Another Question

Ain't gonna like 'em when you get 'em, Kid.

I don't like a lot of thngs, doesn't mean I don't want  to know.

You like me , silly

His religion should not have anything to do with his job.

Yep, that would be my thought too.

Tell you what?

What Muslim studies???  And, if there were some...although I haven't heard him say he studied Islam other than to try to figure out how to get along...What would it have mattered if he turned his back on them?  The point is religion is a personal choice and in this country we have that freedom to make that choice. 

I believe he is a Christian, I personally don't CARE if he has ANY religion whatsoever.  He could be an Aethist for all I care.  My point was, that people are REALLY concerned about what religion he is or IF he has a religion at all.  I'm just wondering WHY people care so much.

"....WHY people care so much."

Could be they are simply looking for a way to feel connected...or reasons why they don't. After all, a statement that 'he doesn't believe what I believe' is considerably more politically correct than 'he scares me because of the color of his skin and I am afraid that my life will change drastically because of the decision he makes that will be influenced by his experience as a mixed-race person--which I don't understand.'

I think they are looking for grounds on which to base justification of their own divergent beliefs.

Bottom line:  justification for not having an open mind.

It doesn't matter all that much to me really, but possibly it still comes from the fact that religion seemed to be a sore point for a lot of people during the original candidates races. I was amazed at how many people didn't like this one because he was a Mormon, of this one because they didn't know what he was an so on.  My other theory is because of the fact that Obama has some Muslim roots, and let's face it, many of our citizens equate Muslim with extremeist.  Not saying that's right, but that's the way it is.  Just trying to give you some answers here.

I agree with you Miss Katie.  I just don't understand WHY?

It's a basic bigotry. People just don't like others who are not the same as they are. Ethnicity, race, religion, region.......it's all the same.

It's also not just an American thing. Look at all the killing that goes on between different cultures in other countries.  It's just something else to fight about.

I guess I understand that in an INTELECTUAL way, but not in any REAL way.  It just seems like every time I turn around SOMEONE is insisting he's this, that or the other, and I don't get it.  Why is his religion so important?

It's not all that important really.  It's just slung as a weapon in the hopes that someone else who is listening (or reading) has the same bias against the religion and puts the victim in a bad light.  It happens with everyone, not just Obama.

I know, I've had more than my share of bias against religion.  As they say, More wars have been fought in the name of "God" than any other cause.

I was thinking "racism" and "bigotry" were the reasons as I read through most of these comments.  After all, this whole insistence on the birth certificate thing and the religion question remind me so much of Archie Bunker.  But, then I read your line "every time I turn around SOMEONE is insisting he's this, that or the other, and I don't get it."

That put me in mind of when I grew up in California and the important thing around us teens was to talk about the celebs we "knew."  I think this goes on in every city and state, but can only talk about California cause it's the only place I participated.  Folks were always throwing stuff out there as if they 'KNEW" because they had heard a rumor and wanted to be the first one to pass on the info in order to look more important.  Of course, you have a 50% or more failure rate when you take that chance, but when you are right, boy, do you look smart, popular, and cool.  So, now I'm not disqualifying Bigotry and Racism as part of the reason, but I think a lot of people want to show off how "smart" they are without actually doing the work of finding out the facts. 

From the point of view of the Constitution, it matters not at all.  In fact Article VI, section 3 says:   "The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."

But voters are allowed to vote for or against any candidate for whatever reason they wish, however nonsensical.  And "he's a Muslim" or "he isn't a natural born citizen" sounds better to some people than "he's black" as a reason to not like him.

I think it ALL sounds equally ridiculous myself.

to me I can care less.. 

 I don't go to chruch, and I am not saying I don't believe there is a higher power, but my kids have not gone to chruch either.  I know alot of people think I am heathen cause i have not had my kids baptized.  I say who the heck cares, they are good people. I get sicked of being looked down on cause I don't go somewhere once and week and "worship"

So back to your question, I have not a Flippen clue.. (kept it clean cause you don't have it flagged :-D

My kids haven't been baptized, but they've had a Wicccaning.  I've heard people tell me that my kids are either going to go to purgatory or hell because they aren't baptized.  I just blow raspberries at them.

If Obama was a Christian, he would have joined in when the pastor led everyone in the Lord's prayer at his inauguration.  He did NOT participate.

We associate morals and value with religion - rightfully or wrongfully, but for many, that is the way it is.  And Katie addressed the Muslim concern.  And, the Muslims have been quite clear with their goal to be the main religion, throughout the world, at any cost.

That seems to be the goal of most fundamentalist Christians as well. 

True

I was going to say that.

A president's religion makes no difference to me either, I actually think that when we elect a open atheist; it will show this country has made a lot of progress. I'll take a shot at answering your question though.... There's a lot of people in this country who see Obama as a real threat, they are really scared that Obama is going to turn the U.S into a socialist; then eventually- a communist country. There's also people who feel christianity is under assault, or that christians are mocked or repressed.

Take all that put together, plus the fact that Obama doesn't seem to be all that religious; and that he was a muslim at one time (?) There are people who see that as disrespecting christianity, or see it as maybe Obama will suppress christianity in the future. I'm not saying this is all christians, but I think it's definately some of them.

I'm SURE it's some of them.  I just don't understand where this idea comes from.  When a majority is "repressed" I'll eat a pair of socks.

Ellen:  Barack Obama was never a Muslim and never attended a Muslim school.  The only religious school he ever attended was a Catholic school in Indonesia.  He also spent one semester in an Indonesian public (secular, not religious) school with a mix of religions.  His mother's family were athiests, and both his father and stepfather were non-observant Muslims who didn't attend religious services.  He said in his first book that religion was simply not a factor in his life until he started doing community work in Chicago.  It was there that he saw religion as a factor in building communities.  He later converted to Christianity.

Not being able to read minds, I have to take people at their word on what they do or do not believe, so I take his word on his religion.  What other President in history has been watched so closely to see when/if he attended a particular religious service?  How often did President Eisenhower or President Reagan attend services while in office?  Why should it matter to anyone but the President and his family?

Thanks for correcting me ada, I thought Obama was a muslim at one time; and no someone's religion shouldn't matter

Sure his religion shouldn't matter.... BUT....  during his campaign he CLAIMED to be a Christian. 

Since then he has basically shown (through his actions) that he is NOT.

So basically he LIED about it. (amongst other things)

I think that is why the point has come up quite a bit lately about his "religion" or lack therof. 

Unless you know his heart you don't know what his religion, or lack thereor is, so how could he have lied?

Joy I would like to know how he has shown that he isnt a christian?

If Obama was a Christian, he would have joined in when the pastor led everyone in the Lord's prayer at his inauguration.  He did NOT participate.

And what makes you Linda qualified to make that judgement?

Nothing makes her qualified though I do agree with her on many other subjects.

You asked "how he has shown that he isn't a christian"  - that was my observation.  When you ask a dumb question like that, of course you are going to get an opinion.  So why would he NOT participate?  Why doesn’t he attend Church?  Perception - perception - perception.

His defenders say that when he, himself, said he was a Muslim, well, he didn't really mean that he meant blah blah blah.  Double speak.

So, you don't believe he's a Christian, WHY does THAT matter? 

Personally I dont care ...I think he believes in god but isnt one of those in your face christians...which seem to be the only ones that really care what his religion is.

Many people think that only a Christian can be an ethical, honest person! Many people proclaim themselves Christian to advance themselves in careers. Try being an atheist who owns a business in a small Texas town. I suggest that we have had lying presidents proclaim themselves Christian to get elected.

Must a Christian proclaim the name of his religion and be in a church every Sunday?

Another person's religion is none of my business.

Good points Leo.  Throughout history, thousands have been murdered in the name of Christianity.

From what I have seen, is that the LDS (Mormons) have exceptional family values, support their church in every way, give back to society, assist with catastrophes w/o most people noticing or knowing, always willing to help their neighbor, never speak against any religion, have missionaries all over the world, ship food to needy countries, and on and on.

Just walk down a street in Salt Lake City and look at the faces.  Pleasant, cordial, warm, healthy...  Then walk down the street in any other city and tell me what you see.. People ignore you, never excuse themselves if they bump into you, look totally tressed out, etc.

That's my personal observation.

The Mormons have as many criminals as any other segment of society. That's just absurd.

Anyone who does not live up to the standards of their church, are no longer considered LDS, by the church itself.  Do other's do that?  I don't know...

"...have missionaries all over the world,...."

Why is this a good thing?

It isn't

Linda - I lived for two years in Logan, Utah (back in the late '60s) as a graduate student.  I was pretty much insulated from the Mormons, and beyond that... I just didn't give a damn.  But my wife had to live "on the economy" as they said.  She shopped, went out, went to gym, etc.  She said that being a non-Mormon in that town was like being black in Mississippi.

It's all a matter of perception and attitude.  Sorry she had a bad experience, I've not.

Now, you are not referencing FLDS are you?  Big difference.  Probably can safely say you didn't have a negative experience.  We get back what we give, I've seen it many times.

Kinda like being non-Christian in Uniontown, OH in the 80s...

huh?

I was actually replying to my father.  I grew up in a small town, Uniontown, OH, where EVERYONE was a christian of some stripe.  MY family was not.

A person's religion has, or at least should have, a profound effect on his beliefs and behavior.  If it doesn't then this person has no religion despite the label that he bears.

An Atheist can have an equally profound set of beliefs and behaviors and in fact the complete lack of religion often leads to even more profound and positive behaviors.

Atheists don't discriminate against other religions. Atheists accept homosexuality. Few religious people can make those claims.

"Atheists don't discriminate against other religions."

What a load of self serving crap . . .

john, you've been reading your bible too much

Right, and that would be you not discriminating against other religions again, one supposes?

I don't personally discriminate against any religions, you can believe in Ronald McDonald if you so choose, but I do think comedy applies in any situation.

Look, John, I really don't care about your rationalizing; If you insult me based on my religious beliefs, you are discriminating against me, I say. That you wish to claim otherwise is of no consequence to me.

And that you wish to view it as an insult is of no consequence to me.

First, I don't know what religion our current President is. Second, although I don't, I do believe that anyone's beliefs are personal, BUT, and this might be all it is, their religion that they "live by", not necessarily proclaim to be -- they're not always one and the same, because it's more important how you treat others and how you live your life, whether you hold out a helping hand or turn your back, that makes your character, which some confuse with religion, important.

So, to me, whatever he professes his religion to be, isn't important to me. How he handles the problems in this country, is. And I'm basically color-blind too, so that was never an issue.

Oh heck (no flag, can't cuss!) I really wanted to ask you, Elizabeth, how you're doing? Geez, forgot once I read the question, but sure hope you're feeling better,

Hugs......

Here is how I understand it:
To the vast majority of people, Obama's religion or lack thereof doesn't mean squat.
To a small few, there are three possible issues with his religion or lack thereof.
First; among extremists of all religious walks and atheist extremists (yes, they exist... I've run into them) there seems to be an attitude of requirement that all people in political power or possessing any other influence must be of the same religion (or lack thereof) as they are (individually, not collectively, which would be impossible) and the won't be satisfied with anyone who is not.
Second; among extremists of all political viewpoints, anyone of the opposite political viewpoint who is also in political power or possessing any other influence is perceived to be, assumed to be, or at least accused of being (based on having an opposing political viewpoint) of an opposing religious viewpoint as well. I think this comes from a mistaken assumption that one's political viewpoint is inexorably tied to one's spirituality (or lack thereof).
Third (the "he must be Muslim" angle; among those to whom A) Obama is the villain because of his political viewpoint and is perceived to be an evil enemy of the American Way of Life, and B) all Muslims have been generalized into a single, identical group (there are racial/religious slurs for that "group" but I'm not sharing the ones I've heard) which are all perceived to be evil enemies of the American Way of Life, there has been a deliberate attempt to lump him in with "them" to make him appear all the more evil to the masses, whom these people all seem to think hate Muslims as much as they do.
Unfortunately, I've been noticing lately that anyone who dares to disagree with anything at all which comes from the white house either gets lumped in with these groups, is called a racist, or is accused of being a right wing extremist who might start shooting people at any moment. The presidency of Obama has become the most emotionally charged event I've ever seen. People need to get over it - the guy is just a man. He'll have good ideas and bad ideas, and he'll get some of both passed into law, just like every other president we've had.  Do I have to go through Gather and start putting "DUH" graphics on all of the Obama articles?

Good job, Hannah!

And I like the "DUH" graphics idea too.

Yes, yes you do.

Good questions.  I too believe he's some form of a Christian.  I also agree that there is nothing saying the president has to be one at all.  As for us being a democracy, we are not.  And we have never been in danger of becoming a theocracy despite some sensationalism to the contrary by some.  Despite a small minority of people who might want it, the chance of that is nil.  Our system is secular but based on a common Judeo-Christian culture that has worked out far better than any other type overall.

Is it important a president be a Christian (or a Jew)?  Given the overwhelming majority of people in this country are self indentified Christians or Jews, I'd say yes.  Simply being that is the basis of the culture, a Western Judeo-Christian one and many if not most people want someone affliated with that.

Will it always be so?  Who knows.  Given immigration trends, it sure won't change anytime soon.  Assimulation has tended to change the "rougher" edges of various sects/religions here so they meld better than in most parts of the world and hopefully that will continue.  People can complain about the Western Judeo-Christian culture but it has overall been historically the most flexible and broadly speaking, tolerant major one on the planet.  By no means is it perfect and I think it will continue to change as it absorbs new ideas but remaining basicly true to core principles that have withstood the span of centuries.

Presidents are shakespearian actors on a global stage. No one will ever know what his beliefs are because his beliefs are an act to garner the widest support from the greatest number of people. If this country were predominantly Muslim he would lean in that direction because he'd have to. Anyone that believes anything a President says is foolish. We elected, well you might have, a president that made vast promises of change and we got the same thing we always get, the same thing we always get. Every president for the past 100 years has used change as their platform to get elected and we acted like it was something new. It wasn't.

What his religion is is insignificant, to him, to me, and to almost everyone commenting here. It's the few fanatically religious people in this country that make a presidents religion, if they can, an issue. That's the nature of religion. It's prejudiced.

 Actually, the nature of religion is not predudiced unless the one practicing the religion is prejudiced. The nature of religion is merely to be an avenue of expressing one's sprirituality within a framework of people sharing common beliefs.

As far as the poster's question, who cares is right. The fact is that the Christian bashers of the US of A were largely his electorate, so it just entertains me no end to see that they voted in a Christian president. Of course, I can call myself a purple people eater too, but it doesn't mean that I am one, so the other side to that coin is that they knew he really was only a Christian in name. You just can't have it every which way you want to have it. If Obama were a Bible thumpin, down home Baptist Christian from Alabammy, you wouldn't have had any part of him, hope, dope, change, or dollar bills, and you can bet on that one! Tell me it wouldn't have made a difference. Go ahead...

Yes Sue, you are correct, the nature of religion is not prejudiced, the one practicing it might be though. And there are millions of practicing religious fanatics in this country whose middle name begins with a P.

We might very well have been better off with a Purple People Eater Sue. We wouldn't have to worry about purple people any more. Now, what do we do about the Gays, the Jews, the Muslims, the non-Fundamental Christians, the Greens, the Atheists and the Guys That Sweep Floors in Wal-Mart?

allow them to be whomever thy are as long as they don't infringe on our freedom or rights.  Oh, too late.

Great insight Suzie Q. Bee in the Bonnet!

Just as long as his wife doesn't use astrology to tell him when to do things.

What? You don't believe in astrology, Peter??.....

ha ha - yeah right ... like Saturn's and the Moon's gravity when I was born is going to tell me whether to "go" or "stop" today ...

He does pray and he is doing a great job.

WHY is President Obama's religion, or lack thereof important?

It tells a lot about a man.

Really?  Because my being Wiccan doesn't seem to tell you much.

Such as WHAT, Scott?

It sound make no difference.  There is seperation of church and state for a reason.  I don't understand people who make this an issue.

It is important because it usually affects a person's beliefs and behaviors. Would you be concerned if he was a radical Islamist? Why? Because that affects his behvior.

I'd be concerned if he was a RADICAL ANYTHING. There are radicals of ANY religion.  I'd even be concerned if he were a radical vegan.

I don't know, nor do I really care.

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