It was weird seeing my face on a 27 x 40 poster. When I went to give my campaign speech I was wearing dress clothes that I’d bought at Goodwill. My “campaign manager” said I did a great job, being witty and somehow confident. I didn’t win. Still, my stint in politics was not yet over. The next year one of the presidential candidates asked me to be his campaign manager. I took on the job with gusto, and, claiming no credit, I would note that he won. So where was all of this politicking going on? At the United Methodist Church Conference Youth Council. I ran for council secretary one year, and lost. I kept the poster with my face on it for a few years but the ink faded and the paper was cheap, and besides, I’ve never considered myself much to look at.
Thinking about the resources allocations (I didn’t pay for the poster—couldn’t have if I’d wanted to), I have to wonder about the priorities of the church. Of course, it was only much later, after I’d gained significant seminary experience myself, that I realized just how political a job “ministry” is. Yes, I had students while I taught in seminary, already strategizing on how to become bishop. It was a political game. Such games are no fun without power. And money is power. So maybe the Western Pennsylvania Conference was funding some learning experiences on the impressionable minds of the young. It just took me a few extra years to catch on. (Some things never change.)
I dislike politics. Even now I wouldn’t feel compelled to do anything beyond voting my conscience were it not the clear and obvious danger that we’re in, courtesy of what used to be a conservative political party. Any party that can’t keep a demagogue from receiving its nomination has embraced fascism and that’s a perilous road to travel as Germany and Italy discovered about a century ago. My dislike of ecclesiastical politics certainly played a large role in my decision not to pursue ordination. I’ve been a church insider, and what happens at board meetings? Politics. The person in the pew often doesn’t realize just how political religion is. I learned Robert’s Rules of Order from church meetings. My nomination to elected office in the organization led nowhere. I was left wondering if there’s anywhere left that politics don’t apply. The print on the poster faded. The very last time I unrolled it, it was completely blank.
