Politics unmasked

by David Bates

Halloween is coming up at the end of this month and you know what that means. Stores are decking the halls with boughs of ghouls, ghosts, and goblins. Obviously these marketplaces aren’t literally stocking up on haunted creatures. Instead they fill the shelves with imaged representations of figures in the form of masks, make-up, and costumes. If you want to look like an evil Frankenstein or a bloody vampire, you simply select a costume and accessories that best suit your intensions.

To me, some of the scariest Halloween costumes are those that depict politicians. I’ve seen presidents Nixon, Clinton, and the current Bush each portrayed in mask form-very terrifying indeed. In fact, thinking about seeing mummy and werewolf trick-or-treaters standing right next to others portrayed as politicians taught me something. And it’s helping me see a new way to approach the people I think about, including those working in our government.

I’ve recently had a dismal view of politics in America. In particular, two current events have made me question whether politicians on both sides of the aisle are doing their jobs and concentrating on the most imminent issues facing this country. You may have heard how some Republicans got flustered about an ad the liberal Moveon.org placed in The New York Times. It portrayed General Patreus as an incompetent component in the Iraqi situation. Also, you may have seen a similar story about how some Democrats became equally ruffled when conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh called veterans who oppose the current conflict in Iraq “phony soldiers.” I kept wishing we could focus on solving bigger issues!

But then one night I was watching The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. It’s a show that isn’t shy when it comes to expressing its satirical perspective on current American politics. Stewart’s guest for the evening was the Vice President’s wife, Lynne Cheney. She has a new book out, “Blue Skies, No Fences.” In it, she tells about growing up in Wyoming.

The interview was full of light-hearted political jabs and exchanges. But in all seriousness, Stewart told Cheney that he appreciated her book because, regardless of how you view politics, it gave perspective to how great and loving people truly are. In particular, Stewart appreciated something she wrote in Dick Cheney’s yearbook: “Dick, you’re the neatest boy I’ve ever known.” This simple quote seemed pretty insightful to Stewart. I saw a new dimension to Mr. Cheney. And it made me realize that there’s a mask politicians wear which hides the universal, humanitarian values that are at truly at their core.

Now, let’s revisit those Halloween costumes I mentioned at the beginning of this blog. Even though a customer can purchase all the amenities of a terrifying wardrobe, the items themselves are lifeless and inanimate. They only appear to be alive and scary when someone decides to play the part. However, when that individual takes off the costume, it no longer has anything to animate it.

This fits perfectly with what I think I should do daily as a Christian Scientist. The Bible states in the first chapter of Genesis that we were all made in the image and likeness of God. It seems to me that it’s our duty to remove any ugly, scary, or untrue characteristics of ourselves by seeing that they’re really not a part of us as God’s creation. We can work on getting rid of anything in our thought that distracts us from the good that really is present in ourselves and others.

The Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy, asks a question in her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,

When will the error of believing that there is life in matter, and that sin, sickness and death are creations of God, be unmasked?

The marginal heading near this passage states, “Creation perfect.” I think it refers to how God views both heaven and earth-and man and woman-as coexistent and coeternal with His perfection.

My perspective on American politics began to shift after watching that particular Daily Show interview. I began to realize how God only knows each and every one of us as His pure, perfect image and likeness-our true selfhood. He doesn’t see a mask and He doesn’t define us based on political affiliations, race, or nationality.

When we view the world through a lens wiped free of false labels, we understand the connection we have to God as His children. And then we understand the connection we share as brothers and sisters. Maybe the title of Chaney’s recent book, “Blue Skies, No Fences,” hints at a larger sense of humanity and God’s role in it.

We live, move and have our being in the pure, clear heavenly skies right here. And because we have that perfect connection to God, we’re not fenced in or limited by any social or political ideology. All of us, at any moment, can remove the masks that would tell us anything to the contrary. And that reveals our true nature, because nothing can actually mask our inherent freedom and perfection as the image and likeness of God.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 22nd, 2007 at 3:14 pm and is filed under New Perspective. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.