The other day I was reading one of the hundreds of articles posted during the United Methodist General Conference. As I read the article, I frequently ran across the term “far right.” The more I read and tried to understand the writer’s perspective, I discovered he was referring to me; not by name but generally.
Why did the author use the term “far right?” It was clear that it was employed in a pejorative sense to label certain people who had not just a differing opinion, but an opinion which, in that writer’s view, was out of touch and extreme.
So what does it mean to say that I and many others are “far right” in our views?
I believe the in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. I think that they contain everything the is necessary for faith and godliness. I would not say that I believe everything in the Bible is true, but that what it contains is the truth when interpreted in the way the author(s) intended it to be understood.
I believe a person who has submitted themselves to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, has an obligation to read and understand the Scriptures and to receive those words as binding. That implies that I do my best to interpret the passage in light of the historical and cultural context of the time and translating that to our own time.
In that way, we can appropriate the Scriptures of our faith in a way that is consistent and brings glory to God. If that makes me “far right,” then I guess that is where I will stand.
I also believe that when I became an elder in The United Methodist Church took vows to uphold the doctrine and teachings of the church; that pledge meant something. The bishop asked if I had read and studied the doctrines of the church and agreed that they were in line with the teachings of Scripture. I promised to keep those rules, not because I feared punishment, but for the sake of my conscience.
If that understanding of my vows and commitments to the church makes me “far right,” again here I stand.
In reality, I don’t see those positions as far right, except as people try to distinguish people from one another in a political way. I see them as standing in the center of faith and practice.
In that sense, to be “far right” means I make Scripture speak to things it never intended to address and expect people to adhere to rules or laws that go beyond the plain sense of Scripture (among other things). It also means I expect people to believe more doctrine than our Articles of Religion say, and that violators should be held accountable for any infringement, intentional or not.
In the same way, I believe far left means that I put little stock in what ancient writings say. They are mere suggestions about how to order our lives. Our polity and promises, likewise are simple ideas on how to get along in big tent of Methodism. My vows just state my intentions up to that point, and I am free to break them if I deem them unjust (or inconvenient).
Maybe I am naive, but I think we should limit labels like far right and far left and faithfully live and teach the Scriptures we have received and the vows we took.