Politicians no longer avoid separation of church, vote

[CShine]

When John F. Kennedy addressed Protestant ministers in Houston during his 1960 presidential campaign, he sought to dispel criticism that his Catholicism would influence his performance in the White House. "I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute," Kennedy told the Greater Houston Ministerial Association at the old Rice Hotel. More than four decades later, the theme of religion and politics is again emerging in a presidential campaign, although in far different way than when Kennedy felt the need to distance himself from his church.

President Bush, a Methodist who rediscovered his faith as an adult, speaks openly about religion and has been making aggressive pitches not only to evangelical Protestants but also Catholic and Jewish voters. His campaign recently sought the help of thousands of congregations in Pennsylvania to distribute campaign information and register voters. Meanwhile, Democrat John Kerry, a Catholic, has been scolded, not for being too close to the Vatican but for failing to adhere to its teachings against abortion. The Massachusetts senator has hired an evangelical Christian to reach out to religious groups and is being urged by some supporters to speak more openly about his faith.

The mixing of religion and politics has prompted criticism, including recent remarks by Ron Reagan, President Reagan's son, that some politicians wear their religious beliefs on their sleeves for political advantage. The comments were believed to be aimed at Bush for trying to placate religious conservatives by opposing expanded stem cell research.

Liberal Catholics and others were outraged when a number of American bishops chastised Kerry for taking Communion even though he supports abortion rights. But for the most part, embracing religion is viewed as more an asset than albatross in the 2004 campaign. Polls show that voters today are comfortable with politicians publicly professing their religious beliefs as long as they are not exclusionary.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2642303

[Mari333]

1. Pharisees

often walk about pounding their bosoms and professing God speaks only to them...the Bush administration knew a good PR ploy and worked on it, as do the TV preachers who are rolling in cash and multi million dollar investments, bilking old people out of their savings accounts.
When all else fails, PR wise, use "God is on my side" as a tool to shove down the populace' throats.
The Bush admin, their friends, corporate whores and CEOs raking in war profit monies, are laughing all the way to the bank.
Christ himself would slap the hell out of them if he was here.

[leftchick]

2. The repuke fundies need to review Matthew 6...

Or read it for the first time is more likely...

Matthew 6


Prayer

5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

[Solly Mack]

3. Then perhaps they should avoid politics

I do not consent to a government ruled by religion.

[Geo55]

4. separation of church

The German Church and the People are practically the same body. Therefore there could be no issue between Church and State. The Church, as such, has nothing to do with political affairs. On the other hand, the State has nothing to do with the faith or inner organization of the Church. The election of November 12th would be an expression of church constituency, but not as a Church.
-Adolf Hitler, answering C. F. Macfarland about Church & State

Hitler in front of "Church of our Lady" in Nuremberg, Sept. 1934.
Photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann.

[struggle4progress]

5. Religion Is “Very Important” to 6 in 10 America

Roughly 6 in 10 Americans say religion is a "very important" part of their lives and believe religion can answer all or most of today's problems. A majority of Americans say they attend religious services at least once a month, including a third who go every week, and 6 in 10 are members of a church or synagogue. More than 8 in 10 Americans are Christian, including roughly half who are Protestant and about a quarter who are Catholic. Fewer than 1 in 10 Americans have no religious affiliation at all. In regard to whom they would vote for in this year's election, Catholics slightly favor presumptive Democratic candidate John Kerry over President George W. Bush, while white Protestants would be much more likely to vote for Bush than Kerry.

According to a June 3-6 Gallup Poll, 59% of adults nationwide say religion is a very important part of their lives. An additional 26% of Americans say religion is fairly important to them. Just 15% of respondents say religion is not very important. The percentage of Americans saying religion is very important has not fluctuated significantly over the past decade, with yearly averages ranging between 57% and 61% from 1993 through 2003.

About two-thirds of Americans, 64%, belong to a church or synagogue. Self-reported church membership has fluctuated slightly since the early 1990s, with yearly averages ranging between the current level and 70% (in 1999).

The latest poll also shows that, when given a choice, 61% of Americans say that "religion can answer all or most of today's problems," while 24% feel that "religion is largely old-fashioned and out-of-date." Over the last decade, Gallup has generally found about 6 in 10 Americans saying religion can answer today's problems, with the exception for a brief period from 1998 to 2000, when the percentage saying that religion could solve today's problems was slightly higher.
<snip>

http://www.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=12115

[Kimber Scott]

6. Have you ever heard of an Evangelical Methodist?

I used to be a Methodist. It's a fairly liberal church. I don't remember any "Born Again Methodists." Is there such a thing? The United Methodist Church opposed the war in Iraq. Bush doesn't seem like a Methodist to me. I think he thinks it's best to keep saying he's Methodist because that was his childhood church (and it is one of the more moderate of the Protestant churches), as opposed to saying he's Southern Baptist, which - to me, I could be wrong - seems like the church whose dogma he is following.

I admit, I was never a very good church person. Am I wrong in my thinking about Bush and his religion?

[Mari333]

7. It is a facade

Politicians have PR firms who think they are taking the pulse of the populace..they put makeup on them and give them a suit and a script.
Madison Avenue shuksters and hucksters, dressing up their "product" (politician) in not only the 'right' clothes, but handing them scripts to read and telling them what to say to garner votes.
Some two bit Corporate type decided Bush was supposed to pretend he was religious, to shore up the votes from that base..they probably chose Methodist to sound middle of the road, but decided to 'sell' their boy with southern Baptist leanings, because thats who votes for patriarchal hiearchies that have no heart or ethics or compassion .
Its a scam, always has been. Politicians are products, no different then selling soup, or bread, or hair shampoo.
Sad thing is, people lap up the propoganda.