The “Religion Gap” Doesn’t Matter to Liberals in the Long Run
August 16, 2004
Eyal Press, writing for The Nation, thinks the Democrats merely have an “image problem” when it comes to religion, or rather, their perceived disregard (if not hostility) for it. Press hopes that by refocusing on “social justice” issues with a distinctively religious rhetoric, Democrats can recapture votes from religious Americans–or at least those who are willing to deprioritize issues like abortion and gay marriage.
Press notes that “people like Jim Wallis believe [gay marriage and abortion] should not be made a litmus test in the Democratic Party,” which has been the case since Roe v. Wade. Press is unwilling to admit this, however. He prefers to stick with the classic liberal canard that “Democrats have generally opposed efforts by social conservatives to impose their religious beliefs on other Americans, a stance that often leaves them open to attack as “antireligious,” yet is crucial to preserving pluralism and tolerance.”
To the contrary, it is well known that the real basis for the split between a “religious right” and a “secularist left” stems from the Democrats’ imposition of the morality of “choice” on the nation from the federal courts since Roe v. Wade, a move that galvanized millions of Catholics and Protestants in the Republican-voting “religious right” bloc. When it comes to such divisive issues, few Americans, whether they are Republicans or Democrats, are willing to tolerate a plurality of competing moralities in the arena of public policy. However, it was the Left that forced the issue to be decided one way or the other at the federal level, and it is this history that explains such recent unconservative initiatives as a constitutional marriage amendment.
Nevertheless, the religious right/secularist left division may be diminishing–just look at the dismal lack of support for the marriage amendment just among conservatives. Given the enduring phenomena of a decreasingly conservative conservative party, the Democrats would be wise to stay the course and bank on the slow progress of liberalization and secularization in America. As Press notes, “A recent Time magazine poll found that 70 percent of Catholics believe the Catholic Church should not try to influence the positions Catholic politicians take.” Numerous statistics of a similar nature could be cited for other traditionally conservative groups, along with the fact that the GOP has never committed itself to anything as aggressive on the abortion front as “cultural conservatives” would like. Conservative voters for whom issues like abortion are crucial have been left to settle for a nominally conservative party that at least makes them feel comfortable with “down home” and “family values” rhetoric. Such talk without substance should be no cause for alarm on the left. It merely helps culturally conservative voters maintain their delusion that Republicans will not put liberal principles of “tolerance” and “choice” ahead of competing “traditional” moral principles. The Democrats may well win votes by making their own appeals to “religious values,” but they really do not need to worry as much as they do about a real right-wing takeover that “legislates’ a “religious morality.” In the long run, the Republicans are leading their culturally conservative constituents down the same path as the Democrats.
Related Reading:
- Reagan: Messiah, Antichrist or normal mainline church guy?
- How Ronald Reagan Wowed Evangelicals - He rarely delivered on their issues, but the Great Communicator changed the movement.
This is The “Religion Gap” Doesn’t Matter to Liberals in the Long Run in The Japery, a part of The New Pantagruel. Previously: Christian History: “We Report, You Decide” | Next: Mass Hysteria | TrackBack (0) | Comments (0)
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