Should We Question a Presidential Candidate's Religious Beliefs?
By Jonathan Rick Posted in 2008 — Comments (7) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Those running for president are asking us them to trust them with the launch codes to the world’s most powerful and largest stockpile of nuclear weapons. Surely, then, it’s perfectly appropriate to question their judgment.
The most controversial of these questions concerns—ironically—the candidates’ most cherished beliefs, which is to say their religious convictions.
Let’s get the caveats out of the way: The candidates are running to be our president, not our priest, so whether they say grace or how often they attend church is inconsequential.
Yet since each one has professed to be a person of deeply felt faith, they have all thereby invited us to probe what that means.
Not because, as Christopher Hitchens would have it, religion is evil—from far it—but because anything—be it religion, a book or even a wife—which a candidates claims significantly informs his thinking, warrants scrutiny.
...because for many, your worldview/religious-view/philosophical viewpoint of Truth drives who you are and your decision making.
For all those who follow the current fashion on screaming foul if anyone wants to dare question Romney's Mormonism, I ask you if you would be as intellectually honest and consistent if the issue were a frontrunner who was Jehovah Witness? Christian Scientist? Shia Muslim? Wiccan? Atheist? A Buddhist? A nonviolent Satanist?
There is a 100% difference between our republic ought to have any sort of religious tests (it shouldn't) and whether in considering voting for a candidate, individual voters should not consider candidates' overall belief system for its coherence and how well it aligns with their own. As soon as you can accept that premise, then it only logically follows that questions of the candidates concerning their religious beliefs are fair game (and they have the right to refuse to answer) and journalists in their questioning ought to help in that quest to discover a candidate's belief system (rather than following the current fad of fearfully not daring to probe anyone other than conservative Christians for terror of being tagged intolerant or bigoted).
what would happen if mormons decided they wouldn't vote for a Baptist. Then you can kiss the west goodbye. Especially Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, and Arizona.
...I would vote for a Muslim candidate who believed in free trade, low taxes, and the general GOP plank anyday over an evangelical who believed in a socialist political philosophy... just as I believe a candidate's personal life (and scandals) are relevant to their character to consider for office, but not as relevant as their political positions in the record and stated. But lets not have any of this silly talk that a person's core religious/philosophical beliefs or personal character are irrelevant to public office, or that you are bigoted if you desire to probe them and/or expose or promote them.
Chaplain....I think you said that it is nice to know a person's religious beliefs, but they should not be a test of political office. I agree. This gets back to my problem with mixing religion and politics. Sometimes religious beliefs are not as crucial whether or not you think that the candidate is a honest, decent, moral, hard-working, and competent person, who shares your political goals. I cannot understand why some persons think that a person's religious beliefs (Evangelical Christianity) automatically provide any of these qualities. I hope my Protestant friends with forgive my comments. In politics, good works, are much more important than faith.
Before someone includes legitimate religions in there
Cults are bizarre strange and fanatical by nature, Mac Users or Ronulans Come to mind.
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"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
It's bad enough when people try to tell me that I'm not Christian, (by the way what's up with Christians insisting that Romney deny Christ in order to get their vote), but when people start tossing a phrase like anti-Christ or Anti-Christian around it raises alot of hairs of the back of my head.
Anti-Christ means something very specific- and anybody who has studied history should be very worried when it starts getting applied to people.
I have to admit I'm becoming very offended by Huckabee.
I didn't mind too much when it seemed to be based around evangelicals wanting to have "one of our own", I mean that's natural, but lately I'm getting the impression it's more than that.
The New York Times quotes his supporters as calling Mormons Anti-Christians. It reports that Huckabee is asked if God even hears Mormons when they pray and Huckabee dodges answering. Newsweek then reports that Huckabee suggests that it is appropriate to judge Romney on his religion.
I start to get the feeling that maybe evangelicals are regretting the political alliance among conservative religious sects.
I liked Huckabee- I just didn't agree with him on fiscal issues.
Now I'm beginning to think that he is deliberately looking for support from anti-Mormon feelings. That greatly disturbs me.