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Politics as a Calling
By Joseph L. Allen © 1999 Joseph L. Allen |
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A deep ambivalence characterizes the American public's
attitude toward politics. On the one hand, the profession of politician
ranks among those held in lowest esteem today. In a book that Professor
William F. May is currently writing, he will refer to politics as
a "despised profession."1 And so it is, by many. They wouldn't
want a son or daughter to go into that dirty business; they "wouldn't
buy a used car from that person." But however low the general
public's view of politicians may be, we know we need them. We may
speak of politics as a necessary evil and compare it to cleaning
up after your dog. Yet, when conditions in society are bad and we
deeply need for something to be done about it, we see that politicians
are necessary. We may disdain them, but we can't do without them.
Politics can become a life-preserver thrown to a drowning populace.
The necessity of politics raises the question whether, theologically speaking, it can be a calling, and if so, in what ways. Theologically, to have a calling involves both an outer and an inner dimension.2 Outwardly a calling is a certain kind of station or office in life. As Luther saw it, in order for any role or work to be a calling, it must be one that can be helpful to others if it is followed.3 Through it God calls one to serve the need and benefit of the neighbor,4 which is our duty in all of life's relationships. Moreover, a calling is an office whose presence serves the common good, the well-being of the whole community, and not only of individuals within it. This outer sense of a calling has a certain objectivity, in that whether an office can serve the good of others depends on how it is related to people's needs, and not only on what any particular individual thinks about it. Internally, whether an office is a calling depends upon the motivation with which one pursues it. Inwardly, then, one has a calling when she understands that God has called her to this position, this work, specifically as a way of serving the need of the neighbor. If I hold a position that can outwardly speaking be a calling, and yet do not subjectively understand it as a calling, then I shall not pursue it as such. For me it is simply a job. Of these two dimensions, the outward is my primary concern here. Is politics the kind of work that can be a calling? Is it a role that by its nature can be helpful to others--can serve the common good--if it is followed? And if it is, what kind of activity is the political practitioner called to carry on? What is the calling of the politician? |
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