Despite repeated denials, there are still many conservative persons, including many conservative Christians who think the President of the United States is a Muslim. One can only imagine that his recent remarks about the proposed mosque in N.Y. near ground zero will only further fuel such opinions. There has been a recent Pew Research poll done on opinions about Obama’s faith—– here is the link to an article about it. See what you think.
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/08/19/obamas-religion-still-at-issue-for-many-americans-a-fifth-say/?ncid=AOLDSN00280000000031
As for my opinion, I think that Barack Obama is most certainly a self-professed African American Christian. I am in no position to judge what is in the man’s heart so I must take what he says, and what various of his friends like Rick Warren, say as the truth unless there is compelling evidence to the contrary, which there definitely is not.
What bothers me about the persistence of this sort of discussion is that it involves fear-mongering and all sorts of emotive rhetoric without any sound basis in facts. If a person does not like the President’s politics, that is one thing. The attempt to link his political views to his religious views is a two edged sword. There are plenty, indeed I would say millions of devout Christians in American who mostly share Obama’s political views. Does this make them somehow, not Christian? Surely not. So more circumspection is called for in making pejorative statements about Obama’s Christian faith, based on pure suspicions and a dislike for his politics. Let the vituperative ones take the log out of their own eyes first, before trying to extract the perceived speck in someone else’s eye.
posted August 20, 2010 at 2:03 pm
I do not believe that President Obama is a Muslim. I believe that he is a liberal Christian, which is to say a secular pluralist who expresses his beliefs in religious terms for political purposes.
The fact that 18% of Americans believe that Obama is a Muslim may be evidence of appalling ignorance in the American populace, or it may be a sign that Obama’s vagueness on religious matters (he has not really referenced his own faith since the election campaign) may be aiding public ignorance. It is probably a bit of both.
posted August 20, 2010 at 2:11 pm
Thanks for the post. I agree completely.
posted August 20, 2010 at 4:23 pm
John, I’m a liberal Christian, but I’m not a secular pluralist. So, those two things don’t go hand-in-hand. Also, liberals are not the only ones who express their beliefs in religious terms for political purposes. In fact, the other side does it much more than the left. That’s why it’s called the “Religious Right”.
posted August 20, 2010 at 4:32 pm
There is ignorance, then there is this: a willful, hateful ignorance. ‘Obamaphobia’ and numerous other lie-based fear-mongering, reveals an ugly core that makes me wonder why any thinking person would be drawn to the faith.
posted August 20, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Brian, I was alluding to something Francis Schaeffer wrote once, that “liberal theology is only Humanism using theological terms, and that’s all it ever was, all the way back into Germany right after the Enlightenment. So when they come down on the side of easy abortion and infanticide, as some of these liberal denominations as well as theologians are doing, we shouldn’t be surprised. It follows as night after day.”
I think that’s where Barack Obama is, too. His support for abortion has been radical and unequivocal, which indicates that his worldview is not flowing from a Biblical of humanity created in the image of God but from a secular one where man is ultimately the measure of all things.
Without a doubt, Republicans can be cynical in using religious language for political purposes as well, and I am hardly in agreement with the Religious Right on much, either, but I at least have a clear idea of whether Jerry Falwell believed about the authority of the Bible and whether Jesus actually rose from the dead.
posted August 20, 2010 at 4:42 pm
Sorry for the many grammatical mistakes, by the way. In the future, I will make sure to review what I type before I post it.
posted August 20, 2010 at 5:32 pm
Thanks for this friends. Always good to have a dead President commenting on my blog. You may have seen the statement that came out yesterday from the White House— an adamant declaration that Obama is a practicing Christian. I know some of the folks he relies on for advice and they are certainly devout Christians. If by liberal, one means committed to the Social Gospel as well as the spiritual Gospel, then yes, Obama is liberal. I am tired of Obamaphobia. And this word just in— its a sin, as is a lot of the pejorative remarks and pictures of Obama in vaudeville black face.
BW3
posted August 21, 2010 at 8:19 am
I’m not too surprised that 20% of America believes President Obama is a Muslim. 1 in 5 believe the sun orbits the earth.
I do believe that when (at least some) conservatives realized that Americans elected not only a Democrat, but a BLACK MAN as their president, they went insane. I haven’t seen much to refute that theory yet.
posted August 21, 2010 at 9:08 am
There are two sites to read. The First is an interview with Obama from 2008. Second is Glenn Beck (I’m not a total fan but I enjoyed his latest book of fiction). You have to read the first to understand Beck’s viewpoint. I’ll let you decide what’s more accurate. Of course maybe we should question Beck’s faith too the same way we judge Obama’s.
http://blog.beliefnet.com/stevenwaldman/2008/11/obamas-interview-with-cathleen.html
http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/44502/
posted August 21, 2010 at 9:11 am
Oops…An error. The interview was from 2004.
posted August 21, 2010 at 2:05 pm
Beck’s transcript shows why he is such a master at twisting people’s words for fun and profit. Based on the 2004 interview, Obama’s faith at that time doesn’t seem to be within Christian orthodoxy; however, that is a far cry from type of person Glenn Beck tries to paint Obama to be.
posted August 21, 2010 at 9:23 pm
From an outsiders perspective, I just do not understand how American politics is so influenced by the “Christian” vote. What does it matter if Barack Obama is a Muslim, Atheist, Hindu, Christian or whatever. Surely their competence to run the country is what matters. USA will not turn into a hell hole if it is run by a non-Christian – yet it will if it is run by someone who is incompetent.
Yesterday in Australia we just had our election. In the lead up there were some great articles on how Christians should vote like:
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/in-the-political-realm-birds-of-a-feather-dont-necessarily-flock-together-20100728-10vy3.html
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/stories/s2966837.htm
Worthy of a read in my opinion if you have the time
posted August 21, 2010 at 9:52 pm
Obama’s Comment:
What I believe in is that if I live my life as well as I can, that I will be rewarded. I don’t presume to have knowledge of what happens after I die. But I feel very strongly that whether the reward is in the here and now or in the hereafter, the aligning myself to my faith and my values is a good thing.
http://blog.beliefnet.com/stevenwaldman/2008/11/obamas-interview-with-cathleen.html
Those are not the words of a man who knows Christ, lives for the LORD and is in any sense Christian.
posted August 22, 2010 at 12:30 am
There are plenty of nuts and extremists on both side of the political isles. From Real Clear Politics:
“Fully 35 percent of Democrats believe George W. Bush had advance knowledge of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Fully 28 percent of Republicans believe Barack Obama wasn’t born in the United States.”
There are plenty who are misinformed and believe in silly things. But this story is not just a “Christians hate Obama therefore he is a Muslim” or “Conservatives hate Obama therefore lets spread lies about him.” It is a little more complicated than that. Try http://www.getreligion.org/?p=41281 and http://www.getreligion.org/?p=41212 regarding how this story has been reported.
Just one more thing. In general, no one on the national scene is making his religion an issue. The disagreement is over his policies and the direction of this country. I do not know of any Republicans running a compagine by saying vote for me because Obama is a Muslim. The “issue” is mostly created by the press to change the focus on the plight of country and how the Democrats is hurting the economy, not a Obama’s religion.
posted August 24, 2010 at 3:25 am
Obama professes to be a Christian. If he has repented of his sin and put his faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who died on the cross for our sins and physically rose again, then he is a Christian. If he has not done that, then he is not a Christian. God knows the heart.
When asked in an interview, “What is sin?”, Obama gave this reply, “Being out of alignment with my values.”
“What happens if you have sin in your life?” the interview asked.
“I think it’s the same thing as the question about heaven. In the same way that if I’m true to myself and my faith that that is its own reward, when I’m not true to it, it’s its own punishment.” Obama replied.
While only God knows the heart, we can observe that Obama’s definition of sin deviates from the biblical definition. Therefore, it’s not surprising that people wonder if Obama has repented of his sins in the true biblical sense.
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