Jesus to deliver keynote at Democratic Convention

Well, not exactly.  But Jesus will be invoked ad nauseum on the political stage in Denver next week.  From today's Washington Post:

The campaign also announced Saturday that the upcoming Democratic National Convention would have a strong religious flavor, with "faith caucus meetings" to discuss religious voters' concerns and daily invocations and benedictions from national faith leaders. The list includes Joel Hunter, a prominent Republican pastor from an evangelical Florida church; a Greek Orthodox archbishop; a Roman Catholic nun from Cleveland; and a Colorado couple who are both Methodist ministers.

Topics of the faith caucus meetings include "How an Obama Administration Will Engage People of Faith"; "Moral Values Issues Abroad"; and "Getting Out the Faith Vote."

- from Key Constituency Is At Play At Candidates' Faith Forum

It's a political convention, for goodness sakes!  Can't they keep to politics and refrain from using my God, my church, my holy book as political props?  When politicians of either party begin using faith for political leverage, I get very worried.  And in this 2008 race, Obama and the Democrats have far exceeded the Republican's penchant for blending God and governance (see here and here and here and here).  Shame on them.

Comments

[Matt Staniz (Beyond Capernaum)]

They're really gonna do it, aren't they? They're going to try to blend faith and politics in the same inproper way as the right has done over the past 30 years. I'm beginning to think that Tony Campolo was right when compared mixing religion and politics to mixing ice cream with cow shit. It doesn't really hurt the shit...but the ice cream is ruined. I'd go a step further to say that it's not a one-way street...the shit gets degraded, too. Not sure which one was which, I'd assume the politics were the shit (although, I'd be more incline to let the religion be so).

How do we convince people that their faith should drive them into the public square, but at the same time, must not shape the public square in such a way that would make it less than public? If the Democrats are willing to wrestle with that question, bringing every voice to the table, perhaps they'll lead better than the republican have with regard to church, etc. & state.

[Diane Roth]

yes, reminds me of the Republican convention 4 years ago. Besides the religious stuff, the Republicans also had buttons making fun of John Kerry's war record, and his Purple Hearts.