Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Questioning the Religious Beliefs of Candidates
Is this not the way things are today in the US?
The average voter really does try to find out something concrete about the person or persons he is voting for, and the MSM is most often of little help, or even far too much help! The blast of propaganda from all sides may or may not influence this voter. However, his interest picks up significantly when the candidate’s religion is brought up, since that is a major criterion that will be used by him to vote yea or nay, just as many voters do in sizing up any stranger.
Does this man believe in God? Does he make a serious attempt to follow the moral teachings of his religion, and if that religion is not well known to the voter, what are the similarities and differences from the voter’s own religion and morals? Can the man be trusted to follow the fundamental tenets of the majority of citizens, or does he bring a skewed view of the majority religion to the table? The further from the majority religion the candidate stands, or the further from the voters religion, the more the candidate’s views must be probed before he earns the vote–or not.
I suspect that any candidate that is not a Christian will receive considerably more attention to his statements about his beliefs than would an avowed Christian candidate. I also suspect that, regardless of qualifications, a candidate for the presidency that states he is an Atheist or an Agnostic will not receive a majority of votes in the US for some time to come. Then too, if the candidate ducks the question of his religious affiliation, he will become suspect until the issue is clarified satisfactorily. Of course, if the candidate professes an acceptable religion, but does not practice it, or even violates the moral code, this may have to be corrected dramatically downstream.
The average voter really does try to find out something concrete about the person or persons he is voting for, and the MSM is most often of little help, or even far too much help! The blast of propaganda from all sides may or may not influence this voter. However, his interest picks up significantly when the candidate’s religion is brought up, since that is a major criterion that will be used by him to vote yea or nay, just as many voters do in sizing up any stranger.
Does this man believe in God? Does he make a serious attempt to follow the moral teachings of his religion, and if that religion is not well known to the voter, what are the similarities and differences from the voter’s own religion and morals? Can the man be trusted to follow the fundamental tenets of the majority of citizens, or does he bring a skewed view of the majority religion to the table? The further from the majority religion the candidate stands, or the further from the voters religion, the more the candidate’s views must be probed before he earns the vote–or not.
I suspect that any candidate that is not a Christian will receive considerably more attention to his statements about his beliefs than would an avowed Christian candidate. I also suspect that, regardless of qualifications, a candidate for the presidency that states he is an Atheist or an Agnostic will not receive a majority of votes in the US for some time to come. Then too, if the candidate ducks the question of his religious affiliation, he will become suspect until the issue is clarified satisfactorily. Of course, if the candidate professes an acceptable religion, but does not practice it, or even violates the moral code, this may have to be corrected dramatically downstream.
Labels: Christianity, Morality, Natural Law, Religion
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