Most Americans Have No Clue that Obama is a Christian
KultureKritic.com Staff Writer
According to a new Gallup Poll, most Americans don’t know that President Obama is Christian. In fact, 34 percent of the survey respondents say that Obama is a Christian and the rest either think that he’s affiliated with another faith or say that they simply don’t know.
Among those who responded to the survey, seven percent believe that Obama is a Protestant, and four percent believe he is a Baptist. Another 11 percent believe he is a Muslim, and 8 percent think he has no religion at all. The rest have no idea.
President Obama consistently reminds the public that he is a Christian, but most Americans never take the time to listen to his speeches. Even when he announced his support for same-s*x marriage, the president reminded listeners that both he and his wife Michelle are Christians who go to church on many Sundays.
Republicans are the ones most likely to believe that Obama is something other than Christian. Only 24 percent of Republicans believe that President Obama is a Christian, while 52 percent Democrats are accurate about this fact. Republicans are also more likely to label Obama as a Muslim (18 percent), while only a small percentage (3 percent) of Democrats make the same mistake.
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They know, they just don’t care. They care that he is brown and to the willfully ignorant brown equals bad. This man could restore the economy, buy new houses for every family and cure cancer yet some people would still think negatively of him.
Exactly. They should change that headline to “Most White Americans don’t want to admit that Obama is a Christian.” Obama is one of the best, if not the best Christian I have ever witnessed in our government. He cares for those less fortunate, than most of us, and I bet you will never hear of him cheating on or having cheated on Michelle, like many who claim Christianity, yet commit adultery at every turn. White republicans, and some white dems need to grow up and stop playing games with the lives of so many people in need of help.
Barrack who once known as Berry is a muslim due to the fact his father is musilm. Berry changed his name to identify more closely with his father,, Barrack Hussin is a muslim name, wise up. Barrack i s now a millionaire. Not een born in america,Indonesia is where he is from. At one time Mr. Obama may have been the answer to the blacks being treated like second rate citizens, slaves. But now that he is rich, how do rich folk act. They take care of each other. So much of why I voted for Mr. Obama never came true. The getmo is still open, the pipeline that could have employed thousands, the money he gave to the green energy thing is gone in the billions?, no romeney isnt a good choice either, but the president didnt do what he said, now for votes look at the mexican act he has done to us. Yea go vote, but for who . Just think Ill stay home whit a couple of 40′s and forget it. I still get my check so there.
You are a good example of how LOW SOME Americans have sunk in their thought process (if YOU are American). And his nickname is “BARRY”, not Berry…LOL!
Thank you. His father is muslim, but he, raised by his mom is a Christian. Second, he was born in the United States in Hawaii, grew up in Chicago and Indonesia. He cannot be faulted for being a well rounded individual. He is a natural born citizen and people need to stop it with these ridiculous birther theories. Just because his father was a muslim, that does not make him a muslim. His father is one person, and he is another individual responsible for how he lives his own life. His father has to answer for how he lives his own life, and not his son’s. So his father has nothing to do with his son’s religious decisions. Next, his nickname is Barry and his name from birth has alwaysa been Barack H. Obama. So please be an appropriate b black person for once in your life
I agree with your comment Elizabeth. The right to vote is extremely dangerous when given to those who don’t have the mental capacity to THINK.
Yeah he’s Muslim. All Muslims attend Christian churches and are members for a number of years! There are more idiots than Christians and that’s a fact!
Tony Gee, Gee Tony Gee, your elevator probably does not go up to the top floor based upon your comment. Where do you get your facts? Enlighten us with your knowledge… I’ve never heard anything more assinine than your comment…How many people have you interviewed to arrive with your conclusion? Expound, let the people know, educate us…
I am rather sick of the lies, and the NEGATIVE articles that i read here on this site and others about President Obama. WHATEVER he is, he has done a great job thus far as a leader.( I believe he IS a Christian however). Where were all of these haters when Bush was in office. he dug a h**l hole so deep for this country, that it will be impossible for ANY president to clean the mess up. STOP BLAMING OBAMA FOLKS…and by all means…if you are THAT confused JON…do us all a favor…DON’T vote.
What different does it make? It doesn’t change who he is one way or the other. We need to stop putting labels on people. As far as I am concerned being “A Christian” is highly overrated. Speaking one christian to another.
This BS just goes on and on, quite frankly I am sick of it. Our president is an American and his faith is Christian. Americans are some of the biggest “chickens” in the world, therefore use “fear” tatics and they will talk, walk and vote stupid every time. The Republicans are aware of this and they allow the superpacs and the racist to use it to their advantage. A Bigots biggest fear is an intelligent Black Man and they have encountered one with President Barrack Obama and they are running scared! If you cry wolf long enough, idoits will eventually believe.
IF, he ever was a Muslim, IF, would it not be possible that he changed his faith as many people do go through the motions of finding a faith. I think it is racism that fuels the people to want to point their fingers at Obama. They want to blame him for everything but fail to recall the past Presidents who helped get our Country where it is at today. He has gotten more sh.. than any other President. They get mad because he admits that he inhaled marijuana. What about Bush and his coke? Then the fast & furious. Do they forget that Bush started this in 2006!? They are so to speak, “tryin to keep the brother down” by failing to acknowledge the past 2-3 decades of Presidents that got us where we are. It is a new hidden racism. I know they hate that he helped the Latinos mainly or immigrants with the dream act. But they are already here living here as an American. Racism is dumb.
@LT at 3:24 pm
…”They are so to speak, trying to keep the brother down”…
LT, That’s an interesting phrase that you used. Listen to the lyrics of this Randy Newman song. It’s “Rednecks” in case the link doesn’t work.
http://youtu.be/2nGw_vAnqPI
This man can be anything he wants to be…the news media will ensure that. He iis amazing in that he knows how to roll with the tide. When critized for not honoring the National Anthem, he quickly changed. When critized for not wearing a flag pin on his lapel, he quickly changed. When criticized for being a Muslim, he began infrequently attending a Christian church. When critized for not being an American citizen, he produced a bogus birth certificate. His early college records reflect that he was born in Indonesia. h**l, he could be white if he chose to be…the news media would ensure that. Keep on fooling us, Barry.
@Jon Griffith @ 4:00pm
You said that “…his early college records reflect that he was born in Indonesia…”
Have you seen his college records, Jon, or have you been listening to Donald Trump? Don’t you think that with the resources they have at their disposal that Team Clinton would have gotten their hands on those records if they contained any dirt, during their opposition research on the President? Think for yourself, my friend. Don’t let others do it for you. You will be misled!
He was never a muslim, so what the h**l are you talking about? He has always been in attendance at Christian assembly…whats your source?
Jon Griffith, my second response is this, he is a citizen by birth, so what the h**l do you mean a bogus birth certificate? the man was born in Hawaii, how much more stupid can you be? oh, I forgot, you’re a bandwagon follower and a stupid one at that. What the h**l is wrong with you? please tell us where you get your bogus information from…..
What ever Obamas religious leaning are is between him and the God he serves.Look at the rethugs,ALL of them claim to be christians,not my definition of christians with their blatant lies and racist tactics.Some of these Big Time T.V. ministers claim christianity,it works for them while a lot of their members are in forclosure,behind in their bills,struggling while the pastor has private planes,yachts,castlelike homes,butlers,maids,nannys,you get my drift.My thing is the pastor didn’t die for me and wasn’t ressurected for me.A lot of folk claim to be christians but just because you live in a hen house doesn’t make you a chicken.Obama has my vote,couldn’t and wouldn’t vote for a rethug,Lincoln was a republican,he didn’t free the slaves because it was the humane thing to do do,the enemy wouldn’t put their weapons down.There’s a lot more Obama could do for the Black community but his hands are tied by those he’s surrounded by.
The author says the Obamas go to church on many Sundays. I’ve seen few reports on this.
Does anybody know how often they attend services?
How often do you take your ugly @ss to church?
joceeco:
Wow! What a concept. Ask an honest question and get my appearance questioned.
BTW: I’m guessing donkeys I have met have more class than you do. In fact, I considered it an honor to clean out some of their pens — as I knew what to expect.
Do you have anything worthwhile to offer? From your response, I’m guessing it won’t be church-based.
the name playrighter….is short for play right into his trap on a wild goose chase in trying to answer his never ending questions.
wake up people, the man is a troll…stop playing his game in having to provide facts to his racist a*s.
When candidates run for office they say a lot about what they plan to do, or what they will work towards completing, hence Gitmo. President Obama is no different. You talk about what he hasn’t done as if he has all power… Lets look at what he has done… done with help because he didn’t do it alone.
Jon mentioned Gov. Romney not being any better… my goodness; you would take a chance of staying home with your 40oz because you didn’t get yo piece. We have to rise above the 40 oz think of someone other than ourselves, and learn to do for self.
By the way Barrack Hussein Obama is not a Muslim name. Most Muslims tend to have Arabic or Afrikan names. How many Christians do you know name Jamal, Khadijah, Jabari, Yusef, etc. If you check your Family History you might find that many of your family were Muslim… many of those brought here as slaves were.
President Obama is a Christian with Muslim ties, and American born with international ties like many Americans who serve in the military. I support him. If he were Muslim I would still support him.
There is NO HUMAN BEING ALIVE OR DEAD CAN BE BORN A RELIGION. That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard of.Think about what you are saying. There is no gene called by a religion. People wake up and get over yourself. An educated society with so many dummies.
You cannot reason with fools. I am fully convinced that the only folks in America who think this President is Muslim are White people who lean tothe right politically, and jealous @ss black folks, who still have the sick need to love white folks as the house-n!gger loved his master during slavery. These people know that this President is American, but they are filled with so much hate, they cannot help themselves. They call themselves Christians, but they don’t realize that God gave them up to a reprobate mind a long time ago.
The reason people don’t know (or believe) he’s a Christian is his willingness to go against the faith to further his agenda. Jesus was not in favor of abortion. Jesus said the gay lifestyle was an abomination. Jesus was not a socalist, he wanted PEOPLE to help PEOPLE, NOT the government. Furthermore, his protection for all that is Muslim is another issue. One need not be “mean” or “disrepectful” toward another’s faith, but he has bent over backward to “be nice” to those who would try to kill us. HE has identfied himself as Muslim (in the past)
Oh, and Ann as for the “bigots” and the “intellegent black man” how are people supposed to KNOW about his intellegence when he can’t vary from a prompter and won’t release school records. Sounds suspious to me.
You are an ignorant fool! Jesus’ main concern was that we care for the poor, and love each other. Now how do you reconcile that with all of the BS that you wrote. Jesus sat with, ministered to and cared for all of those people, that you and conservative republicans shun, and you call yourself a Christian. Sin is sin. If a woman has an abortion, does it make her sin any worse than a man who kills a 17 year old kid walking home? Still, you and most gun toting republicans support that murderer George Zimmerman. If you do call yourself a Christian, your next move should be to ask God for a bit of wisdom, because God’s mercy is extended to those who show mercy.
Hmmm… I’m sorry but what BIBLE are you reading?? GOD has standards. Yes HE extends mercy but that’s to those who see that they are wrong and REPENT. Your right homosexuality is no greater sin than murder but make no mistake they are BOTH sin. And although I admire our President for all he has accomplished I find it hard to believe that he is Christian. He hasn’t shown a capacity to stand up for any belief and what is faith if it doesn’t affect your decision-making?
Very well said, I agree! People have gone about to establish their own righteousness so they don’t pay close attention to God’s Word and do not know how to rightly divide God’s word either. “Great Men are not always wise” For the Obama’s to be christians they are involved in too much stuff. Someone on this forum said you can be a “Secret Christian”. There is no such thing!! Faith without works is dead! You need to show some kind of work for God! The President and Mrs. Obama are rich, educated, worldly people, not christians!!!
@Rochesternative at 4:45 pm
…”he can’t vary from a prompter and wont release his school records”…
Please, for your own sake, don’t watch FAUX News any more. They are not fair and are certainly unbalanced and they are dulling your senses.
Just so you know, the President WRITES many of his own speeches with significant input from David Plouffe. For the most part, he has the main points of his speech memorized. The prompter is only used for reassurance, accuracy and fluidity, so he really doesn’t NEED it, per say.
And, if he produced his school records, would you and the Rethugs accept them or would they too be ragarded as fradulent as was the case when he produced his long-form birth certificate? Again, don’t you think that Team Clinton did all of that opposition research during the ’08 campaign and came up empty? Don’t you think that they would have loved to find a phony birth certificate or a fradulent college application?
You see, there is just no pleasing you people on the right. The world is watching again as they did back in 2004. The winner of the election in November will, to a large extent, reveal the political I.Q. of the American voter.
Let’s see if Americans surrender their right to elect their chief executive and allow obscene amounts of special-interest dollars to corrupt the democratic process and “buy” the election OR if they opt to return the President to office.
@jon…You are one scary dude. I feel sorry for you!
For all the “thinking” folks out there, keep this little rhyme in mind:
Convince a fool against his will
He’ll have the same opinion still.
But, I am going to try.
You CAN be a secret Christian. You can pray in your heart, you can get together in small groups in homes or just privately accept JC as your saviour and you are good to go.
You CANNOT, however, be a SECRET MUSLIM. There are several OVERT, PUBLIC ACTS that you MUST perform to be a MUSLIM. EX: You must face the east and pray, several times daily.
You must give to charity.
You must “tithe” to the temple/mosque.
You must make one hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in your lifetime.
By these standards, the President simply CANNOT be Muslim.
There are more requirements for one to be considered Muslim. If anyone is Muslim and would like to dispute or add to any of the foregoing please do so.
You got that “jon” and other Birther and Tea Party imbeciles? If you still don’t, reread the little rhyme above!
Hello tbarnes. You are mostly correct… I just wanted to add a few things.
The way of life or religion, as it is most often referred to, is called Islam or Al-Islam (The Peace). Its adherents are called Muslim (One who Submits). Muslims believe that when a child is born they are Muslim, born in a state of submission to the will of God.
To personally accept Islam as your way of life you must declare in your heart that there is no diety worthy of worship besides the one who created. He is called on by many names… Muslims and Arab Christians call Him Allah. You must also declare that Muhammad ibn Abdullah of more than 1400 years ago is the messenger of Allah. Through the centuries there have been other messengers to include Jesus, Moses, Noah, Abraham, and others; peace be upon them all.
There are five pillars of faith in Islam; Belief in one God who has no partners, Pray the obligatory five prayers, pay charity whether it is monetary or in kind, fast during the month of Ramadan, and make the Hajj if one is physically able and can afford to. There is no tithing in Islam.
Depending on where you are in the world dictates the direction you face to make the five obligatory prayers. This is known as the Qibla; the direction of the sacred mosque, Masjid Al Haram in Mecca. In America that direction is Northeast, in Dubai it would be West. Your prayers can be made in public or private.
@Jabir Hazziez Jr…Thanks for your reply. You said in part that:
“…You must also declare that Muhammad ibn Abdullah of more than 1400 years ago is the messenger of Allah. Through the centuries there have been other messengers to include Jesus, Moses, Noah, Abraham, and others…”
You have said that Muhammad is THE MESSENGER of Allah but Jesus was just one of several others. Are you suggesting that Muhammad is a “Superior Messenger” to Jesus?
You are aware that Jesus was born in the FIRST century A.D. and Muhammad was born in the SIXTH century A.D. and as such, his (Jesus) legacy was used to separate time, namely, B.C. and A.D. (Anno Domini) or C.E. (Christian Era.)
Is it not noteworthy to you that Muhammad’s legacy did not receive this high honor?
Additionally, consider the following:
1. Did Muhammad claim to be, not only a Messenger but the SON of GOD and actually resided with GOD? Jesus did! (John 20: 24-31)
2. Did Muhammad perform miracles like resurrecting the dead, feeding a crowd of thousands with a few loaves and fishes, turn water into wine? Jesus did! (Mark 6:35-44)
3. Did Muhammad claim that he died in order to reconcile man to GOD? Jesus did! (John 3:16)
Please comment on the foregoing.
The answer to all of your questions is “No.” Muslims don’t make distinctions between the messengers, may Gods’ peace be upon them. One messenger is not better than the other. Nor are they identified by any image or likeness.
Muslims love and respect Jesus. We consider him one of the greatest of God’s prophets and messengers to humankind. A Muslim never refers to him simply as “Jesus,” but always adds the phrase “may the peace and blessings of God be upon him.” The Quran confirms his virgin birth, and a special chapter of the Quran is entitled “Mary.” The Quran describes the Annunciation as follows:
“The Angels said, ‘O Mary! God has chosen you, and purified you, and chosen you above the women of all nations…’ ‘O Mary, God gives you good news of a word from Him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, honored in this world and in the Hereafter, and one of those brought near God. He shall speak to the people in infancy and in old age, and shall be of the righteous.’ She said: ‘O my Lord! How shall I have a son when no man has touched me?’ He said: ‘Even so; God creates what He wills. When He decrees a thing, He says to it, “Be” and it is.’” (Quran 3:42,45-7)
Just as God created Adam without a mother or father, He caused Jesus to be conceived without a father:
“Truly the example of Jesus in relation to God is as the example of Adam. He created him from dust and then said to him, ‘Be!’ and he was.” (Quran 3:59)
During his prophetic mission, Jesus performed many miracles. The Quran tells us that he said: “I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I make for you out of clay, as it were, a figure of a bird, and breathe into it and it becomes a bird by God’s leave. And I heal the blind, and the lepers, and I raise the dead by God’s leave.” (Quran 3:49)
Jesus, like Muhammad, came to confirm and renew the basic doctrine of the belief in One God brought by earlier prophets. In the Quran, Jesus is reported as saying the he came: “To attest the Torah that was before me. And make lawful to you part of what was forbidden to you; I have come to you with a sign from your Lord; so be conscious of God and obey me.” (Quran 3:50)
The Prophet Muhammad said: “Whoever believes in that there is no deity except God, and with no partners, that Muhammad is His messenger, that Jesus is the servant and messenger of God; His word which He bestowed upon Mary and a spirit proceeding from Him, and that Paradise and h**l are true, shall be received by God into Heaven.”
Jesus is not only central to Christianity; he is also venerated throughout Islam. Many Christians are surprised to learn that Muslims believe in the Virgin Birth and Jesus’ miracles. But this shared interest in his message goes much further.
In the Islamic view, Jesus’ essential work was not to replicate bread or to test our credulity, but to compliment the legalism of the then original Torah with a leavening compassion rarely expressed in the older testament. His actions and words introduce something new to monotheism: They show the mercy of God.
Jesus confirmed the Torah, stressing the continuity of his lineage, but he also developed the importance of compassion and self-purification as crucial links between learning the words of God’s message and possessing the wisdom to carry it out. Oddly enough, some of the recent work by New Testament scholars seems to have reached a view of Jesus not all that different from Muslims’. For them, Jesus appears not as a literal son of God in human form, but as an inspired human being, a teacher of wisdom with a talent for love drawn from an unbroken relationship to God. Both versions present him as a man who spoke to common people in universal terms.
Two events in the life of the Prophet Muhammad may help explain why Muslims revere the Christian Jesus. The first event involves an elder resident of Mecca named Waraqa bin Nawfal. This man was an early Arab Christian and a cousin of Muhammad’s wife, Khadija. He could read Hebrew and was mystical by nature. He attended Khadija and Muhammad’s wedding in about 595 CE.
Fifteen years later, a worried Khadija sought Waraqa out and brought her husband to him. At the time, Muhammad was a 40-year-old respected family man. He was frightened. He had been meditating one evening in a cave on the outskirts of town. There, he had experienced something so disturbing that he feared he was possessed. A voice had spoken to him.
Waraqa listened to his story, which was Muhammad’s first encounter with the angel Gabriel. When it was finished, Waraqa assured him he was not possessed. “What you have heard is the voice of the same spiritual Messenger God sent to Moses. I wish I could be a young man when you become a Prophet. I would like to be alive when your own people expel you.”
“Will they expel me?” Muhammad asked.
“Yes,” the old man said. “No one has ever brought his people the news you bring without meeting hostility. If I live to see that day, I will support you.”
Christians will recognize in Waraqa’s remarks an aphorism associated with Jesus: “A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country.” But that a Christian should first have verified Muhammad’s role as a Prophet may come as a surprise.
The second important event concerning Islam and Christianity dates from 616, a few years after Muhammad began to preach publicly. This first attempt to reinstate the Abrahamic tradition in Mecca met (as Waraqa had warned) with violent opposition. Perhaps the Meccans resented Muhammad’s special claim. Perhaps his message of a single, invisible, ever-present God threatened, in addition to their inherited traditions, the economy of their city. A month’s ride south from the centers of power in Syria and Persia, poor remote Mecca depended on long-distance trade and on seasonal pilgrims who came there each year to honor hundreds of pagan idols, paying a tax to do so.
At any rate, Muhammad’s disruptive suggestion that “God was One” and could be worshipped anywhere did not sit well with the businessmen of Mecca.
Many new Muslims were being tortured. Their livelihoods were threatened, their families persecuted. As matters grew worse, in 616 Muhammad sent a small band of followers across the Red Sea to seek shelter in the Christian kingdom of Axum. There, he told them, they would find a just ruler, the Negus, who could protect them. The Muslims found the Negus in his palace, somewhere in the borderland between modern Ethiopia and Eritrea.
After one Muslim recited to him some lines on the Virgin Mary from the Quran, the Negus wept at what he heard. Between Christians and Muslims, he said, he could not make out more difference than the thickness of a twig. These two stories underscore the support Christians gave Muhammad in times of trial.
The Quran distils the meaning from the drama: “And you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: We are Christian. That is because amongst them are priests and monks, and they are not proud. And when they listen to what has sent down to the Messenger (Muhammad), you see their eyes overflowing with tears because of the truth they have recognized.” (Quran 5:82-83)
Even today, when a Muslim mentions Jesus’ name, you will hear it followed by the phrase “peace and blessings be upon him,” because Muslims revere him as a Prophet. “Say (O Muslims): “We believe in Allah and that which has been sent down to us and that which has been sent down to Ibrahim (Abraham), Isma’il (Ishmael), Isahq (Issac), Ya’qub (Jacob), and to Al-Asbat (the offspring of the twelve sons of Ya’qub (Jacob), and that which has been given to Musa (Moses) and ‘Isa (Jesus) and that which has been given to the Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we have submitted (in Islam).” (Quran 2:136)
As these lines from the Quran make clear, Muslims regard Jesus as one of the world’s great teachers. He and his mentor John the Baptist stand in a lineage stretching back to the founder of ethical monotheism. Moreover, among Muslims, Jesus is a special type of prophet; a Messenger empowered to communicate divinity not only in words but by miracles as well.
Muslims believe that certain fictions were developed and added in the fourth and fifth centuries to Christianity and the portrait of Jesus. Three of these come in for special mention: First, Muslims consider monastic asceticism a latter-day innovation, not an original part of Jesus’ way. Second, the New Testament suffers from deletions and embellishments added after Jesus’ death by men who did not know him. Third, Muslims consider the description of Jesus as God’s son a later, blasphemous suggestion.
Muslims venerate Jesus as a divinely inspired human but never ever as “the Son of God”. In the same vein, they treat the concept of the Trinity as a late footnote to Jesus’ teachings, an unnecessary “mystery” introduced by the North African theologian Tertullian two centuries after Jesus’ death. Nor do Muslims view his death as an act of atonement for mankind’s sins. Rather, along with the early Christian theologian Pelagius, Islam rejects the doctrine of original sin, a notion argued into church doctrine by St. Augustine around the year 400.
Islam holds the true view of Jesus that was refused and condemned by the fourth-century Byzantine Church . Once Constantine installed Christianity as the Roman Empire’s state religion, a rage for orthodoxy followed. The Councils of Nicaea (325), Tyre (335), Constantinople (381), Ephesus (431), and Chalcedon (451) were official, often brutal attempts to stamp out views of Jesus held by other theologians whom the Byzantine Church called heretical.
Rulings by these councils led to the persecution and deaths of tens of thousands of early Christians at the hands of more “orthodox” Christians who condemned them. Most disputes have centered until today on divergent interpretations of the Trinity and the very nature of Jesus. Then and now, no more dangerous religious mistake exists for a Muslim than dividing the Oneness of God by twos or threes.
Despite these important differences, however, the Quran repeatedly counsels Muslims not to dispute with other monotheists over matters of doctrine except in a good manner and with respect and good words.
“And argue not with the People of the Scripture unless it be in (a way) that is better, save with such of them as do wrong; and say: ‘We believe in that which hath been revealed unto us and revealed unto you; our God and your God is One, and unto Him we surrender.’” (29:46)
I respect you and your beliefs. You wont get a debate from me, just the facts as i know them through personal research, and my walk with God. We should all do our own research; you’d be surprise how many of us don’t know our own religion. And if you are comfortable with where you are then praise be to God.
Christians are the wors’t people in the world.Just listen to your selves and your neighbors..I’m glad i’m not a christian..
I would not be so quick to categorize a group of people, namely Christians, for what a few have done even if they claim to be Christian. First it is not clear that everyone here are Christian. I don’t think they are. Whether they be Baptist, Methodist, Catholic, or Protestant, the name calling and disparaging remarks are not indicative of the Christ Like way of life. But who am I to judge.
Going to church on Sunday, while perhaps desirable, does not necessarily make one a better person. As proof of this, many leave their Christian beliefs at the door as they exit each
Sunday and treat others during the remainder of the week in a manner that makes SATAN proud. And most are two-bit RACISTS.
People like this are HYPOCRITES. The manner in which they treat President OBAMA and the LIES they spread are disgraceful. It is anything but Christian like. They are the ones that turn many from the church. They are, IN FACT, enemies of Christianity.
The only one that truly knows who is christian or not is God. We judge people, rightly or wrongly, by what they say and how they act.
That being said, the jury is still out on President Obama because he has lied and embraced homosexuality and that is simply not compatible with the christian faith. Those with opposing views are being vilified and the President is being heralded as the “First Gay President” simply because he supports gay sexuality and their agenda to transform this country into an “anything that feels good is okay no matter the repercussions” culture.
They just posted a story on b********y and people actually appeared shocked because a man would receive s*x from an animal. This kind of “deviant sexuality” has been going on for centuries in American, European and other cultures. However, it was kept on the outer fringes and we did not embrace it simply it was at the extreme of our s****l continuum.
What happens when another President decides that he supports individual rights to s****l freedom of any kind to include polygamy, pedophilia for adults and older adolescents, group marriage and the like?
Will those of us who oppose these changes be bullied and silenced through government policies and laws that persecute people with traditional religious beliefs, demonized by these new advocates and the mainstream media and be lied to and told that “protected” rights to s****l expression will have absolutely no effect on our way of life?
Will we then have to once again “evolve” and change our traditional values (if we still have any left) to support this new cultural paradigm shift? Will we have to sell our souls and destroy our country all in the name of individual freedoms to include “anything goes” sexuality?
Well said. Our religion or belief system should shape how we live our lives. However, in politics we are told to separate church from state. In a secular government we should be happy about that. Otherwise much more could be impose.
I don’t subscribe to or promote homosexuality, male or female. And I don’t think government should support that behavior. Homosexuals have the right to live the life they choose. God has given us, the human being, that right to choose from right or wrong.
Does it really matter? Who cares what people believe about his religoin?
Wasn’t it Thomas Jefferson who took the oath of office with his hand on the Quran? And if you ask me most Americans aren’t Christians anyway because in the bible Jesus speaks about feeding the poor not taking a vote to slash the food stamp budgets in Washington for those who are poor through no fault of their own especially after the recession of 2008.
But then a rich man asked how he can make it to Heaven and Jesus told him to give up all his riches and follow him. He didn’t do it and most of these rich so called Americans wouldn’t do it either. Look at them buying the election that’s how much they hate a Black man. They equate Obamas name, and skin color with his religion.
T
Why is this site campagining for Mitt?
Ana, I totally agree with you. I have a neighbor that confesses to being a Christian…She speeds out of the neighborhood every Sunday morning to worship, she turns her radio up so loud, I have to listen to it every Sunday morning even while she has sped off and this has been going on for 3 years. The word Christian is overly rated…I feel that if you are GOD Like that has more meaning than the word “I am a Christian”. Some of the so called Christians actually do not do what that word means. President Obama is catching so much Flack from so many, I would be so sick and tired of the job and so disappointed in the lack of support that some people are doing so much of what Mitch McConnell is guiding them to do..make him a one term President. He desrves four more years.
@Toni I AM A CHRISTIAN. And I’m not ashamed. You cannot be “GOD like” without CHRIST. Why does it bother you that that woman rushes off to worship our KING? Or that she has so much joy that she plays worship music loudly? Being a Christian doesn’t make you automatically perfect. It means that you strive daily to be more like HIM and even when you fall short, you pick yourself up and keep striving to do HIS will.
Its ironic that the most racist nation on the hemisphere continues to throw around this Christian tag upon theirselves and individually and by no account do they follow, adhere to, or do a resemblance of what Jesus taught or what the Bible says. Baptist, Catholics, Mormons, 7th Day Adventist, Protestants and others claim the Christian tag yet their credos, beliefs and isms differ in application of faith. So who is any man/woman to question the faith of anyone other than theirself, because then stupidity rears itself head when self-righteous fools speak.
I wish they would stop talking about Pres. Obama whether he is a Christian or not, if he believes in Jesus Christ as God’s Son, if he believes that he lived, died, arose from the dead, that he ascended back to God the Father, that is all that matters. I pray that every person Black, White, Mexican and otherwise would give the gentleman and God a little slack. He has done more to help Americans than to worry about his religious affiliation
You say that his religious affiliation should not matter, I agree. But you also say that all that matters is that he believes in the tenants of Christianity (regardless of sect or denomination). Why is that? Sounds like it does matter. Just clarifying…
After reading these comments on President Obama’s Christianity, there has to be someone, on this site that can explain, how to recognize a Christian when you are in the company of one.
What a laundry list of hate spewed from those that say they are “Christian “some need to open the Bible and see what God has to say from many statements you would think they wrote the Bilble in their image God has a standard on homosexual life style it need to change, murderers as the Bible state will not enter the Kingdom of God we are COMMANDED not to strengthen the hands of unbelievers if you are like Peter at one time following Jesus from afar off it is understandable how some would make the President your messiah you need to walk with Jesus amd get the mind of Christ be a soldier of the cross at any cost . chech you short list of what the president has done Hummmmm has he done any thing for Black America.
What? Done anything for Black America? He is the American President. Not Black, Latino, Asian, or White President. Black America needs to stop waiting for the handout. We gain so much more when first do for self, second help our neighbor. You can’t help your neighbor unless you have means, but you can strive together.
President Obama, and other Democrats have provided us the means with different programs. i am not going to go into naming them. Notoriously other groups have benefited from these programs. Even if they partner up to make it happen. When can learn so much from other groups i.e. Latinos and Asians.
Do you want to achieve more? Surround yourself around like minded individuals regardless of race or religion. Do for self, and help your neighbor.
I’m not surprise since I believe that majority of Americans are simple mind, stupid, dense and ignorant….
But, magically, you turned out to have a more “higher order” of intelligence than the rest of us with a sharper set of critical thinking skills. I guess your intelligence and skills are so “other worldly” that you automatically know that President Obama is a christian just because he said so.
But, if that is good enough for you, then so be it. I guess that’s that and the rest of us ignoramuses have been summarily dismissed.
Good day.
Going to church sitting in the pew does not make one a christian no more than sitting in a chicken house make you a chicken, check the word of God, doing good deeds like the rich young ruler thinking that he was ok like many postrd statements I am reading you need to measure What a Christian is by God’s yard stick the Bible not your thinking “for every man is right in his own eyes” weigh the prez by God’s word is he for God or is he against him? w w j d if god is in favor of homosexual he need to apologize to Sodom and Gomarah
Who cares if he’s Christian or not. That’s the problem with this country. Our interfaith muscle is extremely weak. Most of you Christians can’t accept anyone but your own…now let’s take look at some of these so called Christians who by the way aren’t practicing Christians anyway. Yes I am talking to you if you do any of the following drink, lie, steal , cheat, fornicate, shack up, constantly use G-d’s name in vain and the list goes on. Due to the lack of true practicing Christians, this country is hot mess…with no moral backbone particularly, in the Black community. Black women don’t value themselves and the increasing cases of HIV are proof of this. God will never change our condition until we take control of our own lives.
And Most people who claim themselves as CHRISTIAN are not really CHRISTIAN themselves… moreso CULTURAL CHRISTIANS for the sake of belonging or claiming membership affiliation to something that they don’t really practice nor understand– Ultimately, that is the nature of CHRISTIANS themselves. With over 30,000 denominations, that tells you that there is not a lot of universal understanding in the religion itself. LOL> President Obama is too smart to really be either Christian or a serious practicing Christian.
IT IS NO SURPRISE. XENAPHOBIA IS ALWAYS RAMPANT IN AMERICA.
I wonder what definition does he or people pour into the term “Christian” (one who believes in his heart and confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, died for your sins and was raised the third day according to the scriptures). In addition, if he indeed is a Christian, he is wrong in his support (same s*x marriage) for that which opposed to the God’s word the Holy Scriptures. Even though he is mistaken in many areas, we must Pray for his safety and that he would make wise and Godly decisions.
It really does not matter what Obama is. Rather black, white, Jew or more. The one thing he has not done is a GREAT job as president. GREAT you say? Name all the great things please. Stop speaking from a black heart and look at how things are. Do you not know that the black community is in the worse position than any raise. Near 14% and whites 7.3%. That speak everything for me. I don’t care what his race is. Could care less.
How about some of the things that has been accomplished under President Obama:
Extended the Small Business investment act of 1958
Funded $26 billion Aid to States in 2010
Rescued the Auto Industry
New business startups higher then during the Dot.com era.
Extended unemployment benifits & suspended the taxes.
This is just a few dealing with the economy.
How enlightening. Once again, on every topic we spend all of our energy attacking each other yet get p****d off when the whiteys say ‘that’s what we always do’. Way to be consistent, people.
I think all of this is a bunch B.S by the hater’s of Mr. Obama. You need to stop printing this Sh*****. You are doing just what they want you to do. It’s all about Him being a one term President. America do not listen to or believe all of this bull c**p. Vote for Obama for President 2012.
@Jazie Girl-haters of Obama-how retarded are you. I bet you don’t know anything about anything. Stop being so ghetto and ignorant.
What Mr.Obama is or is not is between God and him. I will say this Being a Christian is a lifestyle and Christian are in line with the Word of God. You cant be a Christian and condone things like same s*x marriage, jealous,envy or even lying. You can tell a Christian by his or her actions. Homosexuality is against the very nature of mankind and is a precursor to the fall of great nations.
President Obama is super intelligent and his name and skin color are the problem. George Bush (sr.& jr) are the biggest hold office thus far in our lifetimes but whether or not they are Christian has never been questioned because they are white.
Obama not a Christian? So what neither is Mitt “the liar”Romney (the candidate of the 1%).
That is an outright lie that most Americans don’t know that the President is a Christain. The President has said many times on TV that he is a Christain, even during his election and the news media brought up his affiliation with Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s church in Chicago. I don’t know who you are polling to get these stats evidently it is people who don’t have a television set in their homes. Did you do a poll on Mitt Romney and do the people know that he is a Mormon? So what does it matter as long as they get the job done and be about the business of being the President of the USA.
LETS SEE? DID NOT CHRIST SAY SOMETHING LIKE? “THE CHURCH IS WITHIN US”? THIS IS IN THE LOST GOSPELS THAT BOTH THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ROME AND THE ANGLICAN CHURCH IN ENGLAND WILL NOT ALLOW TO BE PUBLISHED OR PREACHED? WORD HAS IT THE MONEY WOULD DRY UP FROM THE CONGREGATION AND PARISHERS IF IT WAS?
This is a futile attempt to all of my conservative friends that I love and respect dearly to rethink their position on homosexuality. Regardless of my personal stance on the bible, I will use it for a starting ground and for the most part of my attempt at dialogue.
Let’s begin with a little logic. A major argument against homosexuality is that the bible is against it. For a person that holds the bible as divinely authoritative this at face value is a good argument. However, it quickly falls apart once we look at other things the bible both prohibits and condones. They’re the many prohibitions some expected others not, such as eating certain foods, a woman’s menstrual cycle, touching a dead body, touching people with skin diseases, women teaching men, blood transfusions, wearing the opposite sexes clothing, farming with a donkey and ox on the same yoke, divorce, not making loans to someone inside their house, and no work of any kind on Saturday, any type of physical religious imagery, such as a cross. You are probably beginning to see the point, yet there are also many things the bible condone, such as women viewed as property, the rights of owning slaves, the right to kill children, and adults alike for certain offenses, polygamy, temple prostitutes both male and female so long as they are not from Israel, the killing of animals, child sacrifice, and etc.
However many of these things we now see as contextual to the date of which the bible was being written. Some of these things are referenced 100′s of times in the bible. Yet homosexuality is only referenced at most, 7, in actuality it’s more like 2, I will get to that later. It would seem that there is a pattern of misusing the bible to justify oppression. This is seen in very early on, in account of slavery (Gen 9:20). St. Augustine argued that slavery was justified because of the sin of the person enslaved. One might say that was over 1500 years ago. However just three hundred years ago, Stephen Haynes justified slavery by attributing it as a punishment for s****l sin, and assigning Ham the decedent of Noah as some one of dark skin. James Henly Thornwell in the 1800′s declared that Christians supported slavery and atheist opposed it. Even post Civil war Robert Lewis Dabney defended slavery based on his interpretations of the bible, by saying: “Every hope of the existence of Church, and of State and of civilization itself, hangs upon our arduous effort to defeat the doctrine of Negro suffrage.”
However it would seem that another minority group had to suffer even longer, and were oppressed even greater using the biblical text, and in many mainline denominations are still oppressed today. It’s not uncommon today to hear debates going on as to if a woman should be able or capable of pastoring a church or being president of a country. Aside from all the verses in the new testament that talk of women covering their head and remaining silently there is also the Genesis 3 account where very and all to often the woman is blamed for the fall of man kind. Which Christians are hung up on, although this seems ludicrous in itself if man had never fallen, then their would be no need of that redeemer you love so much. Moving on early church theologian Tertullian declared eve as the origin of sin, and women as the devil’s gateway. Cotton Mather suggested that women should only express their views in private that the public realm was reserved for men. Foremost Princeton theologian Charles Hodge not only opposed women’s suffrage, but public education and abolitionism. Theologian Robert Dabney argued god’s curse on eve was applicable to women for all time. Now we see all of these theologians and pastors although they may have been using the bible, they were using it poorly and hardly perceiving the egalitarian message put forth by Jesus of Nazareth. If nothing else John Calvin got one thing right: “There are many statements in Scripture the meaning of which depends upon their context.”
Using this same logic that people were wrong about slaver, and women and the bible was misused to abuse and oppress these minority groups then it should be obvious that the same thing is happening again to the Homosexual community. However, it would appear once again to many people are relying on what has been told to them throughout the generations and not studying for themselves.
Let’s move away from this logical argument of why we should accept homosexuality, and look at the biblical text. Perhaps it would be best to go through these 7 text chronologically. Let’s begin with the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, which for centuries it has been suggested the reason the city was destroyed was because of it’s homosexuality. This is said to be because the towns people tried to rape the two angels’. Which really brings up the question of rather or not angel’s even have gender. Regardless however if we do suppose these were men angels’ there is still a lot more going on to these stories. This is not a story about homosexuality or even rape. Rape was a practice used by ones enemies to show dominance over that person, to show ones authority, it’s a reflection of the misogynist society in which the bible was being written. But the real point of the story is about hospitality. It’s contrasting Gen 18, this is why Lot offers his own daughters. A different version of this story is found in Judges 19, to which when the men are approached about his guest, re replies with do not act wickedly since this man is my guest, do not humiliate him, once again the emphasis being upon hospitality and the patriarchal structure of the society.. No where in the bible is the sins of Sodom related to homosexuality but rather: greed, injustice, inhospitality, excess wealth, indifference to the poor, even Jesus in Luke 10 and Matt 10 refers to the sins of Sodom as the refusal of hospitality to the traveling.
Now to approach possibly the most common text used when condemning homosexuality and homosexuals, the Dueteronomistic and Levitical codes also known as the holiness codes. Which I will deal with collectively considering they pretty encompass the same passage. It is important to understand how the holiness codes function and it’s contextual understanding. The underlining purpose was to be different from the Egyptians from whom they had just escaped from and to not mix with the Canaanites who land they had now overtaken through mass slaughter of the Canaanite people. The over all purpose was that Israelites should not have intermarriage with non-Israelites, however they understood this as no mixing of any kind, hence why we get passages forbidding two different garments intertwined together. Another point, illustrated by Victor Paul Furnish of Perkins School of Theology is that engaging in homosexual behavior was punishable by death because it mean in this patriarchal society that a man was being passive rather then dominant, passivity being the role assigned to women, so by mixing genders a cultural boundary had been crossed. It is also important to look at the word typically translated as Abomination: the Hebrew word transliterated as toevah, pointed out by many theologians and anyone who has had ancient Hebrew, the word refers to something that makes a person ritually unclean, such as eating shrimp, planting two different seeds, a women’s menstrual cycle, wearing cotton and wool, having intercourse with a woman while she is menstruating. Abomination is a violation of ritual codes, not moral codes. This ritual purity was necessary to distinguish the Israelites from their pagan neighbors and the Egyptians. However this is not what Jesus seemed to be concerned with: “Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out”, “What comes from the mouth proceeds from the heart… but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile” (Matt. 15). So as we understand Jesus as a fulfillment of the law (Matt 5:17) we understand that our challenge is not meticulously to maintain culturally conditioned laws, by means of proof-texting, but rather, with Jesus, to love God and love our Neighbor (Matt 22). People who pick and chose verses from the Old Testament with today standards, fail to understand the ancient cultural conditioned code that is not applicable to them today and their circumstances and they oppress a great many people, such as those with mental and physical illnesses, disability, women, children, and homosexuals.
To move onward to the New Testament one should have a small understanding of linguistics and the koine Greek language. Both in the Greek and in the Hebrew there is no word for homosexual. In Corinthians 1 the words transliterated as Arsenokoites, and Malakos both occur, and in Timothy 1, the word aresnokoites recurs. The word aresnokoites is a compound word, arsen, meaning male, and koites meaning bed. Which would imply a translation of a man who goes to bed, otherwise known as a male prostitute hardly does this imply homosexuality. Prior to this the word arsenokoites can not even be found. To say that this compound word has to do with homosexuality seems to be about as absurd as suggesting the English word “understand” was to deal with being under something and/or standing. Dale Martin as Greek scholar, after analyzing many Greek text both secular and Christian concludes that the term probably dealing with some type of economic exploitation by s****l means such as rape, or s*x by economic coercion, prostitution, or pimping. This is supported by the next verse that speaks of slave trading once again exploitation. No one should conclude at face value that this term means homosexual. The word Malakos which is found much more frequently is much easier to understand. It literally mean soft and connotes a type of effeminacy. So to assume that this is in reference to homosexuality is quite a stretch of the imagination. For example, what does a high school coach call his young athletes, “girls”, “sissies”, “ladies” none of the boys on the team are such a thing, however it is to break them down and humiliate them. Which is essentially the same thing happening in the text. Contemporary scholars would be rightly embarrassed to invoke effeminacy as a moral category today. This is once again merely a reflection of the culture in which the bible was being written hardly is it politically correct. One last verse in the New testament to deal with Romans 1. Here once again we find the Pauline writer making statements that seem unfounded when looking at todays technology and science. Many theologians conclude that Paul’s major concern in this verse is not what is natural to man as we might understand it. Natural which for Paul is synonymous with unconventional, the writer is not talking about a violation of the order of creation. The Greek word used for nature is physis which is hardly a synonym for ktisis, the Greek word for creation. So when Paul speaks of Natural he is speaking of what was conventional for the Hellenistic Jewish cultural. Although I’m not certain of the weight of this argument. I believe However I have a more sufficient one, perhaps Paul is just wrong due to his lack of technological resources and absence of biological science. Before you get so upset, let’s think about it, it’s not that radical once again the Pauline writer was wrong about women being inferior and unable to teach men, and he was wrong about slavery.
Moving onward from the biblical text I suppose it is time to look at some hard science. Most Christians try to hide the fact that in 1993, the Gay gene Xq28, was discovered. Well regardless of what your Sunday school teacher and pastor tell you the majority of biologist and scientist will tell you that in fact this gene does exist and over 70 percent of Homosexual’s have this gene. This becomes quite problematic for the typical pragmatic argument from Christians and other conservatives that this is a life choice rather then innate. With the discovery of this gene, it seemingly refutes any notion of being gay being a choice. However I’ll play fair and point out that they still leaves 30 percent of homosexuals that do not have this gene, so what does this mean to your practicality though. That all homosexuals should be tested for the gene to see if they actually are sinners or not. The absurdity of this is astounding, but where do we draw the line. I’ll even go a step further and point out that some people who have been tested for this gene do not participate in homosexual behavior and are self proclaimed as heterosexual. However this hardly seems to refute anything considering many of our genes remain dormant, until a certain age, and some times until death, such as genes associated with cancer and tumors. For one to conclude that homosexual is not natural, they are seemingly ignoring all the animals in nature that participate in homosexual activities: black swans, mallards, gulls, penguins, dolphins, bison, bonobo, elephants, giraffs, macaque, lions, polecat, sheep, hyenna, dragon flies, lizards, fruit flies, and etc.
Lastly I suppose I’ll explore the soft sciences, such as psychology and sociology. There is all types of studies done on birth order, twins, the absences of the fathers, antigens, and antibodies on feminization of the fetus, p***s envy, that all support homosexuality as not only something is not a disease or mental illness, but as something that is innate to human nature. Although perhaps this is getting to long of which I will just point out a few psychological and sociological organizations that do not believe homosexuality is a myth or a choice: The American medical association, the American psychiatric association, the American psychological association, the American psychoanalytic association, the American academy of pediatrics, the national association of social workers and etc. All these groups oppose attempts at reparitive therapy and support the notion that homosexuality is not a choice that can simply be changed through therapy.
To tie things up, I’ll leave on a quote of a well know Christian philosopher and theologian: “the bible is the word of god, speaking through the words of human beings speaking through the idioms of their time, and the richness of it is that we don’t take it as literally so.” – Desmund Tutu.
All this commentary about whether or not President Obama is a so-called christian or not is all bullshit! For all you fools who seem to think this is a legitimate concern about him; remember; supposedly every president before him was alleged to have been a christian and that is why oue Beloved country is screwed up today! If you so-called christians are concerned abouit this why is there no OUTCRY about taking prayer out of the schools! Have you all forgotton the so-called religious wars? You berate and rightfully so those mslims who are terrorists but offer no solution to the real issues! Since time imemorial so-called christians around the world have been fighting, killing and raising h**l! Now days it seems as though only the atheist are the only ones conducting themselves God like! I DO NOT TRUST YOU HIPPACHRISTIANS AND SOME OF US BLACKS ARE THE WORST OF THE LOT! They are too d**n dumb to realize it is this very tool passed down through the ages that they are using to keep us with that slave mentality!