Senate candidate Sharron Angle (who is challenging Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in Nevada) recently gave an interview to David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network in which she described her campaign for public office as a “calling.” She also made similar comments to Ralph Reed of the Faith and Freedom Coalition saying that she believes “that God has been in this from the beginning, and because of that, when He has a plan and a purpose for your life and you fit into that, what He calls you to He’s always equipped you for.”
Today Interfaith Alliance issued a statement in response Angle’s comments, calling on all politicians to stop using their religion to appeal to voters, a practice that weakens both religion and politics. Of course, candidates for public office are free to talk about how their faith informs their thinking. But candidates should always remember that they represent people of diverse beliefs, and the policies they create need to be based on fidelity, not to their religious scriptures, but to the Constitution.
See below for the full text of Interfaith Alliance’s statement:
Sharron Angle’s recent comments on her race against Sen. Harry Reid being ‘a calling,’ and that she considers herself a ‘faith-based politician’ should be deeply troubling to anyone who cherishes religious freedom. If elected to represent the people of Nevada in the United States Senate, Ms. Angle will do so as a representative of the people of her state, not of her church. My guess is that God will be just fine without playing a role in either candidate’s campaign.
Candidates for public office are free to talk about how their faith informs their thinking, but should not imply that policy position will be based on scripture rather than the Constitution. It has been my experience that when candidates intentionally insert faith into politics, the purpose is rarely to protect religion; rather it is done to enhance a political position.
