Georgetown/On Faith

Obama's State of the Union: bye bye faith and values, hello education?

By Jacques Berlinerblau

"So, Jacques, what's the over/under on tonight's 'Scripture bombs'?"

That's a question reporters sometimes used to ask me before a major address by the president or a presidential candidate back in 2008.

Let me explain. A "Scripture bomb" is my term for the citation, whether explicit or covert, whether verbatim or glossed, of words from the Bible by a politician during an important speech.

Going into tonight's State of the Union I gave my standard prediction: "the over/under is three citations from the 'Good Book'" (if the speaker, however, is Mike Huckabee, George W. Bush, or Joseph Lieberman circa 2000, then the number raises to five).

Well, now that the speech is over --it was pretty good --it is clear that Obama went "under." Indeed, on my live blog for my colleagues over at the Chronicle of Higher Education, I referred to it as "The Education SOU."

Obama spoke, generically, of America as "a light to the world" (invoking Isaiah 51:4). Perhaps his reference to "a better place beyond the horizon" is an allusion to Luke 14:10. So at 1.5 Scripture bombs it seems that the president mostly avoided the Bible last night.

I can't remember any president in any one speech referring to education, teachers, college, campus, science, technology, research, development, and so forth, more than Obama did tonight.

What does it all mean for faith and values campaigning in 2012? This is an interesting question. As you may recall, F&V pundits such as myself lived large in 2008.

It seemed that every day offered us a fresh implosion, whether it be Reverend Wright, or Pastor Hagee, or Mike Huckabee (all blessings be upon him), or Pastor Warren's "cone of silence." Those were the days, 2008. Good times.

But I am starting to wonder if 2012 will be different. Some have speculated that the Democrats are nowhere near as mobilized around faith communities and religious issues as they were in the previous presidential election.

Republicans, for their part, may be pondering a truism about the white evangelical voters who delivered so graciously for them in 2004: you can't win your party's nomination if you ignore the GOP's evangelical base, but if you trumpet that base's concerns too loudly then you risk alienating massive sectors of the non-evangelical electorate in a general election.

In any case, Obama's address was unusually bereft of God talk. Conservative Christian constituencies who prefer that we honor God in the public square may take note of the "under."

By Jacques Berlinerblau |  January 25, 2011; 11:04 PM ET

 | Category:  The God Vote Save & Share:  Send E-mail   Facebook   Twitter   Digg   Yahoo Buzz   Del.icio.us   StumbleUpon   Technorati  
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Posted by: wiki-truth | January 30, 2011 11:58 AM
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When the subject is on FAITH or the BIBLE, how many ask questions? Just start with the Adam & Eve story. Ask who, when, and where it was written and the same for the gospels being translated. Also who, when, where and why the gospels that where that where choose to be the bible. P.S. Since Adam & Eve, what happened to the other souls for the rest of the time until Christ birth and how many years are we speaking of? Time to think and ask questions and look at the evidence and have faith if you agree with your peace of mind.

Posted by: usapdx | January 28, 2011 5:48 AM
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scripture bomb? now we are comparing it to "f-bombs" as in somene was so angry they cussed him out and dropped an "f-bomb"? Sure the author could have come up with something more creative and reverent

Posted by: detroitblkmale30 | January 28, 2011 12:25 AM
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"Honoring God in the public square" is a misnomer because "God" is a sectarian concept. The politician who does so is favoring monotheistic religions over others. I had qualms with Obama's religious references at Christina Green's funeral, where he came somewhat close to treating Christianity as a state religion. But this didn't seem as large an issue as the theocratic ramblings of the James Dobsons and Pat Robertsons, partly because of the context.

Posted by: Carstonio | January 27, 2011 3:45 PM
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iNTERESTHING.

My My, T-i-M-E is the Best Medicine (for Consensus).

Brother Slamin-Dunkin-Bama was 'Presidential' or a better prez at that. Pleazaa, forget the 'split-Lip' or the 'Lipstick-Momma' stuff.

i [WE] thinks or rather know for-Sure That Mr. OBAMA Avoided the CHURCH stuff out of his (& Admins) awareness & Respect for the 20% (now) but soon-To-Be the-Majority Of Ameri-CAN-DO's Nation whom are officially, Like a Religion are the SECULAR-Voice/Voter, Agnostic, Humanist, Atheist & Gang. (YEP!, YeYo Reads this righteous).

Note: This Holyi-Nation ain't like the Minority COPTIC Christiana/o's in Aegypt where 90% art SHARIA mind'ds.

So, OBAMA 'Respectful' to The 20% Of Registered Voters whom are Closet or Open None-Religious!

PREDICTION: By The Year 2018-2020, Sweet Sweet U.S. of A.'s is Gonna be 40% "Secular" and or "Atheist" and or "Agnostic" and Or "Humanist" etc.. WHY, because the "HOLYi COsmic FEeler's FAith" Children are Com'th, as Prophecied in ALL YeYo's iNFIXUS-BOOK(s) [Book of Dead, Chumash, Bible, Quran, BkMormon, Geeta, Kangyurs, Gatha's, etc..] WHEREFORE:

VOTE: APOCALYPTIC GOVERNMENT (No more PreApocalyptic) and GRIDARIAN-DEMOCRACY!"

Somthin to LiVE For, NOt to Die For!

PS: J.B. & CO., good things i[WE] like YeYo. Note Below. One Does Not Have to Have PreApocalyptic Faith to Sing [Ameri-CAN-DO's] PATRIOTIC Song. i.e.
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Posted by: wiki-truth | January 27, 2011 1:02 PM
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.

Posted by: wiki-truth | January 27, 2011 12:12 PM
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"Obama's address was unusually bereft of God talk."

As it should be as long as the Constitution still trumps the Bible.

Posted by: areyousaying | January 26, 2011 4:53 PM
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What wonderful news. Hopefully it's an early sign that superstitious faithiness is on it's way out, and that the time to get real approaches.

Time to get "In God We Trust" off our money, because for a growing minority of us he doesn't exist, and it ain't smart to trust in anything that does not exist.

Posted by: Rongoklunk | January 26, 2011 4:48 PM
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There is enough God talk in the other party to cover both our parties and even all of the parties in a country like France.

Imagine a sappy Hucklebee carpet bombing the SOTU (if he ever got the chance), every cluster bomb dripping with righteousness. Non merci.

Posted by: hrobert02 | January 26, 2011 3:11 PM
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Mr. Berlinerblau,

While I am interested in what you say about religion and politics, it is my fervent hope that there will be less religion in politics in the future.

I don't want to "put God back in the closet" as one commenter wrote. I would like to put Him back in Church/Synogog/Mosque/Temple and in people's homes and get Him out of the public square.

Posted by: amelia45 | January 26, 2011 3:08 PM
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Good.

Did you see the story yesterday about how low American school students scored in science proficiency, with African-Americans severely trailing the pack?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ap_on_sc/us_report_card_science

"only 10 percent of black students proficient in science in the fourth grade, compared to 46 percent of whites. At the high school level, results were even more bleak, with 71 percent of black students scoring below the basic knowledge level, and just 4 percent proficient."

Maybe someone needs to convince them to reduce the role of superstition in their lives and learn something of real value.

Posted by: WmarkW | January 26, 2011 9:45 AM
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"Obama's address was unusually bereft of God talk." .....Thank God. ! Time to put God back into the closet......

Posted by: slowe111 | January 26, 2011 9:36 AM
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