Replies

I would also want to know if he agrees with the Declaration of Independence that our rights are granted by God and are inalienable. If an atheist agreed with that and was pro-life and generally agreed with my other conservative values, then yes, I would be willing to vote for him. Not a likely scenario, but I would.

Well, I commend you for your consistency.

In fact, I would hope others who've made these absolute types of statement would be consistent like you...except...

...well...except for the fact that "consistency" isn't my highest value. Discernment about the truth is.

So allow me to press you on one other point: Do you make any distinction of what you just said about voting for the Prez of the US vs. let's say, a congressman? [And I'll tell you up front why I am asking: Imagine a Jack Bauer "24" situational crisis where the president prays for discernment, guidance, wisdom, & direction--and he prays to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob--the solo God of the universe. Now imagine the same situation with no such prayer 'cause the value-filled presidential atheist believes the "buck stops here."]

Even if it's not relevant to you to have a president who prays to the true God, can't you at least concede that you can understand that it's important or at least potentially relevant to millions of Americans?

I would have no trouble with an atheist president, or a Mormon, or any of the other belief systems commonplace to the western world.As others far more clever than I have said, we’re not electing a pope/bishop/whatever, we’re electing the president of a republic, the constitution of which appears to be an entirely secular document, regardless of how religion may have informed the beliefs of its writers.

Allow me to ask you then the exact questions I just asked Colorado Tanker:

Do you make any distinction of what you just said about voting for the Prez of the US vs. let's say, a congressman?[And I'll tell you up front why I am asking: Imagine a Jack Bauer "24" situational crisis where the president prays for discernment, guidance, wisdom, & direction--and he prays to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob--the solo God of the universe. Now imagine the same situation with no such prayer 'cause the value-filled presidential atheist believes the "buck stops here."]

Even if it's not relevant to you to have a president who prays to the true God, can't you at least concede that you can understand that it's important or at least potentially relevant to millions of Americans?

The candidate I've described is someone who thinks and acts like a conservative Christian or Jew, pro-life, pro-family, a believer that our rights are God-given, not granted (or taken away) by man. If there is such an atheist, I'd be open to voting for him.

On the other hand, if I had to choose between that candidate and another equally electable and qualified who sought guidance in prayer to God, I'd choose the latter.

Well, as you can see, it's not irrelevant.

Now, let me press you. Who is the "true God" of your test? Only people within your denomination? If not, which denominations? Catholics OK? Unitarians? Mormons? How about Jews?