Wise man

An "important" speech by Sen. Barak Obama. While he is probably trying to position himself for a coming presidential election, he certainly knows how to do it.

But what I am suggesting is this - secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering into the public square. Frederick Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, Williams Jennings Bryant, Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King -indeed, the majority of great reformers in American history - were not only motivated by faith, but repeatedly used religious language to argue for their cause. So to say that men and women should not inject their "personal morality" into public policy debates is a practical absurdity. Our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition.

Comments

[Anonymous]

This a beautiful speech, but as you says, this is not a consistent position. We should remember that he voted to:

-Pass the Stem Cell Research Bill. (Jun 2004)

-Protect a woman's right to choose. (May 2004)

-Supports Roe v. Wade. (Jul 1998)

-Voted YES on $100M to reduce teen pregnancy by education & contraceptives. (Mar 2005)

Well, all people can repent and change, we should remember St. Paul, but is this the case?

[SR]

It doesn't matter the bills that he has supported. What is significant is Obama's argument against a naked public square, against liberal syncretism. In that, he is an ally.