I've been mulling over what to say and how to write on this topic for weeks now. And here we are, the eve of Election Day, and I'm only now trying to put thoughts to page. I'm not sure how cohesive these thoughts will be, but nevertheless, I wanted to try and write something.
I'm sure it doesn't come as a surprise that I made a connection to embodiment and voting, but I was especially inspired when I began reading The Liturgy of Politics: Spiritual Formation for the Sake of Our Neighbor by Kaitlyn Schiess. Truthfully, I haven't read the whole book yet as life has been a big chaotic (anyone else?). However, I was struck by how embodiment was woven in from the beginning, and as I flipped through and skimmed the rest of the book it appears to remain that way in its entirety. I plan to finish the book soon, but in the meantime I've been reflecting on what it means to engage politics as an embodied practice, particularly as we seek to be embodiments of God and act out of love for God, self, neighbor, and world.
At one point in the beginning of The Liturgy of Politics the author states that "our lived theology has political consequences." (p.16) In other words, who we believe God is and what God is up to shapes who we are and what we are up to - in and outside of the voting booth. Unfortunately, sometimes actions don't actually line up with who we say God is - like acting out of fear or hate, instead of trust or love. Or worse (in my opinion), we believe God to be someone who creates division or encourages an "us and them" mindset and then act in alignment with that. All of these have political consequences, whether positive or negative.
There are entire degree programs, books, traditions, debates, and more that are focused solely on who God is. Without getting too deep into "teacher mode" or writing something overly academic, I firmly believe who we understand God to be should shape who we are and what we are up to. But that does require us to know, and intentionally be aware of, who we believe God to be. And, as a Christian, my understanding of who God is and what God is up to requires part of that understanding to come from the life of Jesus. And I don't know if you've read any of the Gospels lately (no judgies if you haven't), but Jesus (God made flesh) gives us some pretty great examples of what our lives should look like. We don't have to wonder what God would do if God were a human because we can see exactly what that would look like in the life of Jesus as told in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Jesus is the embodiment of God.
So, here are some highlights of what Jesus is up to across the four Gospels:
Bringing good news to the poor
Spending time with those on the margins of society
Welcoming all people, but particularly strangers, refugees, women, children, widows, etc.
Helping bring the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven (which is pointed to as an ongoing process)
Giving up power instead of holding onto it (power in powerlessness and power for, not power over)
Breaking religious taboos
Creating community...
The list could go on.
And if we are people made in Gods image, we are, in part, called to reflect the person of Jesus in our own lives. This means our lives should look something like that list above. There's a whole lot more I could say here about God's identity and activity by talking about God being united in diversity, inherently communal, self-giving, and Love itself. But I don't want to stray too far into theological discourse. My point here is this: as people made in God's image we are called to be embodiments of God's character and partner with the work God is up to. And, as seen in the person of Jesus (among other places), God is up to loving others well, creating community, releasing oppression, and creating human flourishing. So, our engagement in politics, local and national, should also be shaped by these things. And the results of these things should bring good news to our communities - to our neighbors. Our political engagement is an embodied practice in that it is an embodiment of how we our love of neighbor.
Now, I'm not saying if we do this everything will be all sunshine and rainbows. I'm not saying this is the only way we love our neighbors. But it is certainly one of them and is an aspect of being an engaged part of the community, which I believe is a part of embodying the image of God.
There's one other part of this I want to mention, which Hillary McBride talks about in her book "Practices for Embodied Living: Experiencing the Wisdom of Your Body." She writes about how we must remember our bodies are ourselves, how no body is more worthy of care or respect than another, and when we remember this we remember our whole selves and can "begin to build systems that support the development and flourishing of whole people. The construction of power and oppression is not only about bodies; it also impacts our lived realities." (p.107) We engage as whole, embodied people. We must remember all our neighbors who are whole, embodied people, too. And we must seek flourishing for each other, not just ourselves as it impacts each of our lived realities. Part of this means changing our definitions of power to be power for, not power over - just like we see in the example of Christ. When we do this, "there is opportunity for real connection, the kind that dissolves these bodily hierarchies..." (McBride,108). Or, as Kaitlyn Schiess says in The Liturgy of Politics, "Good practices lead us in the direction of seeking justice and defending the oppressed, goals with unavoidably political dimensions."
So, on this Election Day Eve, may we choose to be embodied people who remember our embodied neighbors. May we love them well through the choices we make, remembering that we do not exist just for ourselves but for each other. And may we continually hold in mind the God who became flesh and showed us a better way to live - one that is full of life, full of love, and full of flourishing for all people.
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