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    God and Politics
    God and Politics
    God and Politics
    Ebook170 pages4 hours

    God and Politics

    By Domenic Marbaniang

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    About this ebook

    Essays and Poems:
    Democracy and Ethics
    Christ, Truth, and Politics
    The Sword is not the Answer
    Winds of Change
    The Rule of Law
    The Kingdom in the Secular Politics
    Thy Kingdom Come
    Anatomy of Religious Violence
    Slumdog Souvenir
    Struggle for Separate States
    Government of the Poor
    Peace
    The Abrahamic Covenant
    Religious Tolerance
    What India Needs
    The War of Kalinga and Modern Religious Conscience
    Academics, Politics, and the Gospel
    The Sixth and Fifth Century BC in the Theology of History
    Divine Sovereignty - Confusions Regarding Freedom and Power
    Systems of Offences and Leaders of Change
    Three Levels of Aggression against Religion
    Corruption: Roots, Challenges, and Solutions
    Estrangement and Belongedness in the Ultimate Sacrifice of God
    Is Philosophy Dead?
    Creed of the 21st Century Christian
    Philosophical Roots of Law and Politics
    The Psychology of Evil and the Spirit of Victory
    The Crime of Silence
    The Constitution
    Slavery as Limited and Liberating in the Old Testament
    Violence
    Politics and Lies
    God and Politics in Secular India

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDomenic Marbaniang
    Release dateJan 16, 2014
    ISBN9781311510457
    God and Politics
    Author

    Domenic Marbaniang

    Domenic Marbaniang is Christian writer, musician, and minister.

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      Book preview

      God and Politics - Domenic Marbaniang

      DEMOCRACY AND ETHICS

      India is a democratic country; and by that we mean it is governed by us, its people [democracy, from the Greek democratia: demos, people, and kratia, government or rule]. Ethics refers to the study of moral conduct, of what one ought to do.

      Our nation recognizes the ideals of Justice, liberty, Equality, and Fraternity in its constitution. With the complexity of religious beliefs, its diversities, secularistic views, and the influence of the media ethical decisions are becoming more and more difficult in our society. The film producer defends his stance of overloading his film with sex as right, while a religious or even a secular man opposes it as morally depraving and detrimental to society. The advertisement agencies technically propagate lies deluding people to believe something which is not true. Our nation has found itself in a closet of ethical relativism – subjectivism and conventionalism. Variant religions assume their own moral standards. The Western culture is having a profound influence in our society, especially through the media (TV, Cinema, Song Albums, Novels, Journals, etc.). In such a context of diversity, and complexity, what kind of ethical standard should we, as citizens of democratic India, adopt form making ethical decisions? Following are some options:

      1. Ethical Egoism (from the Greek ego, I). It is a consequentialist ethical theory (the end justifies the means) which asserts that right is what is beneficial in the end to the individual (to me). Two of its forms are: Hedonism, according to which pleasure is the ultimate good; and Self-realization, according to which knowledge, power, or rational self-interest, and the promotion of all one’s capacities is the ultimate good. Its method of justification is self-interest.

      This theory, of course, poses a number of problems. There is the issue of conflicting interests, the danger of self-benefit at the expense of others; and in a democratic country like ours, it cannot be the ultimate standard of ethical decisions.

      2. Utilitarianism: This also is a consequentialist theory that asserts that right is what produces the greatest quantity of happiness or pleasure. Its two forms are: Act Utilitarianism, the morality of an action is determined by the quantity of happiness it produces for the most people; Rule Utilitarianism, our actions should be governed by such a rule that produces the greatest happiness for the most people. Its method of justification is empirical evidence.

      The problem of this theory mainly consists in the problem of knowledge. How do I know that my action have produced the greatest happiness for the most people? How can I trust the authenticity of the consequences? What about the minority? Is what is happiness to me, or in my sight, happiness to everybody else?

      3. Altruism: (from the Italian altrui, "someone else). This is the theory of self-sacrifice, of concern for the welfare of others, and as such is opposed to egoism. It is the attitude of selflessness. It is doubtful if this theory is applicable to the majority: for a person cannot be selfless unless this position and attitude produces in him a greater satisfaction and happiness.

      Now, which of the above criteria is applicable in a democratic society? It is my opinion that none of them as a solitude can be applied. A person should consider egoism (not total egoism) for self-development, utilitarianism for society’s benefit and happiness, and altruism that he may not become overly self-interested but will have concern for the welfare of others as well. The blending of these three together will produce an ethical standard applicable in a democratic society; a democratic ethic, which has respect for the ideals, aspirations, and talents of others.

      © Domenic Marbaniang, 1999.

      Christ, Truth, and Politics

      Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? (John 18:38)

      It is interesting to note that the only instance where Christ ever met Pilate in recounted history was at His trial. The ensuing dialogue between both of them is intriguing. It heavily concentrates on the urgency of Truth in a world mismanaged by humans.

      The trial of Christ at Jerusalem reminds us of the trial of Socrates at Athens. Tertullian might have been too quick to retort What indeed has Athens to do with Jerusalem? The unjust sentence of Socrates explicitly points out the fact that the greatest problem with humanity is not that it has not known the truth but that, to the contrary, having understood the ramifications of truth it has suppressed it and chosen to put an end to any voice that speaks on behalf of it.

      Weren’t there at least 80, of the earlier 220 who voted Socrates as innocent, who also later voted for his death penalty? Truth had less significance in the democratic Athens, whose laws Socrates himself highly respected. In Jerusalem as well, though Christ’s sentence was not decided through a Jury based on votes, yet it was the voice of the mob that prevailed against the truth. The obvious truth was that Pilate had found nothing worth condemning in Jesus. Yet, however, he talked of the Passover custom of releasing a prisoner and had Christ whipped despite the evidence that Christ was not a criminal.

      The contrast between Socrates and Jesus is high at the point where Jesus begins to speak of a kingdom beyond this world and of His coming to bear witness to the truth. While for Socrates, truth had to be discovered through rational analysis, Christ claimed to know the truth and be a witness to the truth. While Socrates didn’t find any meaning in a world beyond Athens, Christ talked of a kingdom that transcends all spatial-temporal existence.

      Pilate’s question to Jesus as to what was truth insinuates several meanings. He might have meant Does truth mean anything at all? or What is truth in this situation? or Is truth absolute or relative? or Do politics and truth go together? or Even if there is something called Truth, is there any significance to it? or What truth are you talking about? Whatever the import of the question was, the fact remains that Pilate found nothing appealing in any understanding of truth in a world that relativized everything to suit its selfish purposes.

      Pilate had already become infamous for his hard ways of dealing with mobs. Josephus tells us of Pilate’s aversion of Jewish religious interference in his political moves. For instance, when he brought Roman banners with Caesar’s image on them, the Jews protested. He tried to put them down by deploying his troops only to find out that these people were committed to their religion more than they were committed to Caesar. In another instance, he sent his soldiers dressed in tunics to infiltrate the crowd and beat the offenders with clubs. They had protested against his secular employment of temple treasure. And so, now, when the Jews come to him with Jesus, he straight away dismisses them with the words Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. When they insist that he was a political malefactor, he takes him aside and asks him some questions only to find out that the Jews who once protested against the images of Caesar were now using the name of Caesar to get rid of Jesus. Later, Pilate finds himself accused of enmity against Caesar on grounds that he wished the release of Jesus. Understanding the breadth of experience Pilate had in politics, it is not amazing that his famous question What is truth? comes in response to Jesus’ statement that He was a King and had come into the world to bear witness to the truth. How could one be a King and also bear witness to the truth at the same time. Was the Roman Empire ready for such news?

      Several centuries later, an Italian political philosopher by the name of Machiavelli was to write that a ruler is not bound by traditional ethical norms and is free to use whatever means available for his political purposes. His principles of power politics came to be known as Machiavellianism. Machiavelli proposed that it was better that a ruler be both loved and feared; but, since a combination of both was too difficult, it was desirable that a ruler be feared though not loved. His formulation of such principles was allegedly drawn from studies in Roman political history and the politics of his age. Unquestionably, tyranny and despotism are perfect possibilities in a political system that doesn’t recognize the sovereignty of God. Assuredly, every Nebuchadnezzar still needs a Daniel.

      When questioned about His Kingship, Jesus promptly replied: My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. This clearly recognized that force was indispensable to kingdom. Puzzling, however, is the way Jesus uses the concept of kingdom. He distinguishes between two kinds of kingdom: one, of this world; another, not of this world. He claimed to be the King of the latter with an additional comment that His servants didn’t help Him now because His kingdom was not from here. The word used for ‘world’ here is kosmos (world, order), not aion (age, course). It denotes this very physical world order that we live in. Important is also the phrase not from here, which is to mean that Christ’s kingdom didn’t have its origin or basis in this world. It is from above even as Christ is from above (the second man). And the King of this other-worldly kingdom is a witness of truth. His passion for truth led Him to come to this world confused by raging falsehood and deception. He said that everyone that belonged to the truth heard His voice. He was the

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