ademers1980

  I only caught about the last half hour of the faith forum on MSNBC that was moderated by Rick Warren.  Barack Obama and John McCain discussed issues of faith.  Of course, I’m sure there was at least some opposition to such a forum taking place on church grounds.  With this having been such a divisive election so far, I think this forum was needed and will be appreciated by many voters.

It’s easy to say that one should keep their religious and political views firmly separated.  However, for both liberals and conservatives, this  is hard.  Our religious, spiritual, and ethical views typically greatly influence how we vote.  Even an avowed agnostic or secular humanistic is probably influenced at the voting booth by their philosophy on life.

For many years, faith and politics were closely associated with the Religious Right.  Progressive Christians and non-Christians alike have feared  attacks on personal freedoms  by some right-leaning groups.  Likewise,  rightist Christians feel as though their religious  liberty is threatened by a liberal presence.  Thanks to the hard work of author Jim Wallis (God’s Politics), progressive Christians are being acknowledged as sincere people of faith.  Rather than being shrugged off, the public has begun to realize that progressive Christians have a voice that needs to be heard as much as that of conservative Christians.

Can we shut off our religious views when dealing with politics?  If you, like many others, feel you can’t, you’re in good company.  The biblical prophets didn’t hesitate to have show-downs with political leaders who fell from faith.  Considering the politics of the ancient world, this was a dangerous, and very courageous, choice!

There is nothing wrong with having your religious beliefs (or lack thereof) influence your voting and stances on issues.  However, we must always be ready to ensure that those beliefs aren’t used as a weapon against those who think differently.  Part of being a free people involves respecting others’ right to disagree.

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