Little Green Footballs has unearthed a video of George W. Bush on Nightline in which he mentions his relationship with God, his beliefs and the dreaded "evolution." He comments that his relationship with God is on a personal level and that he has a lot of problems that he needs help with. He also says "The call is to live out your life and better understand the will of God" and also to "have a thoughtful prayer life."
Then he says about evolution: "I think you can have both." The problem here is, as Todd Rundgren puts it: "The last thing you said is the last thing I heard." The biblical literalists won't hear that he has a personal relationship with God, that He sent his son to die for us, that we are called to live our lives according to the will of God. No, they will hear that he supports evolution and that will be enough for them to condemn him.
Is Bush a bit of a universalist? Yes, he appears to be, and, yes that is troubling but during the interview with Charles Gibson, he clearly says:
But I will, I, I want you to understand, I want your listeners to understand, I don't get to decide who goes to heaven. The almighty God decides who goes to heaven. And I am on my personal walk.
So, rather than pray that he gets it right and understands the importance of the salvation of Jesus, the evangelical community will likely just throw him under the bus. See, for example, the comments at this site. No wonder evangelicals are getting a bad reputation.
I'm not so sure all that many evangelicals will turn on him. They've generally adored him for nearly a decade now, and that's a habit that's hard to get out of.
ReplyDeleteI certainly hope you are right. I only linked one page, though. I saw some very disappointed people on a bunch of sites. A lot of "Not one of us" reactions.
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