As 'Mudcat Saunders' just said on the tube: "People come up to me and say, 'Obama's a Muslim and he's got a crazy pastor.'" And I say, 'Well, which is it?'" Someone else just said to me that Obama probably joined his church just to win black votes.
Is there any other person in politics who's had more mud thrown on their faith? Think about it. Why has Obama's faith been such a target (going back to the wonderful spring obsession with two or three 15 second clips of Rev. Wright)? For the record, he's a baptized, professing Christian, who was a member of the United Church of Christ until he resigned from Trinity UCC after the Rev. Wright flap.
Do many people know or even care what McCain believes or where he goes to church? If a politician's faith is so important, should we know all the details of McCain's religious faith and activities, other than he is now pro-life? Seen any videos of his church or his pastor preaching? I haven't the foggiest idea, and I don't really care. I think you can tell all you need to know about a politician's faith by the kind of life that they live. The rest is between themselves and God (and maybe their pastor).
Palin's religious affiliation, as different as it is, has been pretty much ignored by her political enemies, even though there is a lot of unusual stuff there. I know about it, because that's my job as a religious professional. Until recently, she was a Pentecostal, though her church was reportedly condemned by the 'mainstream' Pentecostal denomination for being heretical.
Quick--tell me what church Joe Biden belongs to. That's right, he's a faithful, active Catholic. Seen any videos of his priest preaching?
I find the Right to be very hypocritical in all this, ignoring the shortcomings of their own candidates' religious lives, while piling on without conscience on those they oppose. Spreading internet rumors about Obama being a secret Muslim, or as one recent email put it, wanting to make us 'one nation under Allah.' What nonsense.
I think that the historic separation of church and state in this country was ingenous and responsible for both the strength of religion here and our ability to avoid wars of religions. (I preached a couple of sermons on this subject, if you want more details from a preacher's point of view, here and here.)
The Right should lay off Obama's faith and stop using it as a political weapon.
AMEN!
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