OPINION:
Former Vice President Joe Biden recently told Oprah Winfrey that in the last presidential election cycle he wasn’t ready for the office. He asked, in quite biblical-sounding terms, “[W]as I prepared to be able to give my whole heart, my whole soul and all my attention to the endeavor? I knew I wasn’t.” In Mathew 22 Christ tells us, “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, and with all of your mind.”
I understand well how bravely Mr. Biden has endured the great losses in his family, and also that he is a well-intentioned, godly man. I believe, however, that this statement to Oprah was, though certainly heartfelt, not accurately phrased, and in having made it Mr. Biden exemplifies an error of which we are all capable.
The office of president is one to be regarded with respect, honor and solemnity by any politician or member of the electorate. But the one who assumes the role is not God, and anyone whose heart, soul and mind places them on the divine plane has elevated themselves beyond their appropriate locus. Quite simply, based on the above verse in Matthew, if the Lord is God, our dearest possessions and desires cannot also be God. If the Lord is God, our closest friends and relatives are not also God. Indeed, if the Lord is God, then you or I cannot be God.
HARTWELL HARRISON
Bon Air, Va.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.