Of course Mike Huckabee's answer to that question is yes and he makes that an important part of his campaign, at least in the South right now. However, in doing so, he treats those that he targets with some contempt. There is also his past actions which appear to be more about getting along than standing for principle. This is not to say he isn't a Christian, but to those persuaded by this part of his campaign, perhaps the type of Christian he actually is, should be considered.
Peggy Noonan addresses this use of faith in her latest editorial.
I love the cross. The sight of it, the fact of it, saves me, literally and figuratively. But there is a kind of democratic politesse in America, and it has served us well, in which we are happy to profess our faith but don't really hit people over the head with its symbols in an explicitly political setting, such as a campaign commercial, which is what Mr. Huckabee's ad was.
I wound up thinking this: That guy is using the cross so I'll like him. That doesn't tell me what he thinks of Jesus, but it does tell me what he thinks of me. He thinks I'm dim. He thinks I will associate my savior with his candidacy. Bleh.
She notes how this framing of his positions increases the divides in the party and in conservatism.
Mr. Huckabee is clever. He puts forth his policies, such as they are, based on a faith-based understanding of public policy, and if you disagree with his policies, or take a hard shot at them, or at him, he suggests the reason is that you look down on evangelicals. This creates a new fissure in a party already riven by fissures. (source)
This problem will only be magnified in a general election and very much weaken his abilities to win. When we have the very real possibility that the next President will be appointing one perhaps two Supreme Court justices, do we really want to risk having a candidate whose strategy during the primaries is the very strategy that will undermine success at the national level? That's also on top of the rather cynical manipulating use of Christianity being employed by Mike Huckabee, offensive enough on it's own.
But perhaps some Christians are holding on to their prayers, that whatever two or more agree to in prayer, God will provide. I'm not going to get into a theological discussion on prayer here. However, I will note that this Christian seems to have a tendency to get along and move himself forward, rather than stand on principle.
..a luncheon for the ordained Baptist minister was arranged by evangelical Christians. On hand was Judge Paul Pressler, a hero to Southern Baptist Convention reformers. But he was a nonpaying guest who supports Fred Thompson for president.
...Pressler, a former Texas appeals court judge, [has commented] that Huckabee had been a slacker in the war against secularists within the Baptist church.
...More than personality explains why not all his Baptist brethren have signed on the dotted line for Huckabee. He did not join the "conservative resurgence" that successfully rebelled against liberals in the Southern Baptist Convention a generation ago.
Criticism from co-religionists stands apart from criticism by the Club for Growth, the Cato Institute and the Arkansas Eagle Forum of Huckabee's 10 big-government, high-tax years as governor. Because no Republican candidate since Pat Robertson in 1988 has depended so much on support from evangelicals, opposition by Huckabee's fellow Southern Baptists is significant.
[...]
...Fighting to drive the liberals from the temple, Scarborough was badly defeated for president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas while Huckabee embraced the liberal church establishment to become president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention.
Judge Pressler, who led the Southern Baptist conservative resurgence in the late '70s... When Huckabee on Nov. 9 announced the Southern Baptist leaders supporting him, Pressler was not on the list; on Dec. 7, Pressler endorsed Thompson. Pressler is known to be concerned that Huckabee plays to the establishment and would be subservient to the State Department and the New York Times. (source)
Huckabee may make a fine pastor or Sunday school teacher, but fellow Christians, let's keep in mind that we are trying to elect someone to be President of the United States. The skill set for the former, may not be a guarantee of having the abilities for the latter and in the way Huckabee is using those skills, may mean that he doesn't even have the ability to win the general election, or having won, shows that he was not the best person for the job.
With so much at stake in the near future, national security, the rule of law and our borders being secure and the direction of the Supreme Court for the following decades, we must carefully weigh our decisions. Let's not let the mainstream media stroke our pride and in the end only guarantee that the candidate our work and prayers supported was the one that was certain to lose. Even worse, that Mike Huckabee wins because of his Christianity and fails to stand on principle when it comes to border security, the supreme court, foreign relations and other matters important to our future.
Christians may have the ability to make Mike Huckabee the Republican candidate for President and though an extreme long shot, actually win. But to whom much is given, must is to be expected. We need to not be moved by cynical manipulations of our faith and thereby make an historical blunder. I pray that my fellow Christians will think clearly and carefully about the decisions they make in this election.
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Filed under: Christianity -- Politics -- Religion -- NewsPolitics
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