No God Talk Please
That’s the conclusion reported in a Daniela Altimari article from the Hartford Courant yesterday about the results of a recent UConn poll. It turns out that nearly half of nutmeggers polled believe that religion has too great an influence on politics, and that 68 percent don’t care for politicians who make policy decisions based upon their religious beliefs.
Each person quoted in the article (aside from the research director at UConn’s polling center) indicates that he or she is religious, most of them stating that religion and government/politics should be separate. Even those who disagree are represented, as one believer is quoted saying that “politicians need to vote based on what they believe.”
Here’s an excerpt from “Voters: Keep God Out Of It” in Sunday’s Courant:
Walt Ezepchick, a 46-year-old auto mechanic and former Marine from Milford, attended Catholic schools and says his faith remains “somewhat important” to him, even though he doesn’t attend regular church services. He sums up his religious philosophy this way: “I believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ, to be good to one another.”
However, he said he doesn’t believe religion belongs in the realm of public policy.
“The Founding Fathers had it right,” said Ezepchick, one of several respondents who agreed to a follow-up interview. “I believe in secular debate.”
[...]
Angela Campos, an 18-year-old Catholic from Bridgeport who attends church twice a week, said the nation would benefit from a greater mingling of politics and religious teachings. “I do think the world would be a better place if more politicians and people in general were religious,” she said.
I’m guessing that there are way more people in this country like Mr. Ezepchick than there are people like Ms. Angela Campos, and that gives me hope for the future.