Andrew Sullivan rightly dispenses with the idea that religion should play any major role in Presidential Politics.
At issue is Howard Dean’s conversion from Episcopalian to Congregationalist over the construction of bike path his Church opposed. Mr. Sullivan thinks this crass, and indicative of a certain godlessness. However, his criticism misses the context in which Dr. Dean made his decision.
Construction of that bike path was the opening of Howard Dean’s political consciousness. Following its successful completion Dr. Dean went from citizen to State Representative, to Lieutenant Governor and finally to Candidate for President of the United States of America.
Dr. Dean’s philosophy on politics and religion, as is my impression, involves an opposition between public and private. Politics and bike paths are in the public domain. Religion is a personal and private matter. The two should not be mix overly much.
For his Church to be selfishly mucking around in the public’s domain he found unacceptable. Therefore, he either had to accept the public place of his church, or find another church. Obviously he chose the latter.
As Mr. Sullivan is wont to do, he ends with some vague socioanalysis. In this case, his conclusion is nothing but confusion:
If we have a contest between Dean and Bush, we’ll have a choice between a WASP who’s unashamed of his origins and a WASP who has abandoned them.
Seeing as how President Bush has never overtly portrayed himself as a WASP, I assume Mr. Sullivan thinks it is Mr. Bush who has abandoned his origins. Then again, Mr. Sullivan has just finished chatising Dr. Dean for abandoning his faith. Perhaps he means to say Dr. Dean is the abandoner.
It is even unclear what “staying true to your origins” means. For instance, Dr. Dean’s father was a Republican. Should he have stayed true to that origin?
I tend to think both Dr. Dean and Mr. Bush have abandoned their origins. I just don’t think this reflects poorly on either. Times change. People change. Ought not Presidential Candidates be allowed to change as well?
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