Clement And The Election

"It is surely ore right and reverent for us, my brothers, to obey God than to follow people whose insolent unruliness has made them the ringleaders of this odious rivalry."(28)
When I read this, I immediately thought of the 2016 election and the unfortunate candidates, one of which we will soon be calling our leader. The words "insolent unruliness" and "odious rivalry" are ones that I think characterize Donald trump and Hillary Clinton quite well. While their are people on both sides of the divide; Hillary supporters who think Trump is the scum of the Earth, die hard Trump supporters who are certain the United States will crash and burn under to reign of Clinton. I think it is dangerous to have so much faith in either candidate. Clement says to lend ourselves to the ideologies of one "who [is] plunging into strife and sedition to divert us from what is right" is  not just a risk but running towards "the most deadly peril"(28). This whole election, campaign on both sides have been the picture of strife and division. Neither leader is directing this country towards what is "kindhearted" or "innocent." Neither leader is concerned with directing this country back towards the will of God. While this is a great reminder to Christians that we cannot put our faith in a human leader, look at what the election has done to interpersonal relationships. People have become consumed with defending their candidate and amidst their allegiance to a political party have let loving the people around them, including fellow Christians take a back seat. Clement gives us a much needed reminder that our job is to obey God above all else, to be kind hearted and innocent, and to "ally ourselves with those who work for peace out of genuine devotion, and not with men who only pay lip service to it"(28).

I commented on Hannah's and Nate's!