Palin & Religion: What's Scary, What's Not
Those on the left, or merely those who aren't evangelical Christians, are struggling to make sense of the religious life of Sarah Palin. To many, she seems a frightening harbinger of a fundamentalist takeover. Saturday's New York Times piece about Palin's deep faith and Bible-focused church will be chewed over for evidence of her extremism. Conservatives, meanwhile, seize on the scrutiny -- including liberal overreactions -- as evidence that the left and the mainstream media are anti-Christian.
The Palin candidacy does pose real church-state questions, as well as many opportunities for hysterical overreaction. As a service to my panicky friends on the left and my Sarah-smitten friends on the right (who may not understand why she frightens some), here's a guide to what is and isn't scary, or at least questionable about Palin's mixing of faith and politics:
Scary - Palin told a group of young church leaders to pray for a gas pipeline because it was God's will. "God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gasline built. So pray for that." Saying a particular public policy is God's will is far over the line, considerably beyond anything that George W. Bush ever said. It means the advocate is impervious to argument, and critics are going against God's will.
Not Scary - Palin asked members of the church to pray "that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan." This has been cited on Huffington Post as proof that Palin justifies the war as being part of God's plan. I read it as meaning the opposite - that people should pray that the war IS part of God's plan. This is a totally appropriate desire for a Christian - and for a Christian politician. All Christian politicians should aspire to do God's will. Where it gets problematic is when they feel God is directing them to take particular steps or claim divine endorsement for their actions.
Scary - She suggested that her work as governor would be hampered "if the people of Alaska's heart isn't right with God." This means that those who aren't Bible-believing Christians hinder the work of the state, harming their fellow citizens and the public interest.
Not Scary - "She asked [her pastor] for a biblical example of people who were great leaders and was the secret of their leadership." Since the Times put it in the second paragraph of their piece, they must have felt this was ominous. It's not. Using the Bible for ethical guidance or wisdom is a standard -- and I would argue noble -- use of faith.
Scary (Probably) - As governor, she signed a Christian Heritage Week. It didn't actually declare the U.S. to be an officially Christian nation but it plucked Founding Fathers quotes way out of context to misleadingly imply they were devout Christians. In many other cases, this same technique has been used to promote the argument that America was created to be a Christian nation, and separation of church and state is a myth. (Full text here)
Not Scary (Probably) - "The churches that Sarah has attended all believe in a literal translation of the Bible," says John Kinkaid, a friend. "Her principal ethical and moral beliefs stem from this." Very few Christian follow the literal meaning of the whole Bible. Conservative Bible-believing Christians tend to focus on the passages related to life and marriage; liberals tend to focus on those related to poverty. It's worth probing this more but it's not by itself either good or bad.
Maybe Scary, Maybe Not - "God has sent me, from underneath the umbrella of this church, throughout the state." It depends how literally she means this. It's one thing to think God has a plan for you, or that all people are part of God's plan; many people believe such things, including Barack Obama, whose campaign literature bore the headline "Called to Bring Change," and read, "We do what we do because God is with us."
But if she feels God has enjoined her to take specific steps - like attacking Obama or drilling for oil in Alaska - as opposed to guiding her in general public service, then many Americans will come to distrust her and feel she's inappropriately using faith as a political weapon. Of course, those who think God really IS guiding her policies and speeches, will just love her even more.
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It may be time to face the music, folks.
50% of Americans believe in creationism. 20% don't know the earth revolves around the sun.
Those Americans are having 4-10 babies each. Progressives are having 0-2 babies each.
If so many Americans already are Bible fundamentalists and are having many times the children we are, what's the landscape of this country going to look like 20 years from now?
Those Americans vote for the politicians that they think loves Jesus the most. That's ALL they care about. That was the Bush ticket and now it's the McCain/Palin ticket. Even if Obama somehow gets it, when all these little fundamentalists grow up into voting fundamentalists, we'll just be back where we started.
Unless we're all willing to start cranking out 15 kids each, which I doubt, what chance do we have?
This country will be the United States of Jesus Christ within our lifetime.
All us Buddhists, Catholics, Unitarians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, wiccans, and non fundamentalist Christians need to get our butts to Canada!
New Zealand, the weather is better.
It won't be that big of a deal... some of those babies they are having will grow up and be atheists..
As time progresses and people actually make a point to not allow these ridiculous ideas to go unchallenged, there will be more and more rationalists. Literal beliefs in all religions just don't stand up to reality and that's hard to hide... there will always be a small group, just like the flat earthers, just like those that believe GWBush is the greatest president ever, just like ___insert nutty belief here___.
Rationalists need to make a point to not let these nutty ideas slide... don't just blow it off as some nut, make a point of informing or guiding that person or at least give them something to think about... especially in front of others, don't let them get new recruits or even be viewed as having legitimate points.
What scares me as is that if Americans go on to choose McCain/Palin, I feel in large part that would be because of the 'energized evangelical base' of the republican party. Palin seems to be touting her conservative 'Christian values' as she runs for the number two spot of a supposedly secular government. Well, if they get elected, the US can no longer frown upon or be fearful of muslim nations choosing leaders based on their 'fundamentalist and radical' views of Islam. If the Americans can choose leaders based on their extreme religious views, well so can the rest of the world... be ready for the consequences!
"Religion: bringing people together in a world torn apart, by religion."
Scary... That Palin absolutely does not believe in Gay and Lesbian marriage or for any Gay or Lesbian Spousal benefits .Period. I am sure that translates into no rights . Period.
I, personaly, am sick to death of Christian Fundamentalists telling me and my fellow Gay and Lesbian brothers and sisters how we can run our lives.... P..S OFF..!!.
Its the 21st century ,Sarah... and your narrow, self-serving view of the world has no place.....
A well thought out piece without the standard liberal hyperbole found in many columns on this site.
Not all religious belief and expression is scary.
It is in the age of the apocalypse button (aka nuclear weapons).
Superstiion comes from a lack of understanding. It is what guides the hands of islamic terrorists, the belief that there is a greater power at work in our world. I hate to break it to you but that is what seperates the United States of America from the rest of the world. We had a government based on rationalism.
The founding fathers were living in a period of time highly affected by the Enlightenment. They had also just experienced the mockery of government that was the Salem Witch Trials in which Cotton Mathers a government official fell for the faux superstions of a teenage girl and helped kill 29 innocent people.
Religion is scary, it corrupts our rational impulses and in the most extreme examples works against basic instincts of self preservation. You can't be rational with people of faith, they don't believe in facts. If you can't believe in facts you can't make good decisions. If you can't make good decisions you shouldn't be in government.
Wow, this is quite a good post... I love that you have the three points.
1. Superstition and Rationalism
2. Salem Witch Trails and the Enlightenment
3. Rationalism in government
Sugar, your wording was explicit and succinct, nobody could say it better than that.
Not all religious belief is scary. But, when having it shoved down your throat, or having your brainwashed with its doctrine, then its SCARY.
you sure read the post, didn't you?... (sarcasm)
"Not Scary - "She asked [her pastor] for a biblical example of people who were great leaders and was the secret of their leadership
Would you feel the same way if the fictional literature was not the Bible but "The Lord Of The Rings" ? How would you feel if a politician invoked Gandalf as a example of wisdom and good leadership?
Any fictional character could be invoked if that character is saying something meaningful. By invoking Gandalf's advice we're essentially invoking Tolkien's advice. I would be ok with that.
“There are many powers in the world, for good or for evil.
Some are greater than I am.
Against some I have not yet been measured. But my time is coming.” - Gandalf
It needs but one foe to breed a war, not two,
and those who have not swords can still die upon them. - Eowyn
Gandalf/Eowyn 'O8
Keep in mind the co-option and absolute subjugation of the German church during the NAZI era. The church leadership were forced to pass NAZI litmus tests. If the pastor failed they were imprisoned often to be hung or shot. To say that intimidation was used is a gross understatement. And yet isn't "intimidation" one of the apparent themes of Ms. Palin and her style of governance. When you firmly believe none other than GOD is backing you such actions seem justified and complaints about them trivial.
The Christocentric leadership of that German church (Lutheran Church) were thus executed as they actually were true believers, following the words of my Lord and Savior rather than the rantings of Adolph HItler. The Christ inspired life of Pastor Detriech Bonhoeffer is a well documented example of just such a life and tragic death by political execution.
Of course, we are not there yet, are we? As a child I was taught that one did not discuss two things at social gatherings: politics and religion. Furthermore I was also told the two do not mix. How far we have come from that now distant past. Those of the religious, Christian right are scary in many ways. They are willing to forsake the God they claim for themselves. They are willing to breech the constitution of the United States of America. And every day they look and sound more and more like the enemy...th
I agree. anything to the extreme is bad.
you know we focus so much on WW2 itself and the holocaust, but you raise the interesting point that it did not evolve over night... It started up in 1933 and we did not enter the war until almost January of 1942...and then it was over in 1945 (and here we are 7 years later and we haven't even touched bin laden and Iraq is not the super power that Germany was)
are we feeling like the frogs yet...
The Christian Right has been led to the trough of politics like a pig with a ring through it's nose. The trough is said to be filled with righteousness and goodness, containing the hope of reversing Roe v. Wade, the promise of prayer in schools as well as teaching creation in schools to combat the evils of Darwin and his scientific theory.
Lately the trough seems to have some new tidbits such as further erosion of the separation of church and state, forcing policies into law using the blessings of GOD as a mighty political lever and a general willingness to believe any political stance is right because it has been promoted by a true believer.
Much of this political transformation has been explained by Mr. Kevin Phillips in his 2006 book "American Theocracy". The book makes clear that the goal of the conservatives has for years been to bring some Christians into the fold and use them for political gain. Of course we know that such herding of people and their beliefs can run astray. Thus you have neoconservatives, some Christians, political hacks, and a bunch of unwitting followers all too easily swayed by emotion-laden, manipulative sqwakings, the latest example being McCain/Palin. We seem to be approaching a new "Tower of Babel" condition as a people.
Kevin Phillips book was fabulous and also dealt with Oil and debt... He did see this financial fiasco coming...
I am sick to death of Christian cr ap 24/7. There is a tapestry of different religions in this country. Where are the religious leaders? Why aren't they speaking up? I believe in a Divine Power. Not the bible at all. It is a fairy tale, a fantasy book about life. Some good ideas in it, also some really really warped things.
"Not Scary - Palin asked members of the church to pray "that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan.""
You are very wrong on this one.
Muslims and Arabs 'get' the code words.
And this is what has gotten this country into the fiasco we are in today in the Middle East.
Tony Blair spouted the same "reasoning"
"ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS"
That is about as ideological and rampant as it gets.
This is very dangerous.
Very.
Palin would push right wing Christianists into the Supreme court, much as Bush has done with Alito and Roberts--Catholics predisposed to align with entrenched power, even when that power hides abuses by priests and politicians.
Republicans need people who will believe in anything, and fundamentalists are tried and true in the credulity department. Palin has shown her willingness to fire anyone who opposes her, and this sort of vindictive certainty has been the ruling principle of Republican leadership far too long.
The only way to counter the fundamentalist sin of mistaking metaphor for truth, the hand pointing at the moon for the moon itself, is to marginalize them and not push them forward as leaders. Palin and her ilke are not scary, they are dangerous and the fact that so many people are willing to let them take over our public policy is a signal that our education system needs a lot of work. These people don't believe in science, the arts, or anything they can't fit into their pitiful misconstrued Bible.
"These people don't believe in science, the arts, or anything they can't fit into their pitiful misconstrued Bible"
I'll have to agree with that statement. It's very disturbing to see science and liberal arts viewed so negatively by so many people in America (who at the same time enjoy the hard won fruits of science and the arts in their everyday lives).
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