Tag: Separation of Church and State
“As one who believes that Jesus Christ is Lord of my life and of the whole world, I cannot accept that election to the highest office in the land somehow creates a religious transition in which one’s faith commitments get trumped by the demands of the office. Surely it cannot be as simple as that,” says professor David P. Gushee. More
“Mitt Romney’s speech today focused ostensibly on religious liberty and tolerance, with the direct implication that his Mormon faith should not be an issue for voters. But it is not clear that the political goal for the speech — to woo evangelical Republicans in early primary states — was achieved.” More
Whatever one thinks of his politics, one has to admit that Governor Romney’s Texas speech on “Faith in America,” like Senator Kennedy’s remarks to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association in September 1960, was expertly written and beautifully delivered. Both men … More
A half century ago, Senator Everett Dirksen of Illinois said “the first task of every politician is to get right with Lincoln.” If he were speaking today, he might say the first task of every politician is to get right … More
In 1960 John F. Kennedy gave two major speeches on what he described as the “so-called religious issue” in the presidential campaign. The second, presented to the greater Houston Baptist Ministerial Association in September, after he received the Democratic nomination, … More
“Governor Romney says some wise things about faith and freedom and politics,” says historian and professor David O’Brien, “What’s missing is conscience, how religion’s claims are mediated by conscience and, as John Kennedy acknowledged on a similar occasion, a moment might come when a president, like a citizen, might be required to object, or to resign.” More
In what may be seen as the defining moment of his campaign, Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts and a Mormon, sought to address the issue of his faith and its bearing on his pursuit of the presidency. Pundits … More
Mitt Romney is “attempting to turn concerns about his faith, which seems very sincerely and intensely held, into recognition that the sincerity and intensity of faith is itself a good thing,” says professor Charles Mathewes. More
The federal government recently reversed a longstanding policy, saying that churches which are historic landmarks can receive government money for historic preservation. The move provoked sharp church-state debate. More
One of the greatest powers a president has is appointing new justices to the Supreme Court. In the next few years, the Court is expected to rule on a variety of closely-disputed and controversial issues, many of them of special interest to religious communities: school prayer, for instance, and other church-state questions. More
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