On the Christian Right to Rule

I know I told you I was done with politics until after the new year, but I cannot be silent any longer. I hear so many people sounding off about the role Christianity played in the election that I feel like I have to say something.

I am only going to say this once: Do not blame/praise Christians for the re-election of Geroge W. Bush. It is not our fault/victory. It is indicative of a large scale political movement in America that just happens to somewhat coincide with the ramblings of madmen like Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and Richard Land.

First, let it be remembered that these "Southern fundamentalists" all reside in states that were blood red long before Bush or Kerry. The "solid South" is a phenomenon that is as old as Nixon. No red state was going to vote for Kerry with national defense on the line. Everybody south of the Mason-Dixon and west of the Great Lakes but short of the coast "knows" that Democrats are weak on defense.

Second, the churches that the "moral majority" represent are not growing. Christianity in the South is in a long and slow spiral when you look at actual church attendance. You cannot have a Christian resurgence without a resurgence of Christianity. No massive revivals are breaking out anywhere, including the red states. The Southern Baptist Convention is in the midst of budget cuts, and the long-term prognosis is not so great. The church leaders have no national majority behind them. They just happened to be on the winning side.

Finally, take a close look at the election results in Oklahoma. All those Christians who flocked to the polls as a majority certainly voted for GWB and Tom Coburn and the ban on same-sex marriage. But they also must have voted against "Christian morality" as defined by their church leaders (www.gamblingmouse.com) when they approved both the state lottery and casino style gambling on Indian land. How can the church achieve such stunning victory yet also suffer such astonishing defeat? Simple, voters were not informed by religious convictions but socio-political concerns. (Isn't that a liberal democracy in action, though?)

I do not find a very convincing argument anywhere pointing to GWB riding a tide of religious renewal to a stunning victory. And do not think for a minute that GWB considers conservative evangelicals as anything other than a "part" of his base. He has not, and will not, recognize any of these religious leaders as integral to his win. There will be no cabinet appointements from Bob Jones University, or even from Oklahoma Baptist U. He had the red states before a single Christian ever marked a ballot. That is politics at work, America. Before we go to the press and claim to have a "moral majority", we better come clean and admit that our "moral" majority is not necessarily a "Christian" majority.