Religion_in_Politics

• Religion has always been a major force in US politics, policy, identity and culture. o It shapes the nation’s character, helps form Americans’ ideas about the world, and influences the ways they respond to events outside of their nation. • A lot of Americans sense that they, themselves are a chosen people and they believe that they have a duty to spread their values throughout the world. • The country is so religiously diverse that the balance of power always shifts. o Conservative strains of American Protestantism have gained more supporters and liberal Protestantism (which has dominated the country during the mid-20th cen.) has weakened. • WHY FOCUS EXCLUSIVELY ON PROTESTANTISM' o Protestantism has shaped much of the country’s identity and remains today the majority faith in the US. o Catholicism  2nd largest faith and largest single religious denomination in the US To understand how contemporary changes in Protestantism are afftecting the US I will be explaining the • 3 strains that have been the most influential (Protestantism) o Fundamentalist o Liberal Christianity o Evangelical Tradition FUNDAMENTALISTS: are emotional about their beliefs, they follow their ideas to their logical conclusion (emotional movement). They are interested in developing a consistent and all-embracing “Christian worldview” and then systematically applying it to the world. • There was a sting of intellectual and political defeats in the 1920-30s that they retreated into an isolation and a pessimism that were foreign to the optimistic orientation of 19th cen. American Protestantism. LIBERAL CHRISTIANITY: finds the core of Christianity in its ethical teachings rather than in its classic doctrines. They are reluctant to accept various biblical episodes as literal narrative (eg. 7 day creation, Garden of Eden, Noah’s flood), and their skepticism extends to the resurrection of Jesus. They see him as a sublime moral teacher, as they should follow through a lifetime of service. • The Reformation, in their view was the first stage of reclaiming the valuable core of Christianity. They eradicated the ideas of purgatory, papal infallibility, and transubstantiation. o Papal infallibility  Pope knowing the truth with certainty o Transubstantiation  bread & wine at communion, Jesus’ body and blood. • Liberal Christians believe that ethics are the same all over the world. Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and even Atheists can agree on what is right and wrong; every religion has a kernel of ethical truth. o Common morals, its obvious what is good and bad • Liberal Christianity leads to optimism both about the prospects for a peaceful world order and about international organizations such as the UN. o So they are promoting peace, they believe if everyone works together, it is attainable. EVANGELICALS: the third of the leading strands in American Protestantism, straddle the divide between fundemendalim and liberals. Their core beliefs share common roots with fundamentalism, but their ideas about the world have been heavily influenced by the optimism endemic (widespread) to US society. • Largest evangelical denomination in the US is the Southern Baptist Convention 16.3 million • 2nd largest; African-American churches National Baptist Convention, USA + National Baptist Convention of America (5 million each) • Church of God in Christ (5.5 million), largest Pentecostal denomination in the country that is predominantly African American. • Rapidly growing Assemblies of God (2.7 mill) largest pentecostal denomination, that isn’t predominantly black. Evangelicals attach a great deal of importance to the doctrinal tenets of Christianity. They believe in original sin and they believe that Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection can redeem man/ “born again”. They believe in biblical prophecies and premillennialism: the belief that Christ’s return will precede the establishment of the prophesied 1000 year reign of peace. • All Christians believe that they should show love and compassion to everyone, Christian or not. o For evangelicals this is a must because they strongly believe that billions of perishing souls can still be saved for Christ. They reinforce the message of Christian responsibility to the world. • Something that evangelicals don’t like is called “scientism”: the attempt to teach evolution or any other subject in such a way as to rule out the possibility of the existence and activity of God. THE BALANCE OF POWER Since the 1960s the number of American Christians has grown, but membershipin the mainline denominations has dropped. • Ways that religion affects politics, self-identified evangelicals provided roughly 40% of G.Bush’s total vote in 2004 o G. Bush is a United Methodist Church (UMC) is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline and evangelical. • Evengelicals have been playing a major role in congressional and senate elections, and the # of evangelicals in Congress has increased from around 10% in 1970 to 25% in 2004. OUT IN THE WORLD The growing influence of evangelicals has affected the US foreign policy in several ways 1. Humanitarian and human rights policies a. Evangelical leadership is altering priorities and methods while increasing overall support for both foreign aid and defence of human rights. 2. Israel a. Rising evangelical power has deepened US support for the Jewish state, even as the liberal Christian establishment has distanced itself from Jerusalem. • Evangelical power is not leading the US in a new direction • Were supporters of liberal movements in the 19th cen o Feminist overtones  Immolation of widows in India, footbinding in China, education in developing world, human sex trafficking • Have returned to a position of power in US politics, and have supported similar causes for humanitarian efforts o U.S aid to Africa has gone up by 67% o Human trafficking and sexual enslavement of women and children has become a higher priority in US policy Throughout all this good deed work, evangelicals have a goal in the back of their mind to proselytize and convert. People don’t always do something just because, there always has to be something in it for them. • Prefer to support smaller grass-root and faith-based organizations opposed to big ones. More interested in problem solving than institution building • Believe that Jewish people are a strong argument for God’s existence • Holocost is reminiscent of genocidal efforts of Pharoah in book of Exodus o Proof that God exists and acts in history ENDING • Religion in the US is too pluralistic for any single current to dominate • The growing presence and influence of non-Christian communities in the country – Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Seculars – will continue to limit the ability of any religious group to impose its values across the board. o All religions are working together for a common goal for peace and humanitarian reasons, morality. Questions: