Pete Buttigieg is thinking big about religion and politics

[femmedem]

"...When the discussion turned to the hardest core of Trump’s religious support, Buttigieg was not conciliatory: “One way to look at it is an almost literal deal with the devil. Certain long-held conservative political objectives are being satisfied, and they are not worried about the rest. At a deeper level you have to ask whether the bottom line here is religious or whether it is political. If it is political, it doesn’t matter what I have to say about why religion might lead them to a different place.”

On policy issues of particular concern to many evangelical Christians, Buttigieg gives little ground. His conception of religious liberty is minimalistic, making no provision for religious institutions such as colleges to admit or hire according to their traditional religious standards. “If you are talking about professional organizations that have HR departments,” he told me, “then yes, it is not enough to say religion inspires me to discriminate against you and expect government to let that go.”

And Buttigieg’s view on abortion is conventionally liberal, dismissing the idea that the protection of nascent life might be a human rights issue. “To say whose rights are involved,” he said, “is to assume an answer. And it’s because the answer is in a certain sense unknowable that the American majority believes it is best left to those facing the decision.”

But it would be wrong to think that Buttigieg’s religious mission lacks ambition. He seems driven to set out a version of spirituality that might appeal to increasingly secular millennials. It assumes that society will be supportive of every sexual identity. But it affirms that human beings need moral structure, gained from family and religion. And it calls attention to the social justice priorities of a progressive reading of scripture."

More: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/pete-buttigieg-is-thinking-big-about-religion-and-politics/2020/01/16/a40eadd8-38a7-11ea-bf30-ad313e4ec754_story.html

I personally am not religious at all. But I do like how Buttigieg explains how his faith informs his values while making it clear that he opposes any discrimination based on a person's faith or lack of faith.

[Capt. America]

1. +1000

I too am not religious, but it seems to help a lot of people make their choice.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. A big, fat K&R!