“The faith fetish, the belief in belief, is an insult not only to the mind, but also to the soul. For there are many varieties of faith, and the “faith” of the Republicans, which does not grasp the old distinction between fideism and faith, represents only one of those varieties. Not all religion in America is as superstitious and chiliastic and emotional and dogmatic and political as this. And not all religion in America is as Christian as this. When the spokesmen for Bush’s holy base call for the restoration of religion to a central position in public life–for the repeal of the grand tradition of mutually beneficial separation that began with Roger Williams’s heroic alienation from the theocracy of Massachusetts–they are usually calling for the restoration of their religion.” – Leon Wieseltier, the New Republic.-
It’s a tonic of an essay (subscription required). I won’t add anything except to say that social and cultural liberals should never concede the issue of faith to the religious right. My belief in the equality of homosexuals, for example, is directly connected to my faith. My own experience has led me to the truth that gay people are as human as straight people, that their loves are as worthy and their relationships as sacred. People ask me how I can be openly gay and Catholic. The answer is simply: I am openly gay because I am Catholic, because my faith teaches me not to be afraid of the truth, and requires me to speak up against injustice and cruelty. My opponents are simply wrong, clinging to theological certainties that collapse upon close scrutiny, and appealing to fear where Christ always appealed to love. In my view, they will eventually be seen as the forces of immorality, rather than the apostles of moral truth. And that is why this struggle is so deep and so intractable. Because it is not a struggle of faith against unbelief, but of faith against faith, just as every civil rights movement always has been.
The Dish 