Religion and Public Debate
Yesterday I watched Mitt Romney be grilled over his Mormon faith and specific tenets of Mormonism. I think Romney handled himself well and gave reasonable answers. The questions focused too long on the Mormon church's teaching about blacks in the church. Granted the Mormon church was a bit behind the rest of America, but so were other institutions.
Here is the point. Religion in America does not have to conform to secular belief. That is the beauty of "freedom of religion". The constitution guarantees everyone the freedom to worship according to their conscience. It also guarantees the freedom not to worship. And everyone can argue or discuss the subject to the hearts content.
Now when a person runs for public office all parts of their life will come under intense scrutiny. Voters will want to know the candidates stand on everything from national security to social security. In today's climate they will also want to know their position on abortion and gay marriage. But that's ok in this public arena.
People will have the choice to decide how and whom they want to vote for based on many things, and religion will be one of those "things" for some voters. If we want to scrutinize Mormon beliefs then we should do the same with Roman Catholicism. Last time I checked the Catholic church does not ordain women to the priesthood. How behind the times is that? Many churches do not ordain openly gay people to their ministry. Other candidates today could be questioned just as rigorously on these and other points as Romney is on his Mormonism.
Religion is a very potent political force in American politics. We are seeing this in the current surge of Mike Huckabee, a Republican and an ordained Baptist minister. Whether his candidacy is deep enough to stand and deliver on the national stage is yet to be seen. But for now it appears the evangelical base in Iowa has swung into gear behind him.
Religious view will influence a candidates views on a range of issues. Concern for the poor will no doubt influence social policy. Voters will be swayed by many factors. Gender, race, ethnicity and yes, even religion influence one way or the other. There is nothing wrong with Catholics supporting John Kennedy in 1960 or Mormons supporting Mitt Romney in 2008. What is wrong is making a candidates theology a public issue for debate.
I say again that religion and politics don't mix well in today's world. When it a politician's personal religion is open for public attack then we are seeing a change in American society-and this change is not for the good.
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Darris McNeely
Darris McNeely works at the United Church of God home office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He and his wife, Debbie, have served in the ministry for more than 43 years. They have two sons, who are both married, and four grandchildren. Darris is the Associate Media Producer for the Church. He also is a resident faculty member at the Ambassador Bible Center teaching Acts, Fundamentals of Belief and World News and Prophecy. He enjoys hunting, travel and reading and spending time with his grandchildren.
