Barack Obama intrigues me. He'd excite me if he weren't pro-gay and pro-abortion, but he does intrigues me. Phil Lawler at Catholic World News points out (subscriber link) that Obama is a sincere Christian--perhaps warped in some of his thinking, but sincere--and he didn't merely find God in the 2004 election campaign, like many of his fellow-travelers on the Left. Then there's this excerpt from a recent Obama speech:
But what I am suggesting is this-- secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering into the public square. Frederick Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, Williams Jennings Bryant, Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King-- indeed, the majority of great reformers in American history - were not only motivated by faith, but repeatedly used religious language to argue for their cause. So to say that men and women should not inject their "personal morality" into public policy debates is a practical absurdity. Our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition.
"So to say that men and women should not inject their "personal morality" into public policy debates is a practical absurdity. Our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition." Wow. It's an obvious observation but very few people in public discourse recognize it today, so it's impressive to see. Did Patrick Buchanan get another speech-writing gig? Maybe Obama would want to hire me. In any event, I'd like to drink a beer with the guy.
From my 6/21/2006 Catholic Exchange column:
Secularists seem alternately amused or livid that people use religion to form their opinions about matters that can have public policy implications. If a person wants to use religion to determine whether to go to church on Sunday, fine. But use it to determine that abortion is murder? That's an outrage because it causes religion to seep into the public square, which (to the secularists) is absolutely prohibited.
Where do the secularists get this? Certainly not from the First Amendment. The American political tradition has always included religion, and many of its statesmen have brought their Christian beliefs with them into public office to guide them in their decision-making. Religion is one of many influences on a person's opinion, and if he can bring it – along with whatever else he can bring – into the public square to sway the debate, then he's entitled to do so, and he's not being “un-American.”
