Zu's musings

Zing!

First of all, there is no single reason why the religious right disagrees with early church teachings on the subject of war. Often times commentators like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson seem to promote and explain foreign conflicts as signs of the approaching rapture while at other times, seeking to bring about the signs of revelation, they urge action in the name of Christian Zionism. And sometimes religious right leaders support war just as a matter of pragmatism.

Before we examine the possible rationale for supporting the war in Iraq and the war on terror, let us look briefly at the history of the religious right as a modern political force.[1] Prior to the Second World War, the religious right in America was not particularly politically active. However it was not too long after the tumultuous events of the early 1940’s, the rising specter of communism, and what was seen as a moral decline in America, that the religious right began to exercise its latent might. Starting with Carl McIntire’s The Twentieth-Century Reformation Hour in the 1950’s and continuing with Billy Hargis in the 1960’s and 70’s, the religious right increasingly used media to spread their conservative message. At first the religious right spoke out against communist conspiracies, but before too long they branched out to denounce other aspects of society, with events like the civil rights movement and decisions about prayer in school seen as part of widespread leftist infiltration.

With the election of Jimmy Carter, a southern Baptist, the religious right became emboldened. If an evangelical Christian held the highest office in the land, perhaps Christian values would be promoted as part of public policy. This notion was quickly dismissed from the mind of the religious right as President Carter took what they believed to be anti-Christian stances. By letting abortions be federally subsidized, endorsing the ERA, and trying to have Christian schools taxed, Jimmy Carter quickly divorced himself from a large part of his support base. One significant figure in the religious right, Tim LaHaye, expressed his dismay by saying “Between 1976 and 1980, I watched a professing Christian become president of the United States and then surround himself with a host of humanistic cabinet ministers,” ministers who “nearly destroyed our nation.”[2]

Thinking themselves betrayed, the religious right moved to consolidate their power among conservatives. Groups like Moral Majority, founded by Jerry Falwell and others in 1979, and Religious Roundtable moved to secure influence with conservative politicians like Ronald Reagan. Religious leaders like Falwell did all they could to advance their cause, even going so far as to spread outright lies about homosexuals and Jimmy Carter prior to the 1980 election.[3] After much hard work, the results of the 1980 elections were a stunning success to the religious right. All was not well within the ranks however, with support for religious right groups slowly waning until the scandals with Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Baker in the late 1980’s sent approval into a tailspin. Falwell and others tried to distance themselves from the controversy, but the damage was done; Pat Robertson’s presidential campaign fell apart and the Moral Majority ceased to exist.

Throughout the 1990’s, evangelicals worked hard to get friendly politicians elected. Robertson’s Christian Coalition along with other groups started at the local level and worked their way up the ladder. By the 1994 elections, conservative politicians were being elected in large numbers, thanks in no small part to the efforts of the religious right. Although the popularity of President Clinton kept a conservative from the White House, the ranks of Congress swelled with politicians that evangelicals supported. After several scandals rocked the Clinton White House, the religious right set its sights on a conservative evangelical president in 2000.

Although the religious right would have preferred the more outwardly religious Gary Bauer, they decided to shift their votes with George W Bush. In an interview in 2000, Pat Robertson explained that Bush was “playing intelligent in terms of his campaign,” and said that “coalition members and others have got to understand that that's what's going on.”[4] Even though the religious right supported Bush for president, they had once again lost some of their might. USA Today reported that “The percentage of the electorate identified as "religious right" declined from 17% in 1996 to 14% in 2000. The turnout among white evangelicals fell 6% from 1996 to 2000.”[5]

When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the religious right lost their principle foe of the previous 40 years. Without a hostile force seeking to destroy Christian values, membership and support in conservative Christian groups began to wane. Despite throwing their full weight behind George W Bush, the religious right could not get as many citizens out to vote as they had in 1996 for Bob Dole. However, the attacks of September 11^th presented America and the religious right with a brand new enemy that sought the destruction of the American way of life.

posted by Zu @ 1:37 AM