Political versus Religious Ideology

After supper that night, grandpa turned to me and said,

“ Boy, I gave you the opportunity to tell me what changes you’d make in our government for one reason, to give you time to think about your ideology of government. A man needs to think about it in terms of the whole thing not just in terms of a particular issue as they arise. If he doesn’t he will end up making himself look foolish in his hypocrisy.

There is one drawback to it though. Some situations may appear to call for a solution that goes against your principles. These times will challenge your beliefs. It will be these times that you will need to question yourself and your beliefs. It will be at these times you will find out whether it is your mind or your heart that rules your decisions.

It is principles that governs our lives, boy, just as it is laws that govern the life of a society and both must be consistent. They need to be consistent or else people will lose faith in them. War will be the result, whether that war be within ourselves or within a society.

People think that you can separate your political ideology from your religious ideology. This is impossibility. Both ideologies go into the make up of your view of the world. Thus, both must find consistency with each other. You can’t declare that empathy is to be the dominant attribute of one ideology without recognizing that it is the dominant attribute of the other ideology.

There is one big difference though. We, as a people, have set up a government that recognizes that we cannot force our religious ideology upon another. This is not true in regards to a political ideology though. By the enactment of laws, we do force an ideology on those who do not agree with that ideology. This is especially true when those ideologies are very polarized as they be in this day.

The problem is not the result of a difference in belief of the core purpose and intent of government, which is to govern a society. The problem begins in the recognition of its role in the lives of the individuals in that society. They both address the issue of freedom. One problem though, we were not given freedom in this society. We were given liberty. These are two different concepts. In fact, freedom can be seen as a double-edged sword also.

You can have freedom by having freedom from responsibility or you can have freedom by the acceptance of responsibility. Liberty, on the other hand, can be defined as the separation of two entities that was united prior in some way. It is also the recognition of the independence of one that was dependent prior.

It is from the concept of liberty that we find the concept of equality as it can be in an imperfect existence. It is by being liberated from our dependency that we join the ranks of the independents. As one of their peers we get to enjoy all the rights and privileges that comes from being liberated from our dependencies.

This is why boy, that possessing a political ideology is important. It is important that you can defend it. It will be from that ideology that will determine whether or not you remain dependent or become independent. You will need the faith that is found in your religious ideology to judge yourself accordingly.”

I just smiled and nodded then started thinking about what my stance was in regards to my other two changes in the Constitution.