What I find so encouraging today is that so many voters, especially young voters, seem less concerned with the race of a candidate than that candidate's qualifications for public office.  Barack Obama is clearly one of the most talented American politicians to emerge in recent history, but there are still those who are firmly convinced that he can be defeated on the basis of racial hatred and unreasoning prejudice.  David reminds us all that darkness is not just a property of skin cells.

Wow, David-Ben, I'm really gonna have to strongly disagree with you on the segregation thing.  What we clearly need is stronger integration, and the Christian church is the way to do it.  I would agree with you that reverse racism is not the answer, though.  What we need to do is just stop thinking about peoples skin color.

Thats why it annoys me when people ask me "Would'nt it be cool to have a black president.?"  I don't care if the guys skin is the color of a tangerine.  I'm not gonna vote for the one of the most liberal politicians.  Besides, I don't think I could vote for a guy named b. hussein-osama given the state of the country right now, or maybe ever.

Nor does anyone have a say in the color of their skin, their parents, their childhood home, or any number of other superficial factors that too many people seem to think are relevant to choosing a leader.  A sizable number of Americans will vote on the basis of such characteristics, and the news media make a big deal about how such factors influence voting.  I think that they make such a big deal that many Americans feel no shame in giving such shallow thinking as an excuse for their voting preferences.  It is scary, but it is also true that a large number of voters take their obligation seriously.  We can only hope that those are the voters--whether liberal, conservative, or neutral--who overwhelm the others.  I am hopeful that voters can get beyond the visceral reactions this time, but the drumbeat of smear has just begun.  Expect what you see here from David (a little less blatantly racist, I hope) to be served up many more times before November.

Reminds me of the "It's a sin to vote for Clinton" line.

Of course it's as misplaced with Obama as it was for Clinton. Not that voting itself holds some moral quality, but that the issues surrounding and motivating that vote do indeed hold moral qualities. Government, as the Bible describes it, has a very specific purpose to it. As such we must find leaders who will fulfill that very specific job description. As such the question becomes: What's the purpose of government?

Scripturally the purpose of government is very very specific purpose. It isn't to save us gas money, or help the poor, or stop terrorism and make sure our troops come home safe, frankly. The purpose of government is to uphold justice and godliness. Look up 1 Timothy 2:2, and Romans 13. No mention of economics or the lives of soldiers. For Christians this purpose should be the fore-front of our decision making to vote on the figurehead of this nation. God says this is the purpose of government then we elect leaders to fulfill the role as such. Will he uphold justice? All other considerations, including arbitrary physical ones (one of the best Presidents was in a wheelchair), fall away. This is not to say issues are not important (though some issues the government shouldn't even be involved with, but that the issue of justice takes precedence, especially for us Christians.

So is it a sin to vote for Obama? I think it is. Not for such mundane and arbitrary reasons as race or a man's name. I don't think Obama is anymore evil then every other fallen human being, or that it's an inherent sin for voting for him. The sin is in our priorities. If they don't align with God's priorities, it is indeed sinful.

Will Obama uphold justice? I don't think so. One can feel comfortable basing this on the issue of abortion: The killing of those who have commited no crime that warrants it is indeed unjust. Obama has made his stand clear, and has shown a very unBiblical attitude to the issue of pregnancy. If one can't uphold such a basic concept, while claiming to follow the Bible the whole way, then I have no confidence in Obama's ability as a leader who upholds justice. Leaders should lead, not pander to the crowd.

"Expect what you see here from David (a little less blatantly racist, I hope) to be served up many more times before November."

What I said wasn't rascist at all, so you can step off.

David, sorry for the confusion.  Note that "David Ben-Ariel" is the author of the OP and the "David" that I was referring to.  Not you.  In the future, I shall refer to him as "David-Ben" so as not to create confusion with you.

EB

Scripturally the purpose of government is very very specific purpose. It isn't to save us gas money, or help the poor, or stop terrorism and make sure our troops come home safe, frankly. The purpose of government is to uphold justice and godliness. Look up 1 Timothy 2:2, and Romans 13. No mention of economics or the lives of soldiers.

I looked up both passages you cite.  Both deal with our duty as Christians

"At the same time, we cannot cherry pick which citizens we will concern ourselves with

The first sentence is that we may pray for those in government that are in authority to run the nation. Why need we pray for kings, or presidents, or congressmen? We pray so that they may do what God wants them to do, and that is for the government to provide it's citizens with "peace and quiet" so that we can live in "goliness and holiness".

Or, we pray so that we can keep our focus on love instead of all this other gobbly-gook.  I