Jesus said “my Kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36), setting his Kingdom apart from the powers of this age, but what does this mean for how Christians engage the realities of war and politics in their time? Are Christians meant to hold political office, work in government, or advocate for political reform? Are Christians allowed to serve in police and military forces? What’s our place in this world? These are difficult questions.
My study has taken me across many Christian thinkers, and one of the thinkers who has stood out to me has been Jerome, who was a fourth century Christian leader and scholar known for his commentaries, historical treatises, theological essays, correspondence, and translation of the Bible into Latin that eventually became known as the Vulgate. I think his wisdom will be useful to us as we try to answer these questions.
So let’s look at some of his writings:
Jerome saw the Christian’s role in this world as centering on their witness. He combined early forms of pacifism with asceticism to urge Christians to lead peaceful lives free from the kind of worldly entanglements that he warned could compromise their witness to this world. So, when addressing the question of Christians serving in the Roman military, Jerome wrote, “when the soldier comes to us, and after his conversion wishes to remain in the military service, we tell him to be content with his wages and not to do violence or accuse falsely” (Letter 82, to Theophilus, Bishop of Alexandria). His advice to soldiers is a direct reference to Luke 3:14, where John the Baptist gives similar counsel to soldiers regarding ethical concerns over extortion, false accusations, brutality, and oppression. In other words, Jerome acknowledges the presence of soldiers within the Christian community, but calls on them to follow the Lord’s way. He recognizes that Christians are sent out into this world, but cares about how they go into the world.
Jesus said “Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as innocent as doves. Beware of them, because they will hand you over to local courts and flog you in their synagogues. You will even be brought before governors and kings because of me, to bear witness to them…” (Matthew 10:16–18, CSB). Jerome’s wisdom appears to draw on what Jesus taught here. Christians are sent out as sheep among wolves, who are here identified with both the religious and political powers of this world, which requires that they go into the world in both wisdom and innocence. Jesus commissioned his Church to “go into all the world and preach the good news” (Mark 16:15), which means we cannot withdraw from this mission “because of his appearing and his kingdom” (2 Timothy 4:1, CSB). Jerome’s answer maintains the natural tension between “innocence” and “wisdom”: like sheep, the Christian is free to enter any realm, but only to the extent permitted by Jesus’ command, and, in so doing, must be innocent, refusing to compromise his rule for the religious or political interests of others, and must be shrewd, acting as his emissaries to testify on his behalf to the powers of this world. Like Daniel or Nehemiah serving in political courts, we are positioned by God to accomplish his work. We’ve seen this illustrated throughout history. People like William Wilberforce, who was used by God to peacefully end slavery throughout the British empire, stand out as shining examples of lambs sent out among the wolves.
Jerome also believed the Christian’s role as Jesus’ witnesses required delivering forceful critiques against both religious and political powers. He criticized them for their moral corruption and sternly warned Christians against such compromises. When talking about holding political office, he warned that “it is idle to boast of the purple robe when you are held captive in the disgraceful service of sin” (Letter 14, to Heliodorus). Christians must guard against the kind of entanglements that could destroy their witness, causing “the salt to lose its saltiness and be cast out to be trampled upon” (Matthew 5:13). In this role, Christians are obligated to be God’s prophetic voice to the nations, delivering forceful critiques against every injustice without fear of retribution or recrimination. We – the Church – must take up the cause of the oppressed, the weak, and the vulnerable, and advocate for their justice even at great personal cost.
Let’s consider some of Jerome’s fierce witness against religious and political corruption:
- “How many are there who buy estates with the money of the poor and neglect the hungry in their very midst?” (Commentary on Isaiah 58:7)
- “In your law courts, it is the glitter of gold that wins the case, not the justice of the cause.” (Against the Pelagians, Book I)
- “The judges themselves are guilty of corruption, and by their decisions they pervert justice.” (Letter 60, to Heliodorus)
- “The world is going mad with vices and crimes, and yet the bishops are silent or, if they reprove anything, are immediately reproved by the mob and by the people who want to live in the same manner as they have been living.” (Letter 14, to Heliodorus)
- “The very titles of power are filled with pride. Men are called ‘lords’ and ‘excellencies’ and ‘serenities,’ and they show themselves off with insignia of which they ought rather to be ashamed.” (Letter 52, to Nepotian)
Jerome testified against both religious and political corruption side-by-side because he saw the place of the Christian as being God’s witnesses on earth. He tackled judicial corruption for financial gain as idolatry. He exposed pride in political office. He rebuked the silence of bishops right alongside the wickedness of the mob. His example shows us that Christians are to “cry out loudly, and don’t hold back; raise your voice like a trumpet and tell my people their transgression…” (Isaiah 58:1) and that we are to be “filled with power by the Spirit of the Lord, with justice and courage, to proclaim to Jacob his rebellion and to Israel his sin” (Micah 3:8, CSB).
How Jerome framed the Christian’s role as witnesses to the nations is helpful for understanding our place in this world. We are to be God’s prophetic voice to the nations, proclaiming the good news of Jesus to the oppressed, the weak, and the vulnerable, and calling on everyone to turn from injustice to the righteousness of God.
Principle Stated
We began by asking how Christians should engage with the realities of war and politics in their time. We asked if Christians are meant to hold political office, work in government, or advocate for political reform? We asked if Christians are allowed to serve in police and military forces? In short, we’re asking what’s our place in this world?
Now our task is to synthesize a principle that can answer these questions.
Here’s the formula I’m using to construct my principles:
Step one – clearly state the core idea:
Our core idea is that “Christians are sent out to testify of God’s justice and dominion.“
Step two – define the scope:
We are sent out for this purpose “in all innocence and wisdom among the religious and political powers of this world.”
Step three – justify the idea:
We must be God’s witnesses “because of Jesus’ appearing and kingdom” (a reference to Paul’s reason in 2 Timothy 4:1 why Timothy must “preach the word”).
Step four – formulate the principle:
Putting these together, we state our principle that “Christians are sent out in all innocence and wisdom among the religious and political powers of this world to testify of God’s justice and dominion because of Jesus’ appearing and kingdom.”
Here’s how this principle answers our questions:
“Are Christians meant to hold political office, work in government, advocate for political reform or serve in police and military forces?” We are called into every realm of life to bear witness to God’s justice and dominion. Christians must testify to God’s justice and dominion by maintaining our innocence with all wisdom and discernment, faithfully navigating the unique challenges we face in the realms we occupy. We must never compromise our witness for the sake of this world’s powers because we believe in Jesus’ return and coming Kingdom. This means that we must understand there are spaces in any given time and context where we will struggle to enter. For example, the Roman army was largely a police force, allowing many soldiers to serve without forcing them into violence. Today that is not the case. While there are military forces that allow for non-combatant roles, not all forces do. No political power has the right to command God’s people to take actions that violate the Lord’s decrees, yet they will certainly try, which means there are roles that Christians cannot occupy without coming into direct conflict with worldly powers. These are roles that God has the right to lead his servants into according to his purposes, but, they are not roles that Christians should take up on their own.
“What’s the Christian’s place in this world?” We enter this world as witnesses of God’s rule and dominion in Christ. We take up the cause of the oppressed, the weak, and the vulnerable as we advocate for justice on their behalf even at great personal cost. We are God’s prophetic voice to the nations. We are those who embody and exhibit the righteousness of God that is from faith to faith to everyone. This means that our place in this world is not to possess the world, but to call the world back to God through Christ. Wherever God leads us, whether as teachers, police officers, governors, or as laborers, bankers, or engineers, we occupy these realms as Kingdom emissaries. Any willing compromise of Jesus’ decrees in these realms constitutes a betrayal of his Kingdom.
So, now it’s your turn: what do you think?
Share in the comments below!
A Dedicated Faith 