Richard Land has an article in USA Today telling why he thinks people are mistaken to think of Rick Perry as George W. Bush redux. He writes: Many people assume Texas Gov. Rick Perry is a carbon copy of George W. Bush. Well, he isn’t. Those who either love or despise former president Bush need to understand that Perry should be neither accepted nor rejected based on their opinion of Bush. Indeed, as the nation heads with full force into the 2012 election cycle, many of Perry’s opponents in and out of the news media will try to tear down the Texas governor as “Bush, continued.” To do so would…
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Marvin Olasky Sizes-up GOP Front-runner Rick Perry
Marvin Olasky has begun to size-up the new GOP front-runner in the latest issue of World magazine. Olasky has lived in Austin for two decades and has known many of Rick Perry’s political allies, critics, and former staffers. After reading Olasky’s article, I have to say that his take on Perry is rather cool. It’s not negative, but it’s not positive either. It is a bit wait-and-see-ish. Olasky gives a thumbnail sketch of Perry’s very conservative record as the governor of Texas. Olasky raises the specter of some “crony capitalism” in Perry’s record as well. Olasky finds no evidence of any personal corruption on Perry’s part.
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Ross Douthat Goes Another Round with Ryan Lizza over Francis Schaeffer
Earlier this week I posted about Ross Douthat’s deft dismantling of Ryan Lizza’s misinterpretation of Francis Schaeffer. Ryan Lizza has since responded on The New Yorker Website and stands by his contention that Francis Schaeffer favored armed resistance to the U.S. government over the issue of abortion. Douthat has just offered another rejoinder to Lizza. Once again, Douthat has the better part of this argument. One thing I would add about his whole conversation: If Francis Schaeffer really favored armed resistance against the U.S. government, then why haven’t evangelicals answered his call to do so? In the last 30 years, can you think of any evangelical who has heeded Schaeffer’s…
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Douthat Takes Lizza to the Woodshed
Ryan Lizza’s piece from The New Yorker a couple of weeks ago gets another critique—this time from Ross Douthat. In a follow-up piece to Douthat’s article in today’s New York Times, Douthat goes to his blog to challenge Ryan Lizza’s misrepresentation of Francis Schaeffer. Douthat is charitable, but tough. Here’s the conclusion:
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Should Wives Submit to Their Husbands?
The front page of The Nashville Tennessean has an article by Bob Smietana titled “Should wives submit? Debate resurges.” Though Michele Bachmann’s candidacy for president is the catalyst for this piece, the article is not really about her. It’s about how American Evangelicals approach the question of gender roles in the home, in the church, and in society at large. Smietana interviews folks on both sides of this question and even deals briefly with the various interpretations of Ephesians 5 and how those readings play out in the lives of real families. Smietana even uses the proper theological designations for each view, complementarianism and egalitarianism. This is an unusual article,…
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American Theocracy Revisited: Douthat Tweaks Press Coverage of Religion in GOP Primary
Ross Douthat doesn’t have the religion beat, but he writes with more insight than many reporters who do. He rightly argues that the press has every right to ask how a political candidate’s faith relates to his political agenda. But in doing so, Douthat offers “four points that journalists should always keep in mind when they ask and then write about religious beliefs that they themselves don’t share.” Here they are:
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Joseph Bottum Takes Joe Biden to Task over Abortion Remarks
Joseph Bottum has written a scathing criticism of Vice President Joe Biden’s recent remarks about China’s one-child policy. In a gaffe on August 21, Vice President Biden said that he didn’t want to “second-guess” China’s one-child policy—a policy that has led to countless forced sterilizations and forced abortions in China. Bottum responds:
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Groothuis Blows-up the “Dominionism” Bogey Man
Douglas Groothuis puts the nail in the coffin of the “dominionism” meme. The New Yorker really should consider publishing Groothuis’ response to Ryan Lizza’s tendentious reporting. Here’s a snippet:
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All Evangelicals Are “Dominionists”
Lisa Miller observes in The Washington Post that the Republican primary race has spawned many news stories raising fears about “crazy Christians.” She writes, “Their echo-chamber effect reignites old anxieties among liberals about evangelical Christians. Some on the left seem suspicious that a firm belief in Jesus equals a desire to take over the world… This isn’t a defense of the religious beliefs of Bachmann or Perry, whatever they are. It’s a plea, given the acrimonious tone of our political discourse, for a certain amount of dispassionate care in the coverage of religion. Nearly 80 percent of Americans say they’re Christian. One-third of Americans call themselves ‘evangelical.’ When millions of…
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Theological Interrogations and the 2012 Race
It’s been fascinating to watch news coverage of the Presidential race over the last week. Two of the candidates in particular have turned the attention of the pundit class to religious topics. From Rick Perry’s prayer rally last weekend to Michele Bachmann’s interpretation of Ephesians 5:22 in Thursday’s GOP debate, reporters have become focused on the candidates’ theological views and how those views might inform their presidency.