On civil religion and Glenn Beck

In the wake of his weekend rally, Glenn Beck kept up the drumbeat of criticism about President Obama's religion, calling it a "perversion" and saying that America "isn't recognizing his version of Christianity," which Beck characterized as "liberation theology."

Despite critique of Obama's Christianity, a recent poll showed that nearly 20% of Americans believe falsely that the president is Muslim.

Civil religion may be one of the few things less popular than Glenn Beck at Harvard. Two psychological conditions account for most of this fear and loathing. A combination of theophobia--the irrational fear of all things religious--and political dextrophobia--an unhealthy worry about the right side of the body politic--runs unchecked in the blood stream of such schools, disabling the open-mindedness normally prized.

The sad person so afflicted cannot see the difference between the Taliban now killing Americans in Afghanistan and the nice folk who gathered on the Mall in Washington the last weekend of August. Since the Taliban is motivated by religion and most Americans at the Glenn Beck rally were motivated by religion, they must be similar. This is akin to believing that a man being drowned is in the same condition as the man being offered a drink of water after a workout.

Beck's group was so orderly that they would not even litter while at the Mall. From such folk terrorists are not made.

Oddly, the same phobias, having been acquired in graduate school, are rampant in many Christian college faculty lounges. Few things irritate Christian academics more than the lazy assumption they are all Republicans or political conservatives.

Yet in this case both the objects of scorn, civil religion and Glenn Beck, are good for the nation. Glenn Beck spent the weekend urging a return to the civil religion of his childhood and he was right to do so.

Christians who oppose civil religion often do so for good reasons. Some people do confuse civil religion with Christianity, but America is not the Church and patriotism is not the greatest love. History demonstrates that you can be a patriot, even a hero of the nation, and a bad man in your private life. Thomas Jefferson did good service, at times, to his nation, but he was a cad and a bounder in his private life.

What good is civil religion?

Civil religion will not save anyone from damnation in the next life, but it allows the damned and the saved to work together in this life. Civil religion is the minimum claim that my allegiance to the United States of America is under God. Civil religion limits the domain of the state to one area of my life. Washington is not my lord.

I am a participant, not a communicant, in the civil religion.

The American civil religion allows all the great monotheistic faiths to agree to disagree on the vital details of religion. Those important, indeed most vital, questions are left to the family, private society, and religious organizations.

You cannot, however, form a nation on the mere agreement to disagree. It was the genius of our founders, influenced by centuries of Christian historical experience, to find the minimum affirmation of loyalty that would allow both Christians and Jews (to use the historical example) to both be equal citizens of the state. We would limit government and keep it out of the family and vast swatches of private life. This would be the domain of family and church or synagogue. The government would demand our allegiance, but accept that this allegiance to the American ideal was limited to any decent man's allegiance to Judeo-Christian values.

For this reason, the Constitution did not force Christians with an objection to "swearing oaths" to swear oaths to the state. For the same reason, the military rapidly developed ways for religious pacifists to serve the nation without bearing arms. Though inconsistently at times, civil religion allowed us to accommodate both minimal religious and ethical unity while allowing for diversity.

Eventually it allowed for secularists to also become full members of the commonwealth, because of the limitations placed on the power of the state. If they too would agree, for their own reasons, to Judeo-Christian morality, then we would tolerate their failure to agree to the foundations for that morality. For many Americans this was and is a close call, but tolerance where possible is always the right thing to do.

There are, however, two reasonable causes for worry about the sort of civil religion on display at the Beck rally. First, the aesthetic was cloying and too narrow to sustain a national revival. Second, conservatives always should worry about mass movements, because excellence can be lost and extremism bred.

For conservatives to achieve their goals, they will need to reclaim cultural and not just political leadership. For too long, they have given up on the arts, including popular arts, and been content not "to know much about art, though I know what I like." This attitude does not encourage excellence or innovation in the arts. It does encourage false sentimentality, bathos, and ugliness.

Some critics of Beck obviously hate all sentiment, but the way to counter their soullessness is not through schmaltz. Both Wordsworth and Hallmark Greeting Cards produce poems about flowers, but Wordsworth did it well and Hallmark often does not. Artists can (and often have) become inbred so that they talk only to themselves, but conservatives will only encourage this if they refuse to elevate the tastes of their audience. Conservatives should encourage more Rembrandt and less Kinkade.

Conservatives are not afraid of experts and of knowledge, including in the arts. The Beck rally was often artistically trite and fell into simple audience manipulation, because it confused social conservatism with artistic "safety."

What do I mean? Artistic snobs sniff at all popular or country music and Beck has good reason to ignore snobs. However, some pop music is bad music even if the audience of the moment happens to like it. This sort of stuff is unendurable to watch if you are not at the rally and sounds dated days after the rally has happened.

Beck and his crowd must find artists and craftsmen that will both encourage and challenge their tastes. Otherwise the ugliness and artistic falseness of the presentation will drive away potential allies and get in the way of making converts.

Finally, in any mass movement there is the every present danger of demagoguery and tyranny. Some opponents of Beck cry demagogue too lightly and fear theocracy every time a child draws a crèche in government schools, but even the irrational fears of a lover of liberty cannot be ignored.

Many people are mad and feel powerless. Conservatives know that this is the very time not to stoke fears or hatreds, but to calm them. No conservative wants a "revolution," but thoughtful and gradual renewal of basic values. A virtue of the Beck presentation was that it centered on "faith, hope, and charity" and not on the "bad guys."

Demonizing foes is very dangerous stuff. Nobody can avoid drawing distinctions or saying why they disagree with their foes, but the twentieth century is full of examples of this going bad. Beck worked hard to get this right, and did, but the danger still exists.

Traditional Christians know that Beck could never be "their leader" as traditional Christians, because he is not one. They know that America is not the "promised land" and that patriotism is not the only or even the highest virtue.

Most American Christians are thankful to live in a land where they can practice their faith. They wish for a government small enough to make social stability possible, because it does not make religious or philosophical decisions best left to families, religious groups, and societies. Beck mostly gets this and so, hard as it is for an academic to admit, Beck is mostly right.

By John Mark Reynolds | September 2, 2010; 1:51 PM ET Save & Share:
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Posted by: ericap1 | September 7, 2010 2:25 PM
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Posted by: ericap1 | September 7, 2010 2:22 PM
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Posted by: ericap1 | September 7, 2010 2:21 PM
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MARTHA WOODROOF & CO., Is So Jealous;

That She/He Suuucks!

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It Is High Time That WE Old Time Blogers Bloggers Should start Getting paid {via Pay Pal] For Providing "CONTENT" to THIS/These Parasites on ONFAITH or WAPO et al and posting "iNTELLECTUALL Ideas as WE[i] Post!" W/out US bloggers YE art DEAD! DEAD! Please File For Bankruptcy!

LAST TiME

Fuuuck Jon Meacham, David Waters, Lisa Miller & Sally Quinn & CO (ONFAITH.NET). in VA. somewhere & D.C!

Else "ONFAITH" Ye Will DIE For Blogger-Abuse!
..n

Posted by: woodstock-41 | September 6, 2010 8:24 PM
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Shame on self serving CO-Defendants or Partners within the Federal & State & Local Governments in Crime who got away Scott free during the Depression and laughing at US Voters while Laughing all the The way to the Bank Worry-Free, for Causing AMERICAN's financial HARDSHIP's (Broken Hearts, Spirits, mass homelessness, low esteem etc] via Selfish Elected-Officials [as if GANGS] thus creating the Tsunami" via them U.S. FED RESERVE people & U.S. TREASURY too! Includes the, turning other Cheek, S.E.C. & I.R.S. & CO., gang/people.

Secret: Psychology: All Those U.S. Victims, Especially U.S.A. Kids Whom was a Victim & their Parents For What Happened during Bush's & Clinton's, Will Become Extremists, Radicals & Worse Revolutionaries! a/k/a America's Silent future CIVIL-WAR!? And

Pleazza, BUSH & Clinton Lovers, Do NOt call these good American Kids who will eventually grow-up [Terrorists when ye have to turn the Malitia against them] when they Rise-Up against US, the Establishment in the Next 10 Years! It will be like a bunch of Frankin-Steins or Worse a Bunch Of TiMOTHY McVAY's (Clinton/Bush made) going mad all at once or sporadically. Soo

Only SARA PALIN & Or MITT ROMNEY Can Help Them [Prevent Future Terrorists to not be terrorists] by Correcting The Clinton Admin & Bush/Reagan Admin & Bush Admin SINS of the National-Fathers; To Heelll with Bibles story's! Atleast i[WE] warned You. Note: This is NOt a Cartoon. It is More Than That!

Note: If This was China, They All Would/ve Been Shot Already. And If It Was Russia They would be working in the Gulags. And If it was Saudi Arabia, They [COMMISSIONERS] Would've already got their Hands Chopped-Off for STEALING/Enriching selves!

PS: And Now; It is highly Recommended That the CIA & The NSA & The PENTAGON Take Over The "WHITE-HOUSE". And that this Current Presidency's "EXECUTIVE POWERS" via "Executive-ORDERS" (Abuses,& Recklessness) should Be Snuffed-out or Stopped!

AMERICA Should Have a "GENERAL ELECTION" In 2011, Not 2012: Under NATIONAL [Financial] EMERGENCY Reasons or Find some Other Pretexts to do so, "INSTEAD OF CONSTITUTION"! AND

The U.S. Constitution Needs To Be REPEALED, or Fixed or Tweake'd for the 21/22nd Century+; Especially To ONLY ALLOW a President to Serve up to 2-Two, 3-Three Years-Terms (max of 6 years not 8)! Or Maybe up to 3 Times 3 (for 9 years Total if HE or SHE is really good, Like Roosevelt {pbuh}, Lincoln {pbuh et al})

AND Congress Shall Establish a "U.S. RELIGIOUS POLICE" with Powers to "LIMIT" Mosques, Synagogues, Temples Building etc.. so to Police Their "Tax-Exempt" Leaderships More Closely! AND

Ex- SEN. Hillary Rodman Clinton should be IMPEACHED for Usurping U.S. CONST. 1:6 et al. And Prez Borack H. OBAMA should be Censored for Kissing The Hand Of a G-d Player, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia & for other Oss kiss'ngs or of Enemies.

Posted by: woodstock-41 | September 6, 2010 12:08 PM
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DEAR Fellow American(s) & Friendly's:

Note: As Ye/Yo can See; Once WE[i], i[WE] Elect these two-face WORD-MERCHANTS of certain Politician-GANGs aka "USURPER"s, Then THEY DO WHAT They WANT. So There is

NO U.S. or State CONSTITUTION!! YES, Things Must Change, Not only Yes We Can hot air. DO, No Talk!!

Maybe SARA PALIN Ms. RIGHT is right (Not Wrong)?! Sarai Ain't Afraid to Break or Dirty Her finger Nails. Now That's Tough; So Sara Ain't No "Manicure-Babby", but a Lipstick Momma! eeeeeehaaaa!

Note: Sisstar SARAi is starting to look really good ('Platform/ticket', not only Lipstick & looks) soo maybe she should be our 1st LADY President, aye? OR/b>

Maybe Brother MiTT ROMNEY is the ripe Mr. RiGHT (NOt Wrong). Likewise; MITT is looking & Sounding GOOD too. A Good Politician & a Great BUISINEES MAN Who Will Save AMERICA from Poverty & out of Debt? Fix Amerika MITT! [Maybe "Joe The Plumber" can fit-in Somewhere, aye].

Note: MITT maybe should be our 1st MORMON (A Xrstian , but Persecuted People, NOt only AFRO-Americans) Prez aye??.

"WE, The People" Need To Take Our Nation Back & fix the Sick Constitution? This is NOt a Test! This is Real!!

Note: And GLENN BECK might be 1/2 or 3/4 right (NOt Left, oopps Wrong)? Hint; HE needs to REPLACING 'God', NOt "Restore" God" That's the Problem.

See What Happens When Obama & Ventriloquists Negotiate With Terrorists Orgs contrary to Policy's???

SUGGESTION: Maybe Ms. Sara Palin & Mr. Mitt should Marry (Politically) and Run as PREZ & V.PREZ ALL IN ONE (1 Ticket, 1 Platform!) aye? PS: With Obama & Clinton, There Will NO [permanent] PEACE in MIddle-East Just Yet. Maybe only a Patch-up Job so Hillary & Gang/Crony's can Fool "The-People" again? and get RE-Elected on a slate.

___VOTE:

"Peace/Huggs Rock-n-Roll, MiTT Romney"!!!

___ OR

"Peace/Dance Rock-n-Roll, With SARA"!!!

"Peace/Dance Rock-n-Roll, With SARA"!!!
--
GOOD-BYE OBAMA & CO! GOOD RIDDANCE NEPOTISTic Hillary et al!! Time fo a Real Man, or a Real woMan Prez!! Ya Ya!
--
Hailaluya! Praise the Holyi NO MON/WOM!

LOVE AMERICA, LOVE AMERICA, THE 1 WE USED TO KNOW, THE 1 WE USED TO KNOW..!

Posted by: woodstock-41 | September 6, 2010 8:57 AM
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"theophobia" is a code word for fear of an intolerant, right-wing, racist, Glenn Beck Christian theocracy or Huckabee overthrowing the Constitution to replace it with his Leviticus cherry-picked version of "God's Standards"

We need more of it not that the "Christians" of Palin and Fox News have hijacked poor old Jesus to combine their religion with an old, white supremacist Southern political party.

Their theocracy is coming to America with a bible opened to leviticus in one hand and a moose rifle in the other and Reynolds is one of their "pastors"

Posted by: areyousaying | September 5, 2010 10:28 AM
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The sad person so afflicted cannot see the difference between the Taliban now killing Americans in Afghanistan and the nice folk who gathered on the Mall in Washington the last weekend of August.

Nice straw man. No reasonable supporter of church/state separation sees "Under God" in the Pledge as equivalent to the Taliban. The issue is that the phrase goes against the principle of separation of church and state, by blurring the line between patriotism and sectarian belief. Which leads to my next point.

Civil religion is the minimum claim that my allegiance to the United States of America is under God.

And that is exactly why civil religion is wrong. "God" is a sectarian concept in that only some religions are monotheistic, so when government uses the word in the Pledge or on the money, it shows favoritism toward those religions at the expense of others. The word does NOT constitute a reference to all religions, because some are polytheistic and some are non-theistic.

John Mark Reynolds

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