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Topic: Religion and Politics
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DrConway
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 490
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posted 03 June 2004 11:26 PM
I don't think Canadians want or even need their leaders to be particularly religious. As far as I know, Ralph Klein hasn't been excoriated by anyone for bouts of public drunkenness and his revealed alcoholism, and Gordon Campbell certainly doesn't make a point or a habit of announcing if he has a religion other than money.Jean Chretien is a Roman Catholic, but looking back on the actions of the government under his rule, I can't point to any that indicate that his religion was dictating his actions. Preston Manning's injection of his evangelical faith into the political arena was, quite frankly, a dangerous attempt at Americanizing our politics. Stockwell Day's flash-in-the-pan act as ReformAlliance leader was partly due to his embarassing display of Christian fundamentalism, helped along by the fact that he acted like he was still in Alberta, where the media fawns over the farts of King Ralph as though they were the received text of Jesus Christ. I do not get the sense that religious Canadians feel beholden to any religion-based form of politics, unlike in the USA, where ritual pronouncements of Christian faith appear to be a prerequisite to even getting on the ballot, never mind winning elections.
From: You shall not side with the great against the powerless. | Registered: May 2001
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inukjuak
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 4425
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posted 04 June 2004 08:56 AM
Now that I've looked at the question more closely, I am unsure whether it means a) "Should my personal faith position affect what I do politically?" or b) "Should I choose which candidate to vote for based in part on the faith positions of the candidates available?"
If we're talking about a), then of course your faith position (fanatic, believer, fellow-traveler, neutral, mocker, unbeliever, or fanatic-against) feeds into your political position, the same way it affects your decisions about what you read or eat, how you spend your leisure time, how you treat your neighbours, and so on.
If we're talking about b), then for me a big question would be each candidate's honesty about their faith position, and their ability to tolerate folks who do not share their position.
One of the notable differences between the two countries is that it is easier in Canada than in the United States to remember during a civic election that the candidates are not running for "high priest of the civil religion".
From: Lowell, MA | Registered: Aug 2003
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