Who would Jesus vote for?
Over the last four decades, Christian conservatives have overwhelmingly supported the Republican Party. But next year, when Evangelical voters make their way to the polls to help decide the future of this nation, I urge them to ponder, “What would Jesus do?”
There’s one candidate who seems to epitomize the ideals of Christ more so than any other—and he’s not even a Christian.
He’s a Jew, a former carpenter, and an outspoken foe against the scourges of greed, inequality, war, and the destruction of God’s green Earth.
Sound familiar?
It’s not Jesus who I describe, but it very well could be. The man I speak of is Bernie Sanders.
Sanders’ economic platform—one which champions the redistribution of wealth in order to create a more equal and just society—sounds like something straight from the Bible:
“You cannot serve both God and Money.” [Matthew 6:24]
“Truly, I say unto you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” [Matthew 19:23]
“But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you.” [Luke 14:13]
Perhaps the crux of Jesus’ teachings, Sanders is a firm believer in the Golden Rule: “Do unto others…”
“I am motivated by a vision…” Sanders said in a speech at Liberty University. “So beautifully and clearly stated in Matthew 7:12, and it states, ‘So in everything, do to others what you would have them to do to you, for this sums up the war and the prophets.’ That is the golden rule.”
“I am a great fan of Pope Francis,” Sanders said in a CBS interview with John Dickerson. The Vermont Senator and His Holiness agree on two of the biggest challenges this world faces today—wealth inequality and climate change.
Pope Francis has compared the idolatry of money to the idolatry that is expressly forbidden in the Bible.
“We have created new idols,” Francis said. “The worship of the golden calf of old has found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any true humane goal.”
Sanders has reiterated this quote by Pope Francis in front of his sizable, ardent crowds on the campaign trail.
Il Papa is also somewhat of an eco-warrior—because his faith commands him to be.
“We human beings are part of the environment,” Pope Francis said in a speech made to the United Nations in September. “Any harm done to the environment, therefore, is harm done to humanity.”
Sanders has taken a similarly tenacious stance on climate change, calling it the “greatest threat to our national security.” While Republican candidates unanimously label radical Islam the greatest threat to the homeland, Sanders remains steadfast in his claim that it is the environmental destruction caused by the unchecked, relentless greed of man.
It turns out that this “not very religious” socialist Senator may have more in common with Jesus of Nazareth than a preacher, Mike Huckabee or any of the devout Christians that comprise the GOP primary field. Ironically, this secular, Jewish Brooklynite has more in common with the Pope than any of the six Catholic presidential candidates currently running.
If Jesus were alive today (and an American voter), I believe it is safe to say that he would, undoubtedly, #FeeltheBern.
