As I read later into the book, it becomes more and more interesting to me, particularly the chapter on Faith in the United States. Obama starts off by talking about how religious the country is, but also how it's popularity is on the decline. He says, "Respectable folks might still attend church every Sunday; Bible-thumpers and faith healers might still work the Southern revival circuit; the fear of "godless communism" might help feed McCarthyism and the Red Scare. But for the most part, traditional religious practice -- and certainly religious fundamentalism-- was considered incompatable with modernity..." (199). This shows how he believes that religion must change at the same rate as everything else does, so it can sustain it's importance in many people's lives.
While still talking on the topic of religion, he says "The single biggest gap in party affiliation among white Americans is not between men and women, or between those who reside in so-called red states and those who reside in blue states, but between those who attend church regularly and those who don't"(201). This shows how he believes that religion in society is being a sort of wall between people's ideas, and what I find usually is that the religious side is truthfully the most stubborn side. The fact that Obama, a now infamous politician, has the guts to tell it like it is without fear of losing any votes or anything shows that he believes the truth should always be open to the public.
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4 comments:
I'm reading the same book you are, so it's kind of fun to browse through your blog posts on Obama's book. It see what you're saying, but I'm going to have to disagree with some of the things you say. First, I don't think that saying that religion is a wall between political groups is a good description. A religious individual can still support certain ideas from the 'other' side. Instead, I would call religion a lens through which people look at politics. They still see other issues, but how they look at them is changed. Last thing, I don't think I'd call Obama an 'infamous politician', unless the whole Illinois senate seat selection issue goes south for him in a big way. Of course 'infamous' may have been a typo.
I agree with Erik that religion should not be considered a wall, but a different viewpoint. It is also lacking clarification as to the religion you are referring to. I'm assuming that the reference is to main stream Christianity, but with the topic so broad as "religion", it could stretch from Scientology to Eckankar. Also, if Obama's ideas truly are that religion hinders one's political views, it isn't in his best interest to proclaim that considering he himself is involved in a church.
Religion is a fun issue to debate. I've been on both sides of the arguement, for and against. Its a good thing for the people, it keeps them in line, and keeps them moral. But I think most take it way too far. Everyone is entitled to their opinion though. That's what makes America America. We can do as we please religiously. Tradition will slowly fade away as it becomes a blur.
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