Danforth Holds Forth on Religious Right
So there’s a new book coming out by an evangelical Christian Republican politician. Oh, but this time he’s against the religious right. It’s hard to figure out John Danforth, the former Missouri senator who gave us Supreme Court (in-) Justice Clarence Thomas. In his new book, Faith and Politics, the conservative Danforth once again hits the religious right for its bullying of the Republican party. And Danforth adds:
The problem with many conservative Christians is that they claim that God’s truth is knowable, that they know it, and that they are able to reduce it to legislative form. The popular question,’What would Jesus do?’ can be difficult enough to contemplate with respect to everyday interpersonal relations. It is mind boggling when applied to the complex world of politics.
True, that. Well, let’s ask John:
ROLLING STONE: You say it’s hard to figure out what Jesus would do. But I think we know what Jesus wouldn’t have done — say, invade Iraq. Support torture. Stuff like that. Oh, and it’s at least an open question whether Jesus would have helped to install Clarence Thomas as one of the Supremes.
JOHN DANFORTH: I have exactly the same view of Clarence Thomas that I have had for 30-some years…I know him, and I love him as a human being. I stood by him, and I am proud of that