Below is the link to an article about references to God in President Obama's second inaugural address. How important is it for political leaders to include such references in their speeches in the twenty-first century? How do our modern day presidents compare in this regard to their earliest presidential predecessors?
http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2013/01/22/169998659/divine-rhetoric-god-in-the-inaugural-address
It is fairly important for political leaders to include references to God in their speeches. All but two U.S. Presidents have used references to God in their speeches, but they used the language common to society during their time in history. For the founding fathers, it was common to use religious language influenced by Deism. However, God is used more commonly in our everyday language, so it would make more sense for God to be directly referenced in speeches.
ReplyDeleteMany of the examples from the article were of Presidents addressing the nation during stressful times such as the Civil War, World War I, and World War II. Could the reason for the references to God be to reassure the American people of their original providential destiny? Can parallels be seen in today's society? With the War on Terror and financial stresses of today, does the American society need reassurance of God's favor?
The role of Christianity in 20th and 21st century elections in America is undeniable. But many would argue that American voters only require a semblance of religiosity in their candidate. In fact, seemingly ultra-conservative candidate Rick Santorum critiqued Obama as having a "false theology." Unfortunately for Santorum, his theology was just too "radical" for the Presidency. 40-60 years ago, Santorum would have only been considered somewhat of a moderately right leaning conservative on social issues. In fact, 40 years ago, the candidacy of a Mormon would have been unthinkable. This raises many questions about religion vs. morality. I would contend that the American moderate voter bloc simply requires a candidate to have some sort of religion as an assurance of their morality. Rather than examining a candidates theology, voters have turned their focus towards a candidate's ability to make rational and moral decisions in the White House. Religion is simply skin deep for many candidates in today's election. Namedropping God is all that is required to check "Christian" off the list of candidate requirements.
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