143. Christians, Libertarians, and Voting: The Golden Rule Test

Are you unknowingly supporting tyranny every time you cast a ballot? This provocative question lies at the heart of our latest Bad Roman podcast episode featuring Jeb Smith, a thought-provoking writer challenging conventional wisdom on voting.

Christians, libertarians, or those who identify as both, often assume our civic duty includes heading to the polls. But what if participating in elections actually contradicts our core values? Let’s explore why voting might be fundamentally at odds with both Christian teachings and libertarian principles.

The Paradox of Voting

Jeb Smith argues that voting creates an inherent contradiction for both libertarians and Christians:

“If libertarianism is a live and let live attitude... voting is of course, the opposite of that. If libertarians get to that magic 51% and force their ways on everyone else, you’re no longer allowing Democrats and Republicans to have their way.”

This highlights a key tension: how can we claim to value individual liberty while simultaneously trying to impose our will on others through the ballot box?

For Christians, a similar dilemma emerges:

“God does not impose his way on us. He gives us the chance to choose him as Lord.”

That’s consistent with scripture:

• Matthew 7:12 – “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

• Luke 22:25–26 – “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them… But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.”

By voting to enact laws that align with our religious beliefs or choosing the lesser of two evils, are we not contradicting this core tenet of free will and Jesus’ call to serve rather than rule?

The Corrupting Nature of Political Power

Our discussion revealed how the very act of seeking political office often attracts individuals with troubling personality traits:

“The traits to make a successful politician are right on with what psychopaths are. There’s a large percentage of politicians and business owners… who are actually psychopaths.”

This sobering reality forces us to question whether participating in such a system aligns with our values. Are we inadvertently empowering those least suited to wield authority over others?

Reframing Our Civic Engagement

Rather than viewing voting as our primary means of effecting change, Jeb suggests a radical shift in perspective:

“One thing I won’t be doing is voting or attempting to force my way on others. Instead, I will follow the Golden Rule and treat others the way I want them to treat me.”

This approach challenges us to find more direct, personal ways of living out our values and influencing our communities. It asks us to lead by example rather than coercion.

3 Ways Christians Can Engage Without Voting

Stepping away from the ballot box doesn’t mean apathy — it can actually free us to pursue more Christlike, effective forms of engagement:

1. Invest in Relationships

• Instead of dividing over red vs. blue, break bread with neighbors across the spectrum.

• Real conversations build bridges where political shouting matches burn them.

2. Serve in Voluntary Community Initiatives

• Join or start projects that meet needs without waiting for government programs — food co-ops, mutual aid, church-led charity.

• This models the early church in Acts 2:44–45.

3. Teach and Model the Alternative

• Share resources that explain why voting contradicts both the Golden Rule and libertarian non-aggression.

• Encourage others to question whether the ballot box truly aligns with Christ’s way of peace.

For more on how the early church lived differently from the empire, see our episode on Tertullian and political disengagement and our blog post on No King but Christ.

What We Learned About Voting and Values

This episode challenges us to critically examine our assumptions about civic duty and political engagement. It asks us to consider whether our current methods of participation truly align with our deepest held beliefs.

For Christians, it prompts reflection on how we can best emulate Christ’s example of servant leadership and respect for individual choice. For libertarians, it pushes us to more fully embrace the non-aggression principle — even when it comes to the ballot box.

Ultimately, this conversation invites us all to reimagine what responsible citizenship looks like in a world where voting may do more harm than good. It challenges us to find more authentic, impactful ways of living out our values and contributing to the betterment of society.

Listen to the full episode to explore: how might stepping away from voting change your approach to civic engagement? What new opportunities for positive influence might emerge?

Let’s continue this crucial dialogue and work toward a more voluntary, compassionate society one that truly respects the dignity and autonomy of every individual.

🤝Connect with JEB SMITH:

• Jeb's Books:

  • Defending the Middle Ages: Little Known Truths About the Crusades, Inquisitions, Medieval Women, and More

  • Missing Monarchy: Correcting Misconceptions About The Middle Ages, Medieval Kingship, Democracy, And Liberty

  • The Road Goes Ever On and On : A New Perspective on J. R. R. Tolkien and Middle-earth

  • Defending Dixieland

• Fanmail and Hate mail via email: jackson18611096@gmail.com

• Jeb's Article: Is Libertarianism Consistent with Voting?

Episode Timestamps:

(0:41) Libertarianism and Voting Consistency

• “Live and let live” vs. majority rule

• Concern: Christians voting to place rulers over neighbors

(1:51) Guest Update: Jeb Smith’s Recent Work

• Defending Dixie’s Land reissued by Shotwell Publishing
  Articles with Libertarian Institute and Libertarian Christian Institute

(2:50) Libertarian Voting Paradox

• Why informed libertarians still vote

• Habit, protest voting, and misunderstandings of libertarian philosophy

(4:04) Historical Voting Patterns and Motivations

• Jeb’s past protest votes (Libertarian)

• Reflection: voting often unexamined as a social default

(5:43) Libertarian Electoral Success and Philosophical Consistency

• If Libertarians won: risk of imposing on dissenting minorities

• Tension with non-aggression and consent

(7:34) Voting as Legitimizing Corrupt Systems

• Withholding participation vs. “lesser of two evils”

• Note on turnout; argument for withdrawing support

(9:40) The Nature of Political Power and Authority

• Critique: democratic “authority” without true consent

• Coercion mechanisms: taxation, enforcement, military

(12:07) Fear and Coercion in State Power

• Fear as unifying tool of large states
  Thought experiment: local secession and central pushback

(14:37) Christian and Libertarian Approaches to Governance

• “Make the state Christian/libertarian” still relies on force

• Emphasis on consent and free will

(19:06) Democracy and Bullying

• Framing: democracy as tax-funded coercion

• Politics alters behavior; hardens attitudes

(22:23) Political Involvement and Dehumanization

• Media demonization cycles

• Immigration/ICE example raised as moral test of neighbor-love

(27:01) Disengagement from Politics

• Unplugging from news → lower stress, clearer thinking

• Better interpersonal relationships

(30:28) Voting as Participation in War

• Casting a ballot likened to joining a conflict of control

• Incompatibility with libertarian non-aggression and Jesus’ kingdom ethic

(34:10) Secularization of Christianity through Politics

• Enforcing faith via state power vs. Christ’s model of service/consent

• Biblical concern: another “king” between us and neighbor

(36:16) The Corrupting Nature of Political Power

• Campaign incentives: compromise and ambition

• Preference for servant leadership over power-seeking

(40:08) Psychopathy in Politics and Business

• Claim: politics attracts control-oriented personalities

• Risk: concentrated power amplifies harm

(42:29) The Golden Rule and Political Non-Participation

• Jeb’s stance: no voting; no forcing others

• Reported outcomes: improved relationships; reduced stress

(47:54) Additional Resources and Contact Information

• Books noted; open invite for dialogue

• Direction to further critiques of democracy

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Related Episodes

Related Blog Post

42. Is Political Power Devilish with Mark West

In this episode, Craig speaks with author Mark West about his article, Is Political Power Devilish, and his book, What He Said: Living the Sermon on the Mount Transforming American Culture.

As a self-proclaimed Xvangelical(a term for a former Evangelical who now centers all scripture interpretation on the words and actions of Christ, with a focus on living out His kingdom right now), Mark helps us strip back our political attachment to a nation-state so we may return to Christ’s vision for us, not a politician’s. 

Mark does not want us to deconstruct our faith, but rather renovate it from its complexities so we can refocus on what Jesus said and did. Christ’s challenge for us is not easy, it is hard to love one’s enemy, to turn the other cheek, to not worry about tomorrow, to not outsource our responsibilities as Christians through electing “Christian” leaders to politics, but our call will always be greater than any nation past or to come.

Our King and our Kingdom are not of this world and Mark invites us to rise to this challenge to be the body of Christ in our everyday life, not at a ballot box.

You can connect with Mark and read more of his work at mark4libertas.wordpress.com and purchase his book at markwest-author.com.

TIMESTAMPS:

01:52 What Mark has been up to

• Spiritual pilgrimage, culminating in his book

• God Archy, “that’s me in the corner”

  • Mental health advocacy

• IF YOU NEED HELP, PLEASE REACH OUT

  • National suicide hotline: 800-273-8255

06:13 Covid Anxiety

• Some people are afraid to reacclimate to public life   

08:38 Deconstruction/Renovation of Faith

• Not tearing it all down, taking away the bad, but realigning one’s faith with what Jesus actually said

• Jesus did not go around debating people

• We make it more complicated but Jesus keeps it simple

11:02 Love your enemy is a command, not a suggestion

• Your “enemy” should be the hardest person to love, but if you can love them then you can love everyone between you and your enemy as well 

• Keith Giles, Jesus Untangled

• Red-letter Christain heretic

• Simple to understand, hard to do

• Leave the bad beliefs behind, and renovate the misshapen into something better, that more fully honors God  

 13:59 Renovation of Faith and The Political stance of Christian-Anarchy

• If you want no government what would you have done about Nazi Germany or Slavery?

  • Nazi Germany and Slavery were made possible via a goverment that assumed power/authority it did not have

• As Christian Anarchists, we recuse ourselves of using governments to get others to do something, even if it’s the “right” thing

• Christianity comes before the anarchy

  • Craig: “I’m only an anarchist because I’m a Christain”

17:19 Mark’s Article, Is Political Power Devilish

• “Exhausted and defeated” - we are worn out by our current political system

• Mark’s run for Governor

  • Had been preaching twelve sermon series on Sermon on the Mount

  • Felt Christ calling him away from politics, that they were opposite to what Jesus taught

  • Fell into a deep depression 

23:06 Moving away from politics entangled with faith in Jesus

• Chris Polk

• Looking to the early church for a model of how to interact with the state

• The Temptation of Christ

  • Satan tempted him at the end of his fast when he should be weakest

  • Satan offered to give him the authority over all the kingdoms, implying he has the authority over them making them of the devil, not of God

• Daniel’s prophecy

  • Had an image of all the kingdoms that have existed, and smashes them because Christ’s kingdom is different, it is not of this world

• The political systems of our world have a violence based authority, while Christ’s kingdom is the anthesis of this

• “Divine right of kings” is being applied to our political leaders when we think they will lead us to the Kingdom of Heaven

  • Jesus was asked to be king by force and almost killed for refusing, it’s just not our thing as Christians

32:45 Mark’s book: What He Said: Living the Sermon on the Mount Transforming American Culture

• Why he wrote the book:

  • Felt he received a message while preaching the sermon on the mount a message American Christians really needed to hear

    • What we hear: if we get the right politician or policy or program in place then things will be transformed

      • This gets reduced to solganism and hashtags, “make America Christian again”

    • Jesus said plenty that is good enough and we don’t do it--put the slogans down; he’s calling for a whole life transformation

  • Chapter 8 was the hardest to write

  • Dietrich Bonhoeffer: what the world needs to see is a new monasticism, he saw back in Nazi Germany what we are seeing today in today’s Christianity 

    • Bonhoeffer also wrote on the sermon on the mount

36:50 The Early Church did not seek power

• They actively helped others rather than electing people to do it

38:32 Chapter 8 - A series of Don’ts

• Don’t collect earthly treasures, don’t worry about your life, don’t worry about today, and don’t worry about tomorrow 

• Jesus told us not to worry, and when we worry we get distracted from advancing the Kingdom of Christ

39:32 Don’t collect earthly treasures

• Matthew 6:19 KVJ

  • When we collect earthly treasures we want to get something from them, we are focused on the wrong treasure, Jesus wants to give not get

  • All our stuff will sit here, collect dust, and go bad - nothing here last

  • In Christ, we can find things that will last forever

• Pursue the things you can store in heaven

  • The true treasures are the fruits of the spirit in our life

  • The fallacy of the American dream: work hard and get a bunch of stuff, but people are where we get our rewards

• Mammon - God of material wealth and blessing

  • Can’t have two kings God and Mammon(often translated as money)

43:45 Don’t Worry About Your Life

• Matthew 6:25 KVJ

• Jessica Green - being prepared

• If we are working together we should be able to provide for each other and not worry 

  • We like to make sure we are provided for

• Mental illness and faith

  • Mental illness is irrational, takes away the ability to see tomorrow coming

  • Jesus is telling us to look at the flowers, the birds, and everything else that works without worry

    • The worry get in the way, when we go to the store and take more than we need, providing for ourselves at the expense of our neighbor, we all have less in the long run

  • Live the kingdom life by thinking about the other

48:12 Don’t worry about today

•  Matthew 6:31-33 KVJ

  • “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be provided for you”

• We are called into christ to be a new creature a new creation, all the chasing distracts us and keeps us from what we are supposed to be

• The real issue with Christians in America is we are not living Kingdom lives

  • Blame LBGTQIA community or entertainment or Donald Trump and Joe Biden

  • If Christians in America lived by the sermon on the mount the country would be transformed

50:09 Don’t Worry About Tomorrow 

• Matthew 6:34 KVJ

• “Why worry about tomorrow? Each day has enough trouble of its own”

  • This moment you are in is the most important moment of your life

  • Live in trust that God will keep his promises

51:56 Kindness is Key

• Matthew 5:5 KVJ

  • “The gentle are blessed for they will inherit the earth”

• Inheriting does not mean all the possessions and goodies

• False dichotomy: if I hurt you I will buy you something to make up for it; more stuff makes things better(money, accolades, achievement)

  • All Jesus is calling us to is to be kind

• Humility to not always have the place you think you deserve  

• The only thing we are entitled to in the gospel is to have less than our master did(aka Jesus who they killed)

• Culture of disenchantment among Christians

41. Is the U.S. Constitution a Christian Document? with Mike Gaddy

“We the People..” have you ever stopped to consider who was included in that “we”?  

This week Mike Gaddy returns to discuss the question: Is the Constitution a Christian document? Join us for a trip to 1785 Philadelphia where we look inside “the room where it happened” and uncover the possible motives and supposed religiosity of the 55 white men who devised the system that we, two centuries later, are still trying to untangle our basic Liberties from.

Many Christians on the political right, and even the left, considered the United States Constitution to be a Christian document. Yet, the founders avoided consulting with or even making reference to the teachings of Christ or any Deity, Creator, or Higher Power for that matter, in the formation of the Constitution. When we look at what the founders said and did we are left with a very different image of the motives that may have inspired the document that for too long Christians have been misled to see as divine.

You can connect with Mike at rebelmadman.com. He hosts two radio shows, Addicted to Your Own Destruction, (Fridays at 12 PM EST) Forensic Autopsy of Consitution & its Characters, as well as Addicted to Our Own Destruction (6 PM EST) On Rev radio.

Timestamps:

1:35  Mike’s Episode on Succession (Ep. 24)

2:12 Does the Christian-right view the constitution as God-Breathed?

• It’s important to look at how both sides view the constitution in relation to their Christianity

3:31 What Mike has learned from his studies of the Christian Right and Left

• Jury Duty selection and biases

• We should be led by evidence rather than emotion

5:38 Were all the founders Christain?

• Religious - yes; Christain - not necessarily

• Many came to the US to escape religious persecution

• Monotheism vs. Trinitarianism

• Most popular verses with founders were old testament

  • Leviticus 26 KVJ

  • Deuteronomy 28 KVJ

  • New Test: Galatians 5:1 KVJ

9:59 Why Mike is so passionate about this topic

•  Believing something false is going to affect our decision-making process over and over again

• False narratives don’t bear good fruit

13:10 How did we get to the Constitutional Convention?

• Not everyone came for religious freedom, many came for profits

• After 6 years of articles of confederation, many Federalists had gained power

• John Dickinson - author

• Articles of Confederation would prevent career politicians

17:38 Term Limits

• John Birch Society - against term limits

• People vote on emotion not the Constitution

• Thomas Jefferson - Rotation(term limits) allows the people to benefit from the genius of their community, don’t know it without rotation.

• Articles of Confederation allowed for instant recall - do a bad job get instantly recalled

22:26 Term Limits, Taxes, and the Federalist push for the Amending the Articles of Confederation

•  Unlimited taxes from unlimited sources blocked by Article 134 of Articles of Confederation

• Important question: Did the people who went to Philadelphia for the second constitutional convention go to protect the rights of the people or to destroy them and gain power?

  • Red flag: Secrecy of the Convention

    • Constitutional Convention was made secret for 50 years no one could say anything about what occurred even to constituents

    • Blacked out windows and soundproof attempts

26:24 Did the founders at the Constitutional Convention act like Christians?

• “Thou shall not steal” includes taxes

• Quakers in Philadelphia provided a written proposal to Constitutional Convention asking them to outlaw slavery - given to Tinch Cox (president Quaker foundation) and Benjamin Franklin

  • Was never read to the convention for consideration

  • Antislavery/Abolishing slavery was never discussed

•  When slavery was discussed:

  • Luther Martin - known drunk, longest sitting attorney general in US, not a Christain by any record

    • On the topic of slavery: “the revolution was grounded in defense of the natural god-given rights possessed by all mankind, but this constitution is an insult to that god who views with equal eye the poor African slave and his American slave master.

      • Geroge Mason only one who agreed - calling it a “crime against heaven”

• Gandhi: I like your Christ but I don’t like your Christianity

• Were the founders there as delegates to protect the rights of the people or to protect their financial interests?

• Federalist: Oliver Ellsworth and Robert Livingston “we are not here to discuss moral or religious issues, we are here to discuss commerce”

34:11 Samuel Bryant - The Cloak of Divinity

• Antifederalist

• Federalists will have to “cloak their message in divinity to sell it to the American public”

• The easiest thing is to get people to believe what they want to believe

• Patrick Henry - Federalist used his Christain image to push the constitution, though he was most vocal against it (the invention of fake news) 

• 1 Samuel 8 KVJ - choosing a King other than God(probably a bad idea)

39:57 Daniel Dresback (American University Professor) - “one of the most striking features is the absence of the acknowledgment of a supreme deity…”

• Articles of Confederation and Declaration of Independence included acknowledgments to a supreme being

• Franklin noted lack of prayers in the second constitutional convention vs. first

• Alexander Hamilton referred to it’s lack as avoidance of foreign aid

• 12 of 13 colonies has Christian oaths in their states’ Constitutions; Article 6 Clause 3 Federal Constitution did away with these

• Flip Wilson - Christians and Lions; Christians got a great coach but their team is shaky

53:33 Henry Abbot - North Carolina ratification convention delegate

• Foresaw what Article 6 Clause 3 impact would be

54:59 The Fraud of “We the People”

• The population at the time was about 3 million.

• The “we” excluded: women, non-land-owning white men, and enslaved people(about 700,000 at the time)  

• The “we” was about 65,000-80,000 people were eligible to vote out of the 3 million

 57:00 Have things changed since 1787?

• Constitution created a system

• Voting as states the 55 delegates rejected a Bill of Rights but made provisions for slavery

• The first power they gave congress was unlimited taxation from unlimited sources 

59:19 One Verse from New Testament repeated throughout countries founding

• “Stand fast therefore in the liberty of which Christ has made us free and do not be entangled again with the yolk of bondage”

• Did they do this, did they protect the individual, or did they protect their own interest?

9. Jessica Green - Leaving the Left & Finding Jesus

In this episode, Craig speaks with Jessica Green about leaving Liberalism, finding God, and being “politically homeless.” While most guests on The Bad Roman Podcast have found their way to Anarchy from the right, Jessica brings us a story from the other side.

Did we mention she used to be an Atheist? Jessica explains how she got so far left, it started looking like the Right, and how the Bible came to life for her in the midst of her political wandering.  

Starting Points for Further Exploration:

4:11 Senator Rand Paul attacked by neighbor

5:53 Increasing Polarization of the two-party system

6:28 The Tom Woods Show  

7:47 Economics In One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

7:50 The Most Dangerous Superstition by Larken Rose

7:55 Jordan Peterson (why he is controversial)

15:20 Miseis Caucus Libertarian Party

22:20 U.S. Peace Deal with Taliban

23:45 Ron Paul

25:08 9/11 Majority of Terrorists came from Saudi Arabia

30:32 Free Man Beyond the Wall

41:27 Book of Matthew, Mark, Luke

49:47 The Remnant

To learn more about and connect with Jessica Green follow her on Twitter @LibKitWitch, on Youtube, and visit her website. You can also find her podcast, The Jessica Green Show, wherever you like to listen.