catholicsphere

Last week, US Senator Barack Obama, addressed Call to Renewal on faith and politics. In a departure from the kind of dismissive talk we’ve come to expect from Democratic politicians on matters of faith, Sen. Obama sounded more like “Pastor Obama”.

It’s certainly worth more than mere acknowledgment. It needs to be heralded.

There is both chastisement and humor at once in commentary such as:

I am not suggesting that every progressive suddenly latch on to religious terminology. Nothing is more transparent than inauthentic expressions of faith – the politician who shows up at a black church around election time and claps – off rhythm – to the gospel choir.

And, I believe he firmly strikes the nail when he argues:

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.

He also posits:

And in its historical struggles for freedom and the rights of man, I was able to see faith as more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death; it is an active, palpable agent in the world. It is a source of hope.

Sen. Obama’s comments are certainly relevant and I found the statement immediately above particularly interesting, in that I have seen the “hedge against death” argument used against atheistic beliefs — and I’ve even used it myself in the past. I think it paints our faith in a pale light. Do we believe simply because the prospect of the alternative is unpleasant? I certainly hope not … and I would suspect that is not the case for many — at least not that we would openly admit.

At points, Sen Obama would seem to be moving toward the party line of “separation of church and state”, saying “That during our founding, it was not the atheists or the civil libertarians who were the most effective champions of this separation; it was the persecuted religious minorities, Baptists like John Leland, who were most concerned that any state-sponsored religion might hinder their ability to practice their faith.” Yet, he doesn’t go that direction. He doesn’t defend the “party line”, but rather aims to give a practical way to contribute to a universal principle that is applicable under all versions of faith.

Of course, some may put forth that this is just an eloquent attempt to dissuade people of faith from having an influence in government and politics, so that crimes such as abortion may continue. And certainly Sen Obama’s stated pro-choice position does create such a sense. However, his words should not be a reason for continued and further polarization. Rather they should be a challenge to people of faith to forumulate their arguments in universal terms as well as religious ones.

[tags]Obama, Senate, Call to Renewal, secularism, government, faith, religion, church, state, separation, catholic, protestant, evangelical, speech, bible, scripture[/tags]