce authoritarianism and secular and Christian nationalism, which promote centralization and abuse of power, accompanied by racism, xenophobia, tribalism and misogyny. Nationalism is a political ideology that challenges God’s love by pitting the interests of one group of people against those of others. Christian nationalism demands that laws, culture, and public policies be based on a distorted interpretation of the gospel that elevates power and control over love. These ideologies are in direct contradiction with our Christian faith because our “love of God is always linked to love of neighbor, passion for justice and the renewal of life in the world.”

Other commentators spoke directly about the character traits displayed by Trump.

Drawing on his personal experience with bullying, Schuyler Rhodes, a retired California pastor, decried Trump as “bully-in-chief”:

I watched with alarm and disgust as the horrifying realization came to me that the Republican nominee for President of the United States of America was a tyrant. That he is more than that, we know. He’s a convicted felon. He’s a narcissist. He’s a sexual predator. He is greedy. He’s a pathological liar. And he is not, despite his own protests, a Christian. This former tyrant-in-chief is a murderer of the Spirit, tearing apart the fabric of nation and community, leaving most of a nation in chronic depression and grief over the evaporation of civility and decent mutuality.

In a long Facebook post, Mary John Dye, a retired clergyman from North Carolina, lamented how many of her friends and acquaintances support Trump despite what she considers his immoral character:

When facts don’t matter, when the common currency of conversation is insult, when lies are shamelessly repeated, when people are incited to hate others, the good people who are our witnesses to the Christian faith know everything that is the opposite of Christianity. It’s not a question of political party. The same standard would apply to any political party. For Christians, values ​​matter, in life and at the ballot box. And the two are deeply linked.

Leaders of the General Council of Church and Society held a webinar Oct. 16, urging United Methodists to vote according to their values.

Moderator Aimee Hong asked Church and Society’s new top executive, retired Bishop Julius C. Trimble, and Kendal McBroom, director of civil and human rights, asked several questions aimed at portraying the right to vote as a “sacred duty” for all Christians. The Church and Society panelists emphasized that their goal was not for United Methodists to vote for a particular candidate, but to view the 2024 election as an opportunity to vote for values ​​that would create “good common “.

“It is essential that the prophetic voice of Christians allows those who are convinced to hold those in power accountable for their actions,” Trimble said. “We carry a prophetic call to defend the interests of the marginalized, even as we celebrate the separation of church and state. »

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