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First, as a Catholic, I want to point out that I agree with Mr Mephisto.
Second, I question anyone who 1) states that they have God on their side or 2) states that they are doing God's will. I don't think any person with a sensible view of religion can claim to know what "God's will" is. That, there is a big difference between "I am doing God's will" and "I believe this is what God would like me to do in this situation." The latter doesn't bother me since it acknowledges that, while the person believes they are doing the right thing by God, they do not know God's will and, therefore, are open to acknowledging in the future that they have made a mistake. In short, I'm leery of anyone who claims to have God "on their side."
As far as religious involvement in politics, I see a disturbing trend in the western world toward wanting freedom FROM religion. The fact is, as much contempt as one may have for religion, this philosophy infringes on the first amendment rights of people to openly practice their religion. When one says "religion has no place in politics," it should be seen as to mean precisely what the first amendment says it does: the government cannot make any laws favoring any religion (or lack thereof) over others.
If a politician is Christian and pro-life for example, there is nothing wrong with that politician saying "I am Christian, therefore I am voting against this abortion bill." Religion is a fundamental part of who a person is and therefore cannot be expected to be ignore when making decisions. This is where the democratic part of our republic comes in: if we don't like the way the politician is voting or going to vote, we get to not vote for him. It's simply silly to expect that all politicians will flat out ignore their religion, being such a fundamental part of their person, when they vote. This is what WE are for, to say "I don't agree with how you will or how you have been doing your job (perhaps because I don't agree with your religion's stance on many issues) and will therefore not be voting for you."
I will never fault a politician for caring about his religion and letting it guide him and his actions. Likewise, I will never vote for a politician who's views do not match my own to a fair degree. Furthermore, even if a politician's views DO match my own, I will never vote for a politician who claims to have God on her side, as if there was some phone line she could use to call God up directly and ask what to do. This shows that, while the politician may agree with me, their logic and pragmatism is fundamentally flawed.
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Le temps détruit tout
"Musicians are the carriers and communicators of spirit in the most immediate sense." - Kurt Elling
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