Beyond “Chik-fil-a” Politics

I have had glasses since I was two years old. I do not know life without them, and unfortunately most of the kids I grew up with didn’t know life with them. I was teased all the time. My teammates in basketball would snap the strap of my goggles against my head and point out my “big” eyes because of the thick lenses. But the most common and hurtful insult to me was being called “four eyes.” It made me feel alienated.

Alienation, to me, means more than being separated or cast off. The root word says it all: alien. I was foreign, a stranger, of a different species, inhuman. To alienate someone is a very dangerous thing. It does more than distinguish — it dehumanizes.

Sadly, this was one of the first things that came to my mind when asked to write about God and politics. I am not versed on the intersection of theology and politics. My interests are in philosophy and religion. My head is in the clouds, and I just hope my feet are somewhat on the ground. But I, like many reading this, have felt the repercussions of God and politics.