This morning leading national religious figures held a teleconference calling on Senator Bill Frist, the Republican Majority Leader, to withdrawal from an event this weekend billed as “Justice Sunday.” Justice Sunday is sponsored by conservative religious organizations in concert with the republican leader with a stated intention of painting democrats and those who oppose the president’s judicial nominees – most of whom oppose basic civil rights protections for minorities – as “people against faith.” I was able to listen in this morning and hear these progressive religious leaders take issue with this cynical attempt to manipulate Christian faith for political ends.
Bishop Vashti McKenzie, the first woman bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church, took part in the teleconference and reminded those listening that many of the same conservative evangelicals decrying the courts for being “too liberal” today, including The Rev. Jerry Falwell, also claimed in the 1950s and 1960s that God would have opposed court decisions like Brown vs. Board of Education that desegregated schools and other public institutions.
The Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) stated:
It is important for people of faith to express convictions on public issues based on their faith. But at the same time to have an environment where public officials do not denigrate those with differing views on issues of the day as working against people of faith or being ungodly. We would like to urge Senator Frist to reconsider supporting such movements. We believe that this is a time when religious people need to come together and not to create a climate of divisiveness. And it is certainly not a time in which we turn political disagreements into religious conflicts.
Rev. Dr. Robert W. Edgar, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches (NCC), said:
The National Council of Churches USA is saddened by the events of the last week. Not only has the Family Research Council developed an ad campaign that attacks Christians who do not agree with them as being against people of faith and anti-Christian, but Senator Bill Frist who supports this effort has refused to meet with us and other religious leaders – including RAC – on numerous occasions this week. Time and again we were denied access to even have our voices heard on this issue. Surely none of us can miss the irony. Even as we fight for freedom and religious liberty in countries around the world in America – the self proclaimed land of the free - an anti-democratic mentality is raising up before our eyes. No longer do we have healthy dialogue in the public square where we can express our differences and work together for the common good. No longer are we allowed to freely express our views in opposition to the majority political party without being accused of being anti-Christian – against people of faith – and un-American.
Click here to read the statement concerning Justice Sunday that Rev. Edgar first released on this site earlier this week.
Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, remarked during the teleconference that:
While the Family Research Council has every right to hold an event with a message of their choosing, the Majority Leader of the Senate must not lend credence to an event whose message is one that inexcusably lashes out at thousands of America’s faithful, and tears at our country’s fabric of religious tolerance, pluralism, and inclusion. Senator Frist should withdraw from participation in the “Justice Sunday” event or, at the very least, use the opportunity to repudiate the notion that anyone who does not endorse a particular political and legal agenda is anti-religious.
The New York Times offered a story this morning on the criticism Senator Frist is facing from many religious leaders for taking part in the event. An mp3 of the press conference is available on the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism web site. Rabbi Saperstein moderated the teleconference this morning.
Evangelical preacher Jim Wallis, editor of Sojourners Magazine, e-mailed a statement on this issue yesterday. He told supporters and friends that:
Behind these activities lies a fundamental assumption by Republican operatives and their conservative religious allies that they own religion in America. They demand that religious people vote only their way. They claim that "values voters" in America belong to them, and they disrespect the faith of those who disagree with their agenda. There are better words for this than just "politically divisive" or "morally irresponsible." For these are not merely political offenses, they are religious ones. And for offenses such as these, theological terms are better - terms such as idolatry and blasphemy.
We should bring our religious convictions about all moral issues to the public square - such as the uplifting of the poor, the protection of the environment, the ethics of war, or the tragic number of abortions in America - without attacking the sincerity of other people's faith, or demanding that we should win because we are religious. We must make moral arguments and mobilize effective movements for social change that can powerfully persuade our fellow citizens, religious or not, on what is best for the common good.
The Clergy and Laity Network will be holding a protest this weekend outside the Kentucky church where Justice Sunday is being held. The Interfaith Alliance plans to hold a press conference on Monday morning with additional religious leaders speaking out against this betrayal of faith on the part of Senator Frist and the majority of republicans.
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