“What kind of “leadership” is it when a nation forgoes the ONE AND ONLY TRUE God as its Ultimate Leader?”
That’s not even a question, because Obama pretty much demands everyone worship and adore him already. So I don’t have a single clue where you’ve been since 2008, or 2009, if all you wish to count as Obama’s presidency is his innauguration time onward. Obama demands blatantly that we pretty much regard him like he is God, it’s called NARCISSISM!
1) You make no sense about endorsing Mormonism, and in fact, you never did. So I voted for Bush I and II, you offered so little meaning as to how that equals endorsing the Episcopal Church (The English Crown), or Endorsing born again Christianity, and I so far, remain neither religion. I don’t have to convert to Mormonism to vote for a Mormon. I don’t have to convert or endorse Episcopalians to vote for an Episcopalian, so right here, you lack any proof whatsoever of some sort of equivalence that voting someone of a religion counts as endorsing or converting to that individual’s religion.
“A Biblical commentator notes in 1 Samuel that the writer of 1 Samuel’s narrative “show[s] the people’s and God’s initial approval of him. Saul is presented as Israel’s deliverer, remarkably similar to the judges. While all Israel cowered at the threat of the Ammonites, Saul rallied the tribes and defeated the enemy. Just as during the time of the judges, the Spirit of God came upon him and he had victory in the battle. At the conclusion of the story, we see again that Saul’s mighty deeds were known and acknowledged by the people. It is in light of these narratives that the subsequent failure of Saul is explained. A valiant and mighty leader is not necessarily a godly one...Saul failed as king because he did not provide the spiritual leadership for the nation.” (NIV Compact Bible Commentary, p. 225) “
How about reading about Cyrus the Great, a Gentile (Zoroastrian) King who was the First “Messiah” or annointed King of the Jews, second, we don’t have kings in America, so your reasoning is out of bounds of this discussion.
“What kind of “leadership” is it when a nation forgoes the ONE AND ONLY TRUE God as its Ultimate Leader?”
That point is irrelevant, as the pluralistic interpretation of “God” already leaves uncertainty as to what the true God is? The True God of Judaism? The God as according to Catholicism? The God according to Greek Orthodoxy? The True God according to Deists? Which one, because people of all these beliefs exist here in America, plus more.
“And, just as Saul failed to provide spiritual leadership, so will Romney, whose beliefs are closer to polytheistic paganism than to Christianity.”
And what if the Christians are hypocrites, again, you’ve never answered the fact that a Zoroastrian like Cyrus can save God’s covenant people, and give them a decree permitting them to return to Jerusalem. God could allow a Zoroastrian (polytheist) to be his chosen ruler, so I honestly don’t have a clue what you are trying to say. Go back to the Bible, and read more, because I find you grossly, and hillariously in error.
Christians recognize that the same God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the One who sent His Son, who is worshipped by Catholics, Greek Orthodox, and Protestants alike.
So, since YOU have made distinctions here, show us proof from those among Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants that depict them as worshiping distinct gods.
You raise an excellent question -- one I have not rec'd before -- which shows you are thinking thru these issues.
My answer is derived largely from the Bible -- 2 Kings to be precise -- where the author of that book describes the reign of a series of rulers.
Here's the key Q we must answer:
What were the TWO KEY things that God tended to judge the reign of these rulers upon?
Ponder that for a moment, and then continuing reading...
Answer? The answer is:
(a) Did these kings do "evil" or did "right" in the eyes of the Lord;
and (b) How these kings dealt with false worship centers.
You see, Jeroboam as a king had established false worship centers at Bethel and Dan (1 Kings 15:26; 12:25-33). Now, once these false worship centers were ALREADY established, God seemed to hold ensuing rulers accountable for how they responded to worship centers established under the reign of previous kings...even if there was no "expansion" of these centers during their particular reign!
And that's where 2 Kings comes in...
Look at the ruler lineup:
Jehu?...continued in Jeroboam's sins (2 Kings 10:29, 31)
Joash?...same thing (2 Kings 12:3)
Jehoahaz?...same thing (2 Kings 13:2)
Jehoash...same thing (2 Kings 13:11)
Amaziah? ...same thing (2 Kings 14:4)
Azariah? ... same thing (2 Kings 15:4)
Zechariah? ... same thing (2 Kings 15:9)
Menahem... same thing (2 Kings 15:18)
Pekahiah? ... same thing (2 Kings 15:24)
Pekah? ... same thing (2 Kings 15:28)
Jotham? ...same thing (2 Kings 15:35)
Ahaz? ... same thing (2 Kings 16:3-4)
It actually lists over a dozen kings...
Three of the above dozen actually "did right in the eyes of the Lord" -- Joash (2 Kings 12:2); Amaziah (2 Kings 14:3); and Azariah (2 Kings 15:2)...yet they were also judged upon how they addressed -- or failed to address -- these false worship centers!
One summary in the middle of all this -- 2 Kings 17:21 -- references Jeroboam's sin as a "great sin" that came upon Israel (a great sin of commission)...and considering the First Commandment of having no other gods, of course this was a "great sin!" Why would anybody want to play down idolatry???...All that is described in 2 Kings 17:15-17 & other verses was open idolatry...the embracement of false gods...that went on in Israel!
Only a few kings -- like Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:4,22) and Josiah (2 Kings 23:4-20) were commended for taking these false worship centers seriously and addressing them...
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So, how does 2 Kings then apply today?
Notice that God didn't evaluate those kings upon every theological jot & tittle distinction as it applied to Old Testament Judaism...as you insinuate I am saying re: George Bush's Episcopalianism...
No, God judged these kings on (a) their character/integrity/ethics; and (b) Their response to false worship centers...
Now...why would (b) be so important -- beyond it breaking the First Commandment?
Why? Because God is a "jealous" God in the best purest sense of that word -- and he knows that idolatry utterly destroys the covenant relationship people have with Him...He told Moses:
13 Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. 14 Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. 15 “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. 16 And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same. 17 “Do not make any idols. (Exodus 34:13-17)
God's very Name is Jealous, per Exodus 34:14, because ONLY He has the pure right to claim possession of His people.
So the Q is for people who claim to worship the God of the Old Testament...: If God zeroed in on rulers' character/integrity/ethics ... Plus if God zeroed in upon a ruler's treatment of false worship centers ... why do they think that is suddenly irrelevant to God now???
So, I suppose that means, that because God was interested in which kings did "what was right" and "what was evil" in his eyes, that God has abandoned such interest in contemporary rulers just because they don't don the title "king," eh???
Character, integrity, and ethics is just a "wind-blown" thing that applied only "once upon a time" to rulers, eh???