When Heroes Fall

 

            National news media and personal blogs were clogged with the breaking news last Friday related to David Petraeus. He is the Army general whose leadership had been relied upon by President Bush. He then became Director of the Central Intelligence Agency for President Obama. Brilliant and focused, there are people who believed he was presidential material for the near future.

            In the words of Saturday’s New York Times, “Few imagined that such a dazzling career would have so tawdry and so sudden a collapse.” Some news outlets even pulled up the biblical story of David and Bathsheba as a parallel.

            The news story Friday was that Mr. Petraeus had resigned his position as CIA Director because of an affair. The term “adultery” was used in headlines. And the issue of personal morality and public life came front and center again.

            The point of this short essay is not moralistic piling-on. David and Holly Petraeus have been married 38 years. Their marriage has survived multiple long deployments, generated two children who are now adults, and was regarded as a model for many in the military. I don’t know if they are people of faith. But I can hope and pray for repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation for the Petraeuses.

            The point is, instead, what reactions to the Petraeus story reveal about our moral climate in America. Countless people weighed in to the effect that a sexual affair between Petraeus and the married woman who had written his biography was really nobody’s business and should not have required his resignation.

            On this point, David Petraeus seems to have been more upright than his would-be defenders. The military code under which he served for 37 years still regards adultery as a crime when it stands to “bring discredit upon the armed forces.” Furthermore, an affair is a circumstance that stands to make an intelligence officer susceptible to blackmail.

            But the moral atmosphere of our time is terribly polluted. An ongoing poll in the Los Angeles Times asked if an affair should cost someone his career. When I checked the numbers, 75% said it should not. Of course, they did! Movie stars, athletes, clergy, politicians – countless examples can be cited where careers soared with documented infidelities a matter of public record. Some reports say President Obama asked Petraeus to reconsider his resignation. To quote the New York Times again, a “jaundiced Washington” just might have accepted it.

            Humans care far too much about our cars and hair, image and options; on the other hand, we can evidence far too little concern about our families and commitments, character and destinies. Something is terribly, terribly wrong with that reality! And this episode has the wrongdoer acting more honorably in some ways than those of us who have heard and reacted to the report.

            While praying for the Petraeuses, perhaps all of us should be more aware of our shared identity as sinful people who are vulnerable to temptation.

            “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall” (1 Cor 10:12 NLT).

A Post-Election Reminder

      On Tuesday of this week, the contentious marathon called an American presidential election is scheduled to end. The curious system that has both a popular vote tally and a decisive electoral college total is scheduled to render a verdict in the Obama-Romney contest. Writing 48 hours in advance of Election Day, I can only hope the complexities of voting in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and challenges of other sorts do not leave the outcome in doubt.

If your candidate wins, can you assume that his every promise will be kept promptly and without fail? That his leadership will establish American prestige abroad and prosperity at home? That a stable peace is at hand? That we are secure from terrorism, health pandemic, and partisan gridlock in Washington? You know better. The election of neither candidate will turn the wasteland of our spiritual, economic, and political landscape into the Garden of Eden.

If your candidate loses, will you be demoralized with the thought that all is lost? That his position over the next four years is guaranteed to bring about the collapse of the American experiment, if not the ruin of the world? That he will turn out to be the Anti-Christ who will plunge the world into Armageddon? That it will be time to plan for a return to the Dark Ages or life in a cave? You know better. The election of neither candidate will destroy the country, shatter the global economy, or make it impossible for godly people to seek the Kingdom of God.

Perhaps that last sentence is the key to what believers need to remember late Tuesday night or in the definitive wee hours of Wednesday morning. I love the United States of America and cherish my citizenship here, but it is not my ultimate loyalty or hope for a meaningful life. This wonderful country is not the Kingdom of God. And the Kingdom of God can neither be defeated by any of its failures or be kept from thriving in any corner of Planet Earth.

In the glory days of the Roman Empire, an apostle of Jesus Christ wrote this: “We are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives,” he said. “And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior” (Philippians 3:20 NLT).

A believer’s ultimate allegiance – and hope – is in the reign of God. Her hope is not in a human system, political party, or leader; it is in Jesus Christ. Nothing can take his Savior’s promises from him – nor be so precious to him.

I’ve lived long enough to have heard it before: “This is the most important election in our lifetimes, and everything we hold sacred is at stake!”

Oh, I hope not. While every election is important and has consequences, God will still be sovereign over his universe this Wednesday morning. And nothing so valuable as what he has already given us in Christ will have been gained or lost through whatever happens with Tuesday’s vote.

Between Election Day and Jesus’ Return, honor the dignity of your fellow-human beings. Stay closely connected to your Christian community. Worship God. Show respect to your government. (My paraphrase of 1 Peter 2:17.)