Insinuations Candidate Slate Not Sufficiently Religious
Those that express a Christian Reconstructionist or Dominionist perspective are in an uproar that it is imperative that Christians only vote for other Christians.
Some holding to this perspective even contend that only confirmed Christians should be allowed to run for public office and if you vote for someone that isn’t, even if none are running, your soul could very well be in danger of eternal damnation.
Yet there isn't a single Republican candidate that hasn't assented to at least a belief in God.
What is not often deliberately spelled out is that, if a candidate does not agree with this particular subset of the broader Evangelical spectrum nearly 100% on what in Christian thought are categorized as secondary issues, one is not considered to be a Christian at all in the eyes of this perspective’s adherents.
For example, it is not enough for a conservative presidential hopeful to pledge to stand against gay marriage.
Rather, to these fanatics, one is branded an apostate if one believes Old Testament injunctions to put homosexuals to death only applied within the context of ancient Israel and were set aside by Christ Himself when the Lord intervened at the stoning of the adulterous woman.
It must be asked, though it is doubtful they will even answer and even more likely to threaten to report you to Facebook administrators when you raise concerns about these kinds of omissions in their professed ideology, just who in a Rushdoonyian regime will decide whose belief is sincere and pure enough to be granted permission to seek elected office?
The Founding Fathers intended religion in general and Christianity in particular to exert a profound influence over American culture.
However, when the faith’s institutionalized forms end up determining who may enjoy the rights and benefits of citizenship, it has become a very pillar of the kind of tyranny that it was hoped such devotion and piety would serve as a bulwark against in the first place.
Frederick Meekins is an independent theologian and social critic. Frederick holds a BS in Political Science/History, a MA in Apologetics/Christian Philosophy from Trinity Theological Seminary, and a PhD. in Christian Apologetics from Newburgh Theological Seminary.