"Libtard"

I don't know if others should call me "conservative" or "liberal." I believe I am neither, and I'm quite confident in that belief, despite the fact that many of my friends/family are extremely conservative and a number of my friends are extremely liberal. I classify myself as a moderate and a libertarian, and I don't really need others to label me.

I try to step away from political conversations that I know will rile me up and tempt me to be ugly.

When I was at SAGU, I was often labeled as "too liberal" and "having unbiblical beliefs."

When I was at EMU, I was often called "too conservative" and "closed minded." I wrote a political piece for our school newspaper, and some old man who read it kept emailing me (and when I stopped responding, writing letters and leaving them in my school mailbox) to try and convince me I was wrong and that if I were older, I'd have his beliefs, and that my conservative beliefs were a result of young ignorance.

Whatever.
I do not swallow propaganda that is presented to me, and I don't merely go along with popular beliefs.

All I know is that I love Jesus and I let that influence the beliefs I have, no matter what others call me or what others tell me.

His example was one of love and grace and mercy.
He came to serve, not to be served.
He was utterly selfless and laid down His life for each one of us.
He did not come to earth and try to change the political climate, even though that's the kind of Messiah the Jews were looking for.
But I digress...

I don't know if I'm right or wrong about some political issues.
There's a lot I don't know. There's a lot YOU don't know.

But here's what I DO know: name calling based on political beliefs is unkind, rude, desperate, and low.

Truly, folks, I am sick and tired of seeing people called names because of their beliefs, and frankly, I am tired of being called names.

Especially, I'm tired of seeing Christians call people names just because those people believe two committed gay men should be able to get legally married, or because they don't believe in the death penalty, or because they are pacifists.

And I am tired of seeing some of my liberal Christian friends calling conservatives names because they believe that abortion is wrong, or that the government should not be responsible for providing certain services, or that the Second Amendment gives us the right to keep and bear arms.

I am tired of the ignorance and inflammatory speech from everyone but especially from those who profess to follow Jesus. And I know I fall into this trap, too...this post is a reminder to me, too, to remember how it feels to be harshly judged and called names because of politics.

Shane Claiborne writes in Jesus for President, “The Christian icon is not the Stars and Stripes but a cross-flag, and its emblem is not a donkey, an elephant, or an eagle, but a slaughtered lamb.” 

So why do we let others' political beliefs offend us so much that we stoop to name calling and insulting? 
I don't know. 

But here's what I do know: I just can't see Jesus calling someone a "libtard" simply because that person has certain beliefs.