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My last post on the election. I'm posting this because Pastor Wm. Dwight McKissic Sr. of the Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas articulates my view of the two candidates better than I've been able to do. I know it won't chnage any minds. But maybe you'll at least be able to see where I've been coming from.
www.msnbc.com
It is a commonly held belief in many circles that evangelical Christians — to say nothing of evangelical pastors like me — should vote Republican. The GOP, the thinking goes, is the party most closely aligned to our morals, our values and our commitment to biblical principles. I held this belief for the better part of 40 years. I saw Democrats endorsing, encouraging and elevating gay rights agendas and same-sex marriage and advocating and advancing abortion rights. President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, was impeached for perjury following an adulterous affair he had while in office. None of the above aligned with my Christian values.
The GOP, the thinking goes, is the party most closely aligned to our morals, our values and our commitment to biblical principles. I held this belief for the better part of 40 years.
I supported Texas’ constitutional ban on same-sex marriage that passed in 2005. I joined Gov. Rick Perry on a tour of the state while preaching the message “Are Gay Rights and Civil Rights Parallel?” My answer is they aren’t. As it relates to abortion, Republicans have always been strong pro-life advocates. It was one of the pillars that the GOP included in its official party platform. That’s why voting for Republicans made sense to me.
So why, then, am I, the senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Arlington, Texas, for 41 years, voting for the Democrat, Vice President Kamala Harris, for president? As I wrote Wednesday on X, I’m voting for character and competence and for the candidate who “has the capacity and bandwidth to demonstrate respect and high regard” for everybody made in the image of God. Republican Donald Trump doesn’t have Harris’ character, her competence or her capacity.
To be clear, my opinions on the issues mentioned above haven’t wavered. I still believe in the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman and feel just as passionately about protecting life in the womb as I ever have. Democrats haven’t changed their stance on those two issues, either. But Republicans have changed. I don’t even recognize the Republican Party anymore. This year, for example, the GOP’s platform abandoned its long-standing call for a national abortion ban and removed the language that says marriage is “between one man and one woman, and is the foundation for a free society.”
The party I knew and loved would have never chosen as its nominee the adulterous, childish, habitually lying and criminally convicted Donald Trump. Evangelical leaders rightly called Clinton out for his sex scandal with Monica Lewinsky and then his lying about it. It’s astonishing to see these same leaders ignore Trump’s many sex scandals and ignore that he was found liable in court of sexually abusing a woman.
It’s sickening to see people who say they read and believe the same Bible I do not only refuse to denounce Trump but endorse his candidacy.
For better or worse, I am a man who votes my convictions. Traditionally, I’ve voted based on social issues and put everything else in God’s hands. Being that I am now a political party outcast on the two major social issues I’ve always used to guide my voting decisions, I’m being forced to change my voting criteria. I can’t vote for a party that upholds my social convictions. Because neither does. So I’ve got to vote based on the character of the candidates. Enter Harris.
As a pastor for more than four decades, I’ve had to hire for a variety of positions. Not just other ministers, but also CPAs, counselors, communication specialists, contractors, engineers, lawyers, even custodians. If Harris’ résumé came across my desk and I was able to interview her, not knowing a thing about her political views, I would hire her in a heartbeat. Why? Because on paper she represents a person of good character and someone who can be trusted. Unlike the adulterous, twice-divorced Trump, she’s married to her first and only husband, and she graciously embraced the role of mother to his children. A product of humble beginnings, she made something of herself. She was introduced to church as a child and has remained in the church as an adult. She presents herself as a woman of integrity and leads with love. By that I mean she has a gentle and welcoming spirit.
Opinion | I preach against abortion. But I’m voting for Kamala Harris.
The GOP I loved would have never chosen as its nominee the adulterous, childish, habitually lying and criminally convicted Donald Trump.
www.msnbc.com
It is a commonly held belief in many circles that evangelical Christians — to say nothing of evangelical pastors like me — should vote Republican. The GOP, the thinking goes, is the party most closely aligned to our morals, our values and our commitment to biblical principles. I held this belief for the better part of 40 years. I saw Democrats endorsing, encouraging and elevating gay rights agendas and same-sex marriage and advocating and advancing abortion rights. President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, was impeached for perjury following an adulterous affair he had while in office. None of the above aligned with my Christian values.
The GOP, the thinking goes, is the party most closely aligned to our morals, our values and our commitment to biblical principles. I held this belief for the better part of 40 years.
I supported Texas’ constitutional ban on same-sex marriage that passed in 2005. I joined Gov. Rick Perry on a tour of the state while preaching the message “Are Gay Rights and Civil Rights Parallel?” My answer is they aren’t. As it relates to abortion, Republicans have always been strong pro-life advocates. It was one of the pillars that the GOP included in its official party platform. That’s why voting for Republicans made sense to me.
So why, then, am I, the senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Arlington, Texas, for 41 years, voting for the Democrat, Vice President Kamala Harris, for president? As I wrote Wednesday on X, I’m voting for character and competence and for the candidate who “has the capacity and bandwidth to demonstrate respect and high regard” for everybody made in the image of God. Republican Donald Trump doesn’t have Harris’ character, her competence or her capacity.
To be clear, my opinions on the issues mentioned above haven’t wavered. I still believe in the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman and feel just as passionately about protecting life in the womb as I ever have. Democrats haven’t changed their stance on those two issues, either. But Republicans have changed. I don’t even recognize the Republican Party anymore. This year, for example, the GOP’s platform abandoned its long-standing call for a national abortion ban and removed the language that says marriage is “between one man and one woman, and is the foundation for a free society.”
The party I knew and loved would have never chosen as its nominee the adulterous, childish, habitually lying and criminally convicted Donald Trump. Evangelical leaders rightly called Clinton out for his sex scandal with Monica Lewinsky and then his lying about it. It’s astonishing to see these same leaders ignore Trump’s many sex scandals and ignore that he was found liable in court of sexually abusing a woman.
It’s sickening to see people who say they read and believe the same Bible I do not only refuse to denounce Trump but endorse his candidacy.
For better or worse, I am a man who votes my convictions. Traditionally, I’ve voted based on social issues and put everything else in God’s hands. Being that I am now a political party outcast on the two major social issues I’ve always used to guide my voting decisions, I’m being forced to change my voting criteria. I can’t vote for a party that upholds my social convictions. Because neither does. So I’ve got to vote based on the character of the candidates. Enter Harris.
As a pastor for more than four decades, I’ve had to hire for a variety of positions. Not just other ministers, but also CPAs, counselors, communication specialists, contractors, engineers, lawyers, even custodians. If Harris’ résumé came across my desk and I was able to interview her, not knowing a thing about her political views, I would hire her in a heartbeat. Why? Because on paper she represents a person of good character and someone who can be trusted. Unlike the adulterous, twice-divorced Trump, she’s married to her first and only husband, and she graciously embraced the role of mother to his children. A product of humble beginnings, she made something of herself. She was introduced to church as a child and has remained in the church as an adult. She presents herself as a woman of integrity and leads with love. By that I mean she has a gentle and welcoming spirit.
