A Pastoral Letter from Bishop Sutton on the Upcoming Election
Episcopal Diocese of Maryland
October 29, 2020
"It is a Christian obligation to vote…cast your vote, not on a partisan basis, not based on your biases, but vote your values. Vote the values of human dignity and equality. Vote the values of the rock on which this country was built. Vote." -Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Michael Curry
Dear Friends,
We cannot separate our faith from our civic duty. Our first allegiance is to the reign of God, and our duty as public citizens is bring the values that we learn from our Scriptures, worship and prayers to bear upon the decisions we make to faithfully perform our civil duty to vote.
I do not speak for all Episcopalians in the Diocese of Maryland. It is not the duty of bishops and priests in our tradition to tell you how to vote – thank God. We have too much respect for individual conscience and the workings of the Holy Spirit to do that. And one of the gifts of being a diocese is that we are a community of love with many points of view.
But we do have shared values. We are above all followers of Jesus, and our Baptismal Covenant (Book of Common Prayer, p. 304-5) determines not only how we are to behave as individual Christians, but also what our duty is to the society at large:
Will you continue in the apostle’s teaching and fellowship?
Will you persevere in resisting evil?
Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
These values are summarized in the Bible when Jesus gave what we call the Summary of the Law: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…and you shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:37-39) In this teaching we are invited to make all our decisions in light of these two great commandments.
My Christian responsibility, then, when I fill out my ballot form is to make choices that demonstrate my love for God and my love for all of my neighbors. It is not to make choices that benefit me, but rather to vote on what would be best for others – my "neighbor."
Many Christians will cast their votes this year based solely on loving the "unborn;" yes, but what about the "born?" I call upon all followers of Jesus to love the "born" by your votes with as much passion as you may have for the "unborn." I’m referring to…
…health care for the born
…alleviating poverty for the born
…reducing violence against the born
…eradicating racism for the born
…protecting the environment for the born
…keeping families intact, not separating them, because of love for the born
…providing a quality education for the born
…creating jobs and the dignity of work for the born
In other words, love is my only concern when I enter the ballot box this year and every year. "Love for my neighbor."
My sisters and brothers, will you bring those values with you as you vote this year?
The Episcopal Church provides excellent resources to help you in your discernment. Please visit the official website of the Church, episcopalchurch.org where you will find many resources, including meditations by Presiding Bishop Curry and guides for having civil conversations in this tense time. It will also link you to the excellent resource "Vote Faithfully: An Election Engagement Toolkit" by the Office of Government Relations.
Almighty God, to whom we must account for all our powers
and privileges: Guide the people of the United States (or of
this community) in the election of officials and representatives;
that, by faithful administration and wise laws, the rights of
all may be protected and our nation be enabled to fulfill your
purposes; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Blessings and peace,
+Eugene
The Right Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton
Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Maryland
