I’m writing this with the American election
only a couple days away. I don’t know
who’s going to win—I’m not sure who does.
God knows but may not want to dwell on it.
Anyway, I’ve been reviewing a
little presidential history. Here’s just
a small sampling of things not mentioned in middle school American history
classes.
--Thomas Jefferson almost certainly
had a lengthy affair with his slave Sally Hemmings, fathering at least one if
not more children with her. Evidence
shows her descendants carried DNA from either Jefferson or his brother--Thomas is the most likely candidate.
--Grover Cleveland, only president
to be elected twice with a term intervening, fathered a child out of wedlock. His opponents made an issue of it but he won anyway.
--Warren Harding was such a noted
womanizer that when he died suddenly on a visit to California, some suspected
his longsuffering wife had poisoned him. (Harding’s name has also been
associated with financial scandals; historians argue that if he wasn’t directly
guilty, he certainly appointed some morally impoverished characters to his
administration.)
--Franklin Roosevelt had a
long-time extramarital affair with Lucy Mercer; she was with him when he died
in 1944, however, his family claimed the affair had ended years before.
--John Kennedy had dalliances with
several women, some who were world-famous.
--Bill Clinton—why go there.
We have elected some highly moral
men to the nation’s highest office and some who were not so virtuous. Political affiliation bears no relation to
presidential morality. Harry Truman and Jimmy Carter were both Democrats and
both were devoted to their wives (they both happened to be Baptists but don’t
take any comfort from that; remember, Bill Clinton). Though Republican Theodore Roosevelt is
criticized for his progressive views, his presidency was largely scandal free;
his remarriage soon after his first wife’s death bothered his sisters but there
was no hint of impropriety. Both George
H. W. Bush and George W. Bush, though criticized for their decision-making,
seem to be morally upright men. (“W” may have been wrong about WMDs but it’s a
fantasy to say he lied.)
My point in this historical review
is to acknowledge the Oval Office has often been home to men we wouldn’t want
to be our pastors. But, of course, we
aren’t electing our national pastor; we are electing our president.
Would I prefer a president who is
faithful to his or her marital vows, who is scrupulous in money-matters, who
does not sell favors, and who puts the nation’s welfare above party politics? Certainly. Are we going to elect such a
president this Tuesday? Not likely.
How we got into this situation is
for historians and sociologists to determine.
One candidate may have been rewarded for patiently stepping aside in
2008; another inspired voters to overwhelmingly respond simply by telling
enough people what they wanted to hear.
I’ve voted in every presidential
election since I was old enough to vote.
More than once my vote for a candidate was intended solely to be a vote
against another candidate. This is the
first election I can recall when both candidates seem to be inspiring such a
response from voters. Here’s a sampling
of bumper stickers I’ve seen:
“Vote None of the Above,”
“Giant Meteor 2016—Just End It,”
“Choose One: ___ Trump ___ Clinton
___ God Help Us,”
and “We’re Screwed 2016.”
I recently read the words of a
prominent preacher who, remarking on how many people were singing “God Bless
America,” asked what “America” God was supposed to bless: the America where
prostitution and crime was rampant or the America where gambling and divorce
was widespread or the America where breweries and distilleries had larger
incomes than the churches. The preacher
was Donald Grey Barnhouse, nationally known pastor of Philadelphia’s Tenth
Presbyterian Church; the year was 1942, the middle of the unprecedented third
term of one of the presidents mentioned above, Franklin Roosevelt.
That same year Elwin Wright was
calling for delegates from various evangelical denominations to meet in St.
Louis to discuss forming an organization that would promote cooperation in
spreading the gospel; that organization would be the National Association of
Evangelicals. That same year pastors and
evangelists were conducting youth rallies in several American cities, rallies
that would reach thousands and give birth to the influential Youth for
Christ. That same year the son of a
North Carolina dairy farmer was studying at Wheaton College, preparing for the
ministry; his name was Billy Graham and a decade after Barnhouse gave his assessment
of America’s spiritual outlook winds of revival were blowing across the land.
Not long after I assumed pastoral
duties at my church in Ohio, a woman who had voted for me asked if she could
retract her vote? Her reason was
surprising: She insisted I was not the “Jim Hickman she had voted for.” Doubtless this woman was suffering from
mental illness; I say this without implying others who may have wished they
could retract their votes were also mentally ill.
Sometime in the next four years,
lots of voters will say something similar about the candidate who wins this
Tuesday: “This isn’t the Hillary I voted
for,” “Is this the same Donald,” “I was
expecting something different from a third party president.” (Just kidding.) Promises,
whether about giant fences or free tuition, will almost certainly go unkept.
The writer of Hebrews tells us
Jesus Christ is “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Heb. 13:8) The Jesus who cared about his church in the
first century, who cared about his church in the sixteenth century, who cared
about his church in the eighteenth century, who cared about his church in 1858,
who cared about his church in 1906, cares about his church in 2016. You will never have reason to say, “This
isn’t the same Jesus.” Hold on to that
no matter who’s elected.
Well, the quintessential
heart-breakers did it. The team that
probably inspired more fans to say, “Wait ‘til next year” than any other
brought home the elusive victory. The Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the
first time since 1908.
Christians, history shows, who have
patiently prayed and waited for revival have been rewarded. So, keep praying; maybe it won’t take 108
years.
