Former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul claims that evangelical Christians are in the wrong when they support war and other heavy-handed tactics to advance America’s national-security interests.
Paul espouses the view that war and strong-arm diplomacy, both part of the United States’ “compulsion” to police the world, are fundamentally unsound policies.
Most disturbingly, he said, is that a vocal minority of the Christian evangelical community is strongly in favor of such foreign policy stances and considers die-hard support of Israel, for instance, to be a litmus test for any political candidate. Asked why some evangelicals have gone down a path of militarism, Paul does not even hazard a guess.
Paul discussed some of his core values as an American and as a human being. He offered insight on the problems facing the nation today, as well as reflections on his three failed presidential campaigns as a libertarian in an interview with FTMDaily‘s Jerry Robinson.
“It’s probably been going on for a hundred years or so, that there’s been a segment of the Christian faith that endorses this violence,” remarked Paul. “It’s one of the discouraging things for me because it’s, to me, so inconsistent. It doesn’t even make any sense to me. I was taught that the New Testament was a ‘new’ testament, and that we didn’t have sacrifices and other things of the Old Testament. My understanding is that Jesus was the Prince of Peace, and that you weren’t out looking for war.”
Though serious about his faith, Paul has never been one to parade it publicly or use it as a tool for political leverage. Instead, he advocates that one’s life and works should stand alone as demonstrations of faith. Robinson concurs that Paul’s belief in peace, free trade and diplomacy are all in step with the gospels as written.
Ultimately, Paul concludes that the cultivation of personal liberty and personal responsibility, both in the financial and physical sense, will help the people of this nation to meet virtually any challenge facing them.
