Mixing God and Politics
firstamendmentcenter.org: commentary:
Caught in the crossfire of culture-war battles over religion and politics, most Americans may be ready to say “a plague on both your houses.”
At least that’s one way to read a poll conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life and released Aug. 24.
According to the survey, nearly half of Americans (49%) believe conservative Christians have gone too far in trying to impose their religious values on the country. At the same time, 69% think liberals have gone too far in trying to keep religion out of schools and government.
Though most Americans are religious (and most think religious influence on our society is a good thing), few identify with religious political movements on the left or right. Only 7% call themselves members of the “religious left,” and only 11% say they belong to the “religious right.”