CNSNews.com: Sen. Cory Booker (D.-N.J.), speaking Friday at the Young Leaders Conference sponsored by the Black Church PAC, focused his opening remarks on a verse from St. Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians which says: “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.”
“And I believe, as Philippians 4:13 says, I can do all things, all things, but y’all, I gotta call it out,” said Booker. “It says I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me. Now, Christ does not strengthen you to sit on the sidelines. Christ does not strengthen you to sit on the couch. This is not a spectator sport.”
Booker said this after telling the audience that America is in “a time of moral crisis.”
“I want to let you all know right now that we are in a time of moral crisis,” Booker said. “It is a crisis of virtue. So many of the problems we see are symptoms of that spiritual crisis that we are in.
“And [. . .] we as members of the faith community do not understand that this is the very calling of our time, to deal with the spiritual crisis that we are in,” said Booker.
“I get very frustrated when people want to try to separate this idea of the role of the church and the role of the civic space,” he said. “That is just not true. You can no more divide your own body, because the church is not four walls. The church is the body of Christ.”
Here is a transcript of the part of Booker’s remarks where he discussed Philippians 4:13.
“[Booker]: ‘This is not a spectator sport. Martin Luther King said it best when . . . he said: We have to repent in our day and age, not just for the vitriolic words and violent actions of the bad people, but the appalling silence and inaction of the good people.
‘And so I want to call the faith community together. Because faith without works is:’
Audience: ‘Dead.’
Booker: ‘Faith without works is:’
Audience: ‘Dead.’
Booker: ‘And we need to bring this nation back to life. There is too much death, there is too much darkness, and if the faith community does not lead we will never make it to the Promised Land.’
Our Comment:
Individuals on both sides of the political divide are emphasizing the union of church and state as seen by this message from Senator Booker, a political Democrat. Notice the way in which Booker is inviting the “faith community” to help America in its “time of moral crisis.” He adds, “I get very frustrated when people want to try to separate this idea of the role of the church and the role of the civic space.” Does that statement not sound like a call for uniting church and state?
Prophetic Link:
“When secular rulers unite with ministers of religion to dictate in matters of conscience, then it will be seen who really fear and serve God. When the darkness is deepest, the light of a godlike character will shine the brightest. When every other trust fails, then it will be seen who have an abiding trust in Jehovah. And while the enemies of truth are on every side, watching the Lord’s servants for evil, God will watch over them for good. He will be to them as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.” Acts of the Apostles, page 431.