Written by Leanna Westerhof. Media by Kayla Morton.
For many of us this upcoming election will be our first opportunity to vote for the next President of the United States. Who else is terrified? Politics is a heavy, confusing topic that sets your head spinning. It is full of hidden meanings, firm opinions, and lots of legislation and numbers. Senator Kyle McCarter visited campus on Friday, February 5, 2016 and LaDue Auditorium was disappointingly not filled to the brim with students. Over 300 students on campus receive the MAP grant and about 30 showed up to plead for their case.
I have to admit that growing up I did not have an interest in politics and only paid attention when they finally did elect the President. However, having attained the age of being a legal adult and living away from home I have realized the importance of caring. Here at Greenville College, sometimes students don’t realize the amount of power they have over what changes could occur here on campus. If everyone raised their voice about an issue that they cared about, and brought it up before GC Senate you could probably affect that change. The higher powers of this institution will listen. At this point you may be thinking, “Yeah, but this is Greenville College, a small college in the corn desert, not the University of Illinois or any other top university you can think of.”
We are the backbone of America, we are the next leaders of the United States and if we don’t learn while we are young how will we ever improve? People say that college is the time for making mistakes, and learning and finding your identity. Let us do that here at Greenville College, answer the call to action. Politics directly affects us as we have learned through the cutting of the MAP grant. Certain political candidates are specifically targeting college students in their campaigns in order to receive their votes, we are not being ignored.
Getting involved in politics is tricky because you can’t get blinded by their inspiring campaign slogans or the amount of press they generate. You have to be an informed voter. You can do that by listening to their promises and seeing what they are doing to back up their promises. Democratic candidate, Bernie Sanders, is targeting college students but what is he promising them? It is your job to find out.
As Christians we have a responsibility to be involved in the world. This 21st century is our garden of Eden and we must tend to it as gardeners, by nurturing, watering and the occasional weeding. The seeds that we plant are by our choice and no others’. What we sow is what we reap. We are set apart as Christians to not conform to the norms of this world, but that does not mean we just stand by and watch as the problems around us unfold and do nothing.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” (ESV) ~1 John 2:15-17
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (ESV)~Romans 12:2
If you don’t know where to start your political investigation or how your views line up with a presidential candidate start by taking this quiz.
