News

The Party of Faith

Democrats and Republicans vie for the title in their upcoming elections.

Democrats and Republicans are sparring to see how religion-friendly they can make their national conventions.

For the first time, an interfaith gathering will mark the official opening of the Democrats’ convention week in late August. This year’s Denver meeting will be the second time people of faith will have their own caucus. Evangelist and sociologist Tony Campolo, a member of the party’s platform committee, said he will push for an abortion-reduction plank.

The convention’s CEO, Leah Daughtry, is a Pentecostal pastor who flies from Denver to Washington, D.C., twice a month to preach in her church.

“There’s a growing understanding that the faith community is important in elections, an acknowledgment that we need to be more proactive,” said Daughtry, who is chief of staff for the Democratic National Committee. “What we’re doing now is making our voices more strongly heard.”

Steven Waldman, editor of the spirituality website Beliefnet, covered the 2000 and 2004 conventions. He expects Democratic religious outreach to be much more sophisticated than in previous years because of Sen. Barack Obama, who is outspoken about his Christian faith.

“Two conventions ago, [Democrats] had no sensitivity to religious people,” Waldman said. “Last convention, they had a little bit. They had this kind of rump operation that was trying to reach out to religious people, but it was kind of poignant.”

Whether the Republican convention will have the kind of evangelical-celebrity quotient it had in the past remains to be seen. At press time, the Republicans had yet to release official plans for the early September convention, but spokeswoman Yohana de la Torre said many faith-based organizations will be involved. Christian musicians Michael W. Smith and Third Day performed at the 2004 convention, and pastors Max Lucado and Greg Laurie offered opening and closing prayers.

Ralph Reed, former director of the Christian Coalition, said the Republican National Convention has historically been an important place for many conservative Christian groups to network within the party and make sure their issues are included in the party’s platform. He doesn’t believe the Democrats’ outreach will work.

“Imitation is the highest form of flattery,” Reed said. “But you don’t win voters because you quote a verse; you win by having the same values.”

Waldman wonders whether evangelicals will be represented on the podium and how that will shape Sen. John McCain’s image.

“There’s this conventional wisdom that McCain is unpopular among evangelicals. He’s unpopular among evangelical leaders, but not necessarily among rank and file,” Waldman said. “McCain is going to want to see this kind of concern among religious conservatives evaporate by then.”

Copyright © 2008 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Related Elsewhere:

Our full coverage of the campaign includes our articles on the 2008 election and CT Election 2008 Blog.

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

Cover Story

Creating Culture

Hope for Troubled Times

When a Professor of Aramaic Meets Hollywood

The Ironic Faith of Emergents

McLaren Emerging

My Top 5 Books on Food

Bookmarks

On the Grand Canyon Bus

News

It's Primetime in Iran

News

Looking for Home

Review

Girls on Display

Missionary Myths

Theology in Aisle 7

News

The Father of Faith-Based Diplomacy

Should I Fish or Lay Low?

News

Richard Foster on Leadership

A Life Formed in the Spirit

Review

Debauchery and Crucifixes

News

Quotation Marks

News

Prayer at the Pump

News

Go Figure

News

Going to Bat for His Neighbors

Choosing Celibacy

Wire Story

Sunday Drivers

News

For the Love of Lit

News

The Other Kind of Angels

News

No More Shortcuts

News

Re-Imagining Reality

Crouch and Culture

Cultivating Where We're Planted

News

Caesar's Sectarians

News

Healing ORU

Missional Misstep

News

'Dead Sea Scrolls on Stone'

News

Translation Tiff

News

Leaving Lakeland

News

Undue Attention in Algeria

News

Salvation through Buddhism?

View issue

Our Latest

News

Black Clergy and Christians Grapple with Charlie Kirk’s Legacy

Many say the activist’s inflammatory statements on race should inform how we remember his life.

News

A Sudden Death: Voddie Baucham, Who Warned the Church of Fault Lines

Known for confronting critical theory, moral relativism, and secular ideologies, Baucham died a month into leading a new seminary in Florida.

Why Many Black Christians Reject the Evangelical and Mainline Labels

The history of a prominent church pastored by MLK in Alabama shows the reason African Americans often don’t embrace either term.

News

Pastor Abducted in Nigeria Amid Escalating Kidnapping Crisis

Armed gang continues to hold him after family paid the ransom.

Review

The Liturgy of American Charisma

Historian Molly Worthen studies dynamic leaders, eager followers, and their shared efforts to “consecrate a new reality.”

Inside the Ministry

The Next Gen Initiative

Casting a captivating vision of following Jesus for the next generation.

The Just Life with Benjamin Watson

Bruce Deel: Mercy With A Spine

Creating real pathways to stability so families can flourish through housing, work, and dignity.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube