Christians in Active Politics: The ‘Why and How’ of Christians’ Active Participation in the Secular Political Affairs

Some Christians may be uncomfortable to think of Jesus as being political, since the word "politics" or "political" has evolved to have negative overtones and connotations in our world today, particularly in Africa, where this monograph from the Department of Theology and Religious Studies of the University of Malawi has originated. Christians often argue that their commission or job description does not include the political process, which is the way a society conducts its public affairs. However Jesus, beginning with his temptation as in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, showed the people who would follow him what it means to do God's will. The third temptation, conceived of in this study as a political temptation for power, is the rational behind the arguments made in this study, which begins by positing that the message of Jesus was not politically neutral and therefore Christianity, as a super culture must be active in all sectors affecting social concerns, if it is to truly be the change agent who Christ believes it to be. It goes on to define and describe what it means to say that the message of Jesus was political and lays out the biblical, theological, ethical, and experiential rationale for Christians' active participation in the secular political arena.