Religion in Politics

[skudros]

Should personal faith be a legit factor in the decicision making of US Politicians (this was sparked by the Miguel Estrada/Bill Pryor/Pope's decree on gay union) thing

[skudros]

1. My first Topic, yay!

Please play with me :(

[ibegurpard]

5. LOL

I think that people's religious beliefs are always going to play a factor in the decisions they make. However, it is essential that they not let their religious beliefs override the necessity of providing an environment where all religious beliefs AND LACK THEREOF can co-exist.

[HawkerHurricane]

2. Sure

As long as they admit it, publicly and beforehand, so I can decide whether or not I'm going to vote for them.
If they intend to follow a faith, they should say so. Then, if I disagree with that faith, I can vote against them.

[skudros]

4. What about

judges?

[HawkerHurricane]

8. If they announce thier beliefs

then we can say yes/no based on thier beliefs. For instance, that Judge in Alabama who illegally put the 10 commandments in his foyer: he's welcome to his beliefs, but should be voted out as the intolerant fundie he is. If appointed, he's shown that he cannot judge fairly on that subject, and should either not hear cases involving religion (recusing himself) or resign. If he refuses to do either, he should be impeached for his bias.

To say that politicians cannot have religious beliefs is to put a religious test for holding office, which is unconstitutional.

[lcordero]

3. No

What's good for a RW fundie is definitely not acceptable to me. They should not be allowed to impose their views on the rest of the world at large under any circumstances.

[skudros]

6. Thats not what im asking

I am a man of strong faith and there are certain things I see as in conflict with that faith and will not be able to make decisions that contradict those, and please dont use the word "fundie" just because someone has strong faith does not mean that they should be degraded.

BTW not all "fundies", as in fundamentalists, persons who hold to the fundamental beliefs in their faith, are right wing.


Shalom

[Az]

7. One's beliefs are inseperable from ones politics

There is a wall of seperation between church and state. But we cannot erect a wall of seperation within a person's mind. A person is guided by who they are and their beliefs are a fundimental part of that. There shall be no religious test determining one's eligibility to represent the people. That cuts both ways.

Whether a politician is a good representitive of all the people may depend on whether they can keep a wall of seperation in their own mind. There are things which they may believe are personally wrong but must be left to the individual to decide where they stand on the matter. It is on matters such as this that ideally they should keep their faith removed from politics.

Unfotunately not all do this. Some would try to usurp our secular government and put in its place a theocratic state. Our only recourse is to fight this and defend the wall of seperation. The wall stands for all, not just for the nonbelievers.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

9. One old guy's thoughts on religion and politics:

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between church and State.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Danbury Baptist Association, CT., Jan. 1, 1802

History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free civil government. This marks the lowest grade of ignorance of which their civil as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purposes.
-Thomas Jefferson to Alexander von Humboldt, Dec. 6, 1813.

[kixot]

10. As another person of strong faith

I have to say that I would PREFER if politicians stick to good, sound policy based on the needs ot the public, rather than dictating policy by the whims of his faith. As a Catholic, I am personally against abortion but I would NOT vote for a politician who opposed it because I don't beleive we need to legislate the issue, it's a personal matter.

The faith of the politician is important only in as much as whether that politician will support legislation soley on grounds of his faith or base it on what is most representative of the public's needs. It is no better for a politician to push his/her faith on me any more than it would be right for me to push mine on them. Those who can not distinguish between the public good and their own fundamentalist agenda should not be in power.

[skudros]

12. i LIKE YOUR RESPONSE THANK YOU

=0

[sandnsea]

11. Faith is a path of personal salvation

When it becomes a doctrine of ruling, it becomes fanaticism and harmful. History is replete with examples and we really need to learn from that. The clergy leads their flock, politicians lead the country based on the Constitution. That's what I think.

[Character Assassin]

13. Of course it should be. Why wouldn't it?

[whoYaCallinAlib]

14. Deeply held convicions have to shade all your thinking.

Those convictions will impact your decisions if you are a judge.