It’s mildly entertaining, but nonetheless welcome, to see media talking heads debate what Jesus would do in politics.

On Hardball with Chris Matthews, Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., recently scolded Christians for celebrating Jesus at Christmastime while opposing an extension of unemployment insurance benefits for another year: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/38333035#38333035

Bill O’Reilly took him to task in a column titled “Keep Christ in Unemployment.” O’Reilly wrote, “There comes a time when compassion can cause disaster. If you open your home to scores of homeless folks, you will not have a home for long. There is a capacity problem for every noble intent.” Giving that destroys the giver’s capacity to give while at the same time failing to help the needy in any meaningful way is not biblical love, but well-intentioned folly.

But O’Reilly was especially provocative with his closing comment: “The Lord helps those who help themselves. Does he not?” You won’t find that in Proverbs or anywhere else in the Bible, but there is an element of truth in Ben Franklin’s words. God has set us in a world that is rich with potential, and told us to “have dominion” over it.

Read More: http://online.worldmag.com/2010/12/22/would-jesus-register-republican/