Answering an evangelical call to arms, Christians will gather in communities across the nation today to watch President Bush’s State of the Union address. They will invite local media to listen in as they measure Bush’s policies against the moral values laid out in the Bible.
But don’t expect a lot of applause for the president.
These “watch parties” are being organized by a small but growing movement of evangelical Christians who no longer want to be defined by same-sex marriage and abortion. Plumbing the Bible for God’s priorities, they are talking instead about global warming and affordable housing, about fewer tax cuts for the rich and more food stamps for the poor.
“The typical image of evangelicals is that they’re concerned with the sanctity of life, the traditional family and that’s it; they buy the whole Republican agenda when they vote,” said Ron Sider, president of Evangelicals for Social Action, a think tank based in Wynnewood, Pa.
Without giving up their opposition to abortion and gay marriage, “they’re asking, what (else) does God care about?” Sider said.
Citing Jesus’ concern for the most vulnerable, evangelicals last month led a protest against a proposed federal budget that would cut deeply into food stamps, subsidized health insurance and student aid.
The Rev. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, has spoken out for clean air and clean water policies, arguing that God ordered man to be a good steward of creation. He hears pastors everywhere picking up the theme.
“It’s happening more and more: A Republican hunter from a Southern Baptist Church in Oklahoma knows he has a responsibility to the environment,” Haggard said. “The community that drives pickup trucks is also learning to drive scooters.”
The most liberal voice in the evangelical movement belongs to the Rev. Jim Wallis, author of the book “God’s Politics.” Wallis leads the progressive advocacy group Sojourners, which is sponsoring the State of the Union parties in 160 communities nationwide. He calls himself pro-life but opposes criminalizing abortion; he cannot accept same-sex marriage but would welcome civil unions.
Mostly, though, he doesn’t like answering questions on those issues. “It’s such a tired conversation,” he said.
When critics ask him how any issue could be more important than the 1 million pregnancies that end in abortion each year, Wallis challenges them to take a broader view of “pro-life” values. He asks them how many children go to sleep hungry each year, how many sicken because their parents can’t afford a doctor, and whether God would approve.
He’s starting to hear some answers he finds encouraging.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week, Wallis spent hours in conversation with the Rev. Rick Warren, author of the bestseller “The Purpose-Driven Life.” Warren recently launched a global anti-poverty campaign with the Rev. Billy Graham.
The National Association of Evangelicals, based in Colorado Springs, Colo., is urging its 30 million members to pursue a “biblically balanced agenda” – by fighting poverty as well as pornography, protecting the environment as well as embryos, promoting good government as well as the Gospel.
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