LANCASTER, Ohio — Evangelical Christians, the fastest-growing faith-based group in the US which played a pivotal role in tilting the scales in President George W. Bush's favor in the last presidential election, are increasing bringing religion into politics.
"I appreciate the fact that the church is politically involved," said Kyle Hatfield, a 30-year-old father of two who believes the separation of church and state has gone too far.
"It was not our forefathers' intention to prevent churches from being involved," he told Reuters.
Lisa Sexton, 42, a Bible school volunteer, agreed.
"Christians stepped back too far. I prayed in school but my kids can't pray in school," she said.
"I should have spoken up earlier."
In a March survey, a quarter of the resident of Ohio, a key swing state that narrowly decided Bush's election victory in 2004 over Democrat John Kerry, said they were evangelicals, believing that a strict adherence to the Bible and personal commitment to the teachings of Jesus Christ will bring salvation.
More than 82 percent of them said they approve of bringing more religion into politics.
Increasingly Republicans
Evangelical Christians have had a growing impact on America's political landscape, in part because adherents believe conservative Christian values should have a place in politics -- and they support politicians who agree with them.
Senior pastor Russell Johnson is chairman of the Ohio Restoration Project, a faith-based group that wants to increase the role of religion in public life.
He and his supportive members believe that evangelicals and Republicans are wedded to a set of beliefs and share common grounds on issues like the Iraq war and revolutionary theory.
"I trust his [Bush] opinion because of his beliefs," said Sexton, adding that she liked Bush because he was born-again Christian.
Political analyst John Green, director of the University of Akron's Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, cited an increasing support for the Republicans among evangelicals.
"Evangelical Protestants have become much more Republican in recent times, although 40 or 50 years ago more of them were Democrats," he said.
"There was a particular intensification of evangelical links to the Republican Party during the Bush administration in 2000 and 2004."
An Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Friday, July 14, showed that Republicans are in jeopardy of losing their grip on Congress in the midterm elections in November.
The poll found that Americans by an almost 3-to-1 margin hold the GOP-controlled Congress in low regard and profess a desire to see Democrats wrest control after a dozen years of Republican rule.
All of them worship out of fear of fire
and consider deliverance abundant good fortune
or so they may dwell in the gardens , and reach to the meadows of paradise and there drink from its rivers
of gardens or fire i have no opinion
I seek no exchange for my Dearest Love
These people worry me. Bringing religion into politics is a way of bringing faith-based certainty into a discipline determined by unknowns, and the consequences of this have proven to be dangerous so many times in the past that I'm baffled as to how the idea can still be seen as acceptable.
It appears that it's trying to paint all christians as envangelical when this isn't the case. You quote Thomas Paine in your signature while nice I prefer this one he wrote in The Age of Reason : I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness in this life
Have you ever seen Christians used without the Evangelical in front of it when they are talking about the US on islamonline? I haven't
To be fair, I don't know about islamonline, I was just interpreting the article as it stands. (Oddly enough, it does include the word 'Christians' once without the 'evangelical' prefix, so I guess you haven't been looking too hard, but never mind.)
Even if what you are saying is true, surely that would only imply that evangelical Christians are a numerous denomination in the US, which is true. It also implies that there are other Christians, outside the US, who are not evangelicals. No?
These people worry me. Bringing religion into politics is a way of bringing faith-based certainty into a discipline determined by unknowns, and the consequences of this have proven to be dangerous so many times in the past that I'm baffled as to how the idea can still be seen as acceptable.
TELL me about it. I'm moving toward the Atlantic Ocean as soon as I can. Hard to get away from the loonies, but Raleigh NC is a very nice liberal University town. Besides, my sister lives there.
...You quote Thomas Paine in your signature while nice I prefer this one he wrote in The Age of Reason : I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness in this life
Yes Mr. Paine was a Deist as you can tell from that statement; no Christian would have uttered those words.
In my sig, Paine emotes his contempt for Organized Religion, which he believes was the cause of much human misery throughout history.
Is it just me, is it sort of odd for people who seem to want an Islamic state based on Sharia law to be up in arms that Christians have some effect on U.S. government? As much as people like to point out hypocrisy on this forum, this seems to be a golden example of it.
Is it just me, is it sort of odd for people who seem to want an Islamic state based on Sharia law to be up in arms that Christians have some effect on U.S. government? As much as people like to point out hypocrisy on this forum, this seems to be a golden example of it.
Which Muslims are you referring to exactly? Everyone who's commented on the article so far is a non-Muslim!
"This world is a blank price tag, and whatever value you put on it, is what its worth to you. I have made this world priceless and worthless, so therefore I have placed my value in the afterlife."
i find it rather alarming - the influence they wield in american politics.
They started this whole "Islamic Terror" blame game, when indeed Colombia is the largest producer of terror incidents at home and abroad.
I think the "Evangies" are pushing for the Tenth Crusade, as Bush said it himself, "We are beginning a crusade on Terror," and who are Terrorists?
"This world is a blank price tag, and whatever value you put on it, is what its worth to you. I have made this world priceless and worthless, so therefore I have placed my value in the afterlife."
Which Muslims are you referring to exactly? Everyone who's commented on the article so far is a non-Muslim!
Peace
The article was posted by a Muslim. I don't look at each person's avatar and see what their religion is, but the point was the article being posted in the first place. I assume he didn't post this article in support of evangelical Christians gaining power in the U.S. government. Unless this was meant to be "Republicans are bad" statement, in that case I could have jumped the gun on this one.
They started this whole "Islamic Terror" blame game, when indeed Colombia is the largest producer of terror incidents at home and abroad.
Name me a single terrorist incident that the Colombians produced outside of Colombia.
I think the "Evangies" are pushing for the Tenth Crusade, as Bush said it himself, "We are beginning a crusade on Terror," and who are Terrorists?
Nothing wrong with Crusades. Just means Jihad after all. The terrorists are the ones who fly planes into buildings and blow up trains in Mumbai. Just in case you missed it
Le coeur a ses raisons, que la raison ne connait pas. - Blaise Pascal
The article was posted by a Muslim. I don't look at each person's avatar and see what their religion is, but the point was the article being posted in the first place. I assume he didn't post this article in support of evangelical Christians gaining power in the U.S. government.
Right - an assumption. Incidentally, I think it's usually a good idea to check each contributor's faith position if you're not sure. But there are always those secretive souls who've gone for "Undisclosed" - you've got to watch for them!
Unless this was meant to be "Republicans are bad" statement, in that case I could have jumped the gun on this one.
That would be my assumption. Mr. Bush is not very popular round these parts. From my point of view, that's a tribute to the good sense of the majority of the people who post here.
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I'm moving toward the Atlantic Ocean as soon as I can. Hard to get away from the loonies, but Raleigh NC is a very nice liberal University town. Besides, my sister lives there.
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