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Book Review by Thomas R. Fletcher:
Written by Jim Wallis Published by HarperSanFrancisco A Division of HarperCollins Publishers $24.95 ISBN: 0060558288 Wallis has written a book that definitively calls into question the received wisdom that evangelicals should vote Republican. Some us, sucked up into the movement more than 20 years ago, have been questioning why our unquestioned loyalty is demanded, yet little to no action on the hot issues has been accomplished in those 20 years. Reality sinks in. We’ve been used. Our votes have been taken for granted and true biblical imperatives have been neglected. Evangelicals have been drawn in by the sucker issues that perennially attract attention. Little real progress is made–one step forward two back. A partial birth abortion bill is signed by President Bush. Hooray! Then it’s promptly tied up in three courts–and not put into law. Clinton, in declining to sign the legislation predicted that as written, it would be tied up in court. So the Republican party gets credit for progress that isn’t. Another little known fact: the number of abortions declined during the Clinton years, but is on the rise under the current "pro-life" administration. As believers we must care about more than abortion and homosexual rights. We should also care about economic opportunity, the environment, health care, and education. We should care about a political party that uses the language of faith to deceive, just as we should care about a party that’s afraid to speak of faith. Wallis is asking the right questions. "Since when did believing in God and having moral values make you pro-war, pro-rich, and pro-Republican?" It is time to take back the faith.
Text and Photos Copyright Thomas R. Fletcher / Prose & photos |
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