America's changing religious right

Tim Montgomerie writes:

Two weeks ago, America's religious conservatives had some of the best news they'd heard in a long time.  The US Supreme Court upheld George W Bush's ban on the gruesome partial birth abortion procedure by five votes to four.  The President's appointment of John Roberts and then Samuel Alito had made a difference.  The successful nomination of John Roberts as Chief Justice will have the most lasting effect on the Court.  Roberts isn't just a conservative - he's a persuader.  Other judges - Scalia, Thomas and, perhaps, Alito, too - have the power to beat opponents in arguments but not always winsomely.  'Roberts is worth two judges,' one leading conservative commentator told BritainAndAmerica.

America's religious conservatives are not so happy at the Republican hopefuls for 2008, however.  Saturday's Wall Street Journal reviewed the main contenders:

"We have Rudy Giuliani, a twice divorced, pro-choice, supporter of civil unions; Mitt Romney, a Mormon who as recently as his 1994 Senate campaign against liberal icon Sen. Ted Kennedy was pro-choice and wishy-washy on gay marriage; John McCain, who voted against the gay marriage amendment and who crafted the campaign finance laws that have done much to damage the anti-abortion efforts of religious conservatives; or perhaps Fred Thompson, who supported McCain-Feingold and says that gay marriage is a state issue."

The WSJ quote comes from a profile-style interview with Richard Land of the influential Southern Baptist Convention.  Mr Land told Naomi Schaefer Riley that Sam Brownback, Mike Huckabee and Duncan Hunter were closer to his worldview but "the problem with those three guys is they don't give any indication they can win."

An unhappy religious right represents a real problem for the GOP.  It provides the footsoldiers of the Republican movement and the gay marriage ballot probably meant the difference between winning and losing Ohio (and hence the White House) in 2004.  But there are now four main challenges in keeping religious conservatives inside the GOP tent:

1. Dissatisfaction with the contenders for the GOP nomination.  All of the Republican hopefuls have weaknesses and promises of a socially conservative VP nominee or of Supreme Court appointees in the mould of Alito and Roberts may not be enough to energise a satisfactory number of religious conservatives.
2. Disappointment with George W Bush.  Although traditional evangelicals warm to President Bush's personal story and his judicial appointments (Land describes them as "24-carat"), many feel disappointed, unrealistically, at his failure to successfully progress the constitutional ban on gay marriage.  There are also mixed feelings about the President's Faith-Based Initiative.  Now in the very safe hands of Jay Hein the White House Office of Faith and Community-Based Initiatives has often worried evangelicals who have worried about the federal government co-opting religious ministries.
3. The changing nature of Christian America.  Evangelicals - particularly younger evangelicals - care about a broader and broader range of issues.  Most remain solidly pro-life but younger Christians are more tolerant of same-sex relationships.  Just as importantly they are closely engaged with international justice issues and the environment.  American Christians have powered the administration's efforts in Sudan, against malaria and world-beating legislation against human trafficking.  There are not many traditional leaders of the religious right who fully appreciate the scale of the changed worldview within their congregation.  One emerging thinker who does is former Bush speechwriter, Mike Gerson.  His forthcoming book on conservatism will set out new priorities on environmental stewardship (which many Christians cheesily call 'Creation care') and poverty-fighting.
4. The faith-friendly Democrats.  The Democrats are aware of their 'Christian problem' and their two leading contenders are much more 'faith-friendly' than either Al Gore or John Kerry.  Hillary Clinton has become known for regularly attending Senate prayer breakfasts and has talked about the need to reduce the number of abortions.  Barack Obama recently shared a platform with Rick Warren, author of the best-selling Purpose-Driven Life.  Christian hardliners won't be tempted by either candidate but the Democrats only need to convert a relatively small number to get on the winning side of the increasingly familar 50/50 elections.

The GOP's best hope of keeping religious conservatives on side may depend upon the war on terror.  Christian conservatives are most supportive of the President's hawkish approach and may be willing to forgive Giuliani and McCain more liberal positions on once trump issues if they are more reliable than Democrats in the war against Islamic fascism.  That is certainly the view of Jonah Goldberg, expressed on National Review Online:

"[The war on terror has] changed the attitudes of many Americans, particularly conservatives, about the central crisis facing the country. It's not that pro-lifers are less pro-life... It's that they really, really believe the war on terror is for real. At conservative conferences, on blogs, and on talk radio, pro-life issues have faded in their passion and intensity... Taken together, terrorism, Iraq, and Islam have become the No. 1 social issue."

The contours of Christian conservatism in the USA will be a regular topic for BritainAndAmerica.

Comments

[Matthew Dear]

Thanks for this very interesting article. Your comment that younger Christian Conservatives remain tough on abortion but more liberal on same-sex relationships, while being more concerned with issues such as social justice, the environment and international development is particularly fascinating for me - it mirrors my journey as a (British) Christian Conservative almost exactly.

[Terry]

Re the US young people, it actually shows that on homosexual relationships they're actually drifting away from Christian teaching - a bit like a Conservative espousing (New) Labour values. Are they still Conservatives? Partially...

[Steevo]

I truly hope the Christian community is 'reality-based' enough in their modern concerns to understand that the leading Democrats like the overwhelming consensus in office are Leftist/socialists and not much different than their nutroots base: the antithesis of traditional Judeo/Christian values. They're only more clever. They'll do their darndest to manipulate and sucker the hell out of them for votes.

[TomTom]

I wonder if we are really talking about "Christians" or Politics. In Europe the Churches seem to peddle a Left-Socialist policy line whereas in the US we are told it is a "Christian Right", which I dispute.

The issue in American religion is Money and to garner funds the religious corporations need issues to raise funds. Roe v Wade, that seminal faked abortion case decided by the erratic and delusional opinion of Justice Blackmun of the Mayo Clinic polarised issues in US politics and since then a whole slew of lifestyle/cultural issues have affected American denominations especially the various Protestant sects.

The Episcopalian Church fell off a cliff with its acceptance of Wiccanism, GLBT agendas through Integrity, and crackpot lunacies which made ECUSA apostate and heretical; so I do not find a monolithic Christian Right as some might intimate.

I think we have a commercially-driven, fund-raising agenda by groups than cater to the fears ordinary Americans have about the direction of their society. US voters have ONLY two parties to cater for all shades of opinion and a highly commercial approach to politics and religion. There is so much of American "Christianity" which is bound up with economic success and the redemptive power of altar-calls and donations.

I think the differences are very much linked to the role of The State in European politics having replaced the Monarchy as fount of all power and the absence of a centralised power in the USA....in short where Absolute Monarchy existed State Socialism has succeeded in becoming the New Absolutism.

[Steevo]

We are a large nation of peoples with individuality from one community to the next, coast to coast. You're correct in that it is not just the so-called Christian Right. But, with respect to the Republican party for the past generation or so it is generally acknowledged the Christian Right is a substantial component motivating the party's base.

What you've revealed I'll assume is the result of highly cynical secular and largely anti-American media saturating your side of the ocean for a long time now. I am surprised actually, you have me wondering if this is a general perspective most in the UK have about professing Christians in America? Maybe you're also influenced by a sheep-like Christian mentality in Europe.

As one living here I can only say it seems to me, at least with those of conservative bent, personal conviction is real... according to very real values. Its a given most everyone is affected by family, friends, media, and educational institutions. Church institutional role as you've described does not have such regard or significance.

The conservative Christians I've been around know why they know and don't vote because of an official stance unless in their personal faith under their God... or common good sense, it happens to be in agreement.

They have to understand (especially the young) what the Democrats are about. When they talk the talk, that's all it is. They don't walk it and if anything will make it more difficult for conservative Christians.

[Adam]

Hmmm if it really is a problem with Fred Thompson that he regards same-sex marriage as a state and not a federal issue, then the GOP ought to be worried by the Christian Right. An agenda of an ever-expanding big federal government trampling over states' rights, is no good for the rest of the supposedly small government, tax-cutting, let people get on with their lives, Republican agenda.

[DavidDPB]

It's so depressing that these people have such a political sway.

[Reagan Fan]

Your point three and subsequent point four illustrate how the religious right may in fact dwindle and be replaced by a the politically religious, a group with internal consistency but less tribal loyalty to a specific party. Interestingly the two Republican Presidential candidates who are the strongest credible proponents of the Long War on Terror are the two the Religious Right most abhor, McCain and Giuliani. Unless they want to be neutralised as any sort of political force they are going to have to compromise on their domestic obsessions (God, guns and gays) in order to promote their wider global view. If they don't they'll end up with what they must regard as the worst of all worlds, Hillary, or Obama, or Gore...

[Tim Montgomerie]

This article - Let's Make A Deal - by Noemie Emery may be of interest to you, Reagan Fan. It calls for religious conservatives to make a deal with the leading GOP hawks.

[Keir]

The seems more and more to be named America.com.
Many of these articles are written with an agenda that Brits or Commonwealth citizens wouldn't understand, let alone appreciate. Few if any in Britain have any regard for religion, and the abortion debate is one that MIGHT be valid in Northern Ireland, but then they're behind the times to say the least.
Might I submit that this site sticks to issues that unite both sides of the Atlantic to build the common bond referred on top of the page? If I was interested in American politics or provincial issues I'd just as well stick to the 1000s of sites that investigate such issues from Drudgereport to Huffingtonpost.
Abortion, capital punishment, same sex marriage- we're all over our heads fighting terrorism and you're going on about those issues?!

[Tim Montgomerie]

Keir: I'm agreed with you that fighting terrorism should be our number one task but this site is dedicated to understanding Britain and America. Understanding America, its Republican party and some of the forces at play in the next presidential election requires some understanding of the religious right. Whether you agree with the religious right's agenda or not, they cannot be ignored.

[Gildas]

Many of these articles are written with an agenda that Brits or Commonwealth citizens wouldn't understand, let alone appreciate.

The way I see it, is that this site presents (a subset that is of interest to its editors) of American news, written for a British audience [and visa versa].

There is a huge need for that because most coverage of US affairs in the British Press is utterly dreadful - mostly what various foreign correspondents have cribbed from the New York Times and Washington Post, with a little bit of human interest (but hardly representative of news) stories thrown in.

Sure you could read the US press and blogs, but you'll find references not fully explained and explanatory context that the casual British reader would need missing.

[Philip]

“Evangelicals - particularly younger evangelicals - care about a broader range of issues. Most remain solidly pro-life but younger Christians are more tolerant of same-sex relationships.”

If becoming more “tolerant” of same-sex relationships means departing from the Biblical view of homosexual practice, then these so-called “evangelical Christians” are departing from the Christian position on this since Bible times. Christians should never compromise Biblical truth. However if being “tolerant” means refusing homophobia and acknowledging that in a democratic political process, it might not be possible for Christians to get all they want, then that’s OK, but they naturally want laws of the land to reflect God’s Word.

Even with abortion, which must be a more important issue, it seems Christians have to work for inch-by-inch change in seeking to protect the lives of unborn children, taking account of where society is ‘at’. The Supreme Court decision to uphold GWB's ban on partial birth abortion therefore is really welcome as a start. However I note it was only by five votes to four – perhaps all the more reason to get another pro-life President in the White House. So if I may offer a view from this side of the pond, Giuliani, Romney and John McCain do not impress, although the latter probably has the edge and would of course be far preferable to Hillary or Obama. It’s a pity that Brownback doesn’t seem to be doing better.

It is good Christians are engaging with a broader range of issues, including global warming, while hopefully not reducing involvement with the traditional areas of concern for life and family which are foundations of a healthy society.

[write a dissertation]

Blogs are good for every one where we get lots of information for any topics nice job keep it up !!!

[dissertation write up]

Blogs are good for every one where we get lots of information for any topics nice job keep it up !!!

[Essay Help]

Hi,
I personally think that these sensitive issues must be resolved keeping in mind the religious as well as social perspective. I am glad to read about such an issue that is being raised here

[nakedcelebs]

http://milf-hunter.50milfs.com/
Many have tried and failed to stimulate isomeric isotopes into emitting high energy photons enough to serve as a gain medium and produce a coherent gamma ray beam that might serve as a laser for purposes civil and military. Princeton's Richard Wheeler surfaced the idea of matter-antimatter annihilation in positronium serving this purpose decades ago, but only now have electron-positron molecules been observed to condense into quantum states of technological use in applications as diverse as space propulsion and medicine.
Spin exchange quenching of molecular species containing antimatter may lead to stable Bose-Einstein condensates of materials like Dipositronium, making possible stored energy densities vastly higher than today's, and coherent emission at wavelengths short enough to image -- and 'optically' pump-- nuclear quantum states, yielding advances comparable to those stemming from the discovery of x-rays or nuclear magnetic resonance
http://www-hairypussy.com/
http://nakedcelebscity.com/