And then again....
I did.
Yup. Couldn't not do it after all that posturing. Oh I felt the way I said I felt, and then after being admonished by everybody and their uncle, I felt differently. I don't know what any of that means. The practical output of the situation was that my manager OKd me to take my lunch early so I could go vote. Ironically, everything turned out exactly as it would have had I not voted. Arizona was easily in the Bush camp. All the ballot issues went exactly the way I figured they would, though in truth that is no clarvoyance because they were all either very easy calls, or valence propositions that nobody was actually against (basically maintinence laws of various sorts). The only one that I felt stongly about was known as "Proposition 200". It required presentation of US citizenship when registering to vote.
So...I did what I think I always knew I was going to do. I'd written it off, said I didn't like either of them. But when it came down to it, I felt an overpowering compulsion...that I could not, not speak my piece, raise my voice. I could not just...do nothing. I accept the Orthodox theology which suggests that the best thing to do is probably not vote at all, because voting is contrary to the Orthodox understanding that an earthly state is meant to be run by a Christian King. For the people, not the rulers but the ruled, to speak in the governing of the state is, in fact, wrong. But we live where we live. And we do not act in defiance of the law of the land in voting, but rather at it's invitation. America, is in its way, an abberition that spread to the rest of the world with the irresistable lure of greater personal freedom for the masses, where before everyone answered to some manner of a king.
But I did not make it that way. Though I was rased to cherish it, though we are raised to cherish many things which are Un-holy. Still, we are where we are. Is it wrong for Christians to vote? I don't feel wrong for having done it. But that means nothing, my feelings have been a poor guide to Godliness as long as I can remember. In a purely mechanical analysis, I must say, in retrospect, that yes, the act itself is wrong. And in this moment, I regret having done it, but damn...it was a strong draw. It was like...like having gravity pull you towards it. The system itself is wrong. It is ours to submit to authority, not shape that authority. Rulers are chosen by God, not by man, and for man to play at being God is an act of rebellion. God forgive me.
I'm sorry I couldn't see it before, I was blinded by my desire for change.
I am sorry.
Alexey the Sinner.
Yup. Couldn't not do it after all that posturing. Oh I felt the way I said I felt, and then after being admonished by everybody and their uncle, I felt differently. I don't know what any of that means. The practical output of the situation was that my manager OKd me to take my lunch early so I could go vote. Ironically, everything turned out exactly as it would have had I not voted. Arizona was easily in the Bush camp. All the ballot issues went exactly the way I figured they would, though in truth that is no clarvoyance because they were all either very easy calls, or valence propositions that nobody was actually against (basically maintinence laws of various sorts). The only one that I felt stongly about was known as "Proposition 200". It required presentation of US citizenship when registering to vote.
So...I did what I think I always knew I was going to do. I'd written it off, said I didn't like either of them. But when it came down to it, I felt an overpowering compulsion...that I could not, not speak my piece, raise my voice. I could not just...do nothing. I accept the Orthodox theology which suggests that the best thing to do is probably not vote at all, because voting is contrary to the Orthodox understanding that an earthly state is meant to be run by a Christian King. For the people, not the rulers but the ruled, to speak in the governing of the state is, in fact, wrong. But we live where we live. And we do not act in defiance of the law of the land in voting, but rather at it's invitation. America, is in its way, an abberition that spread to the rest of the world with the irresistable lure of greater personal freedom for the masses, where before everyone answered to some manner of a king.
But I did not make it that way. Though I was rased to cherish it, though we are raised to cherish many things which are Un-holy. Still, we are where we are. Is it wrong for Christians to vote? I don't feel wrong for having done it. But that means nothing, my feelings have been a poor guide to Godliness as long as I can remember. In a purely mechanical analysis, I must say, in retrospect, that yes, the act itself is wrong. And in this moment, I regret having done it, but damn...it was a strong draw. It was like...like having gravity pull you towards it. The system itself is wrong. It is ours to submit to authority, not shape that authority. Rulers are chosen by God, not by man, and for man to play at being God is an act of rebellion. God forgive me.
I'm sorry I couldn't see it before, I was blinded by my desire for change.
I am sorry.
Alexey the Sinner.
posted by Alexios at 2:58 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home