The Atheist Voice | Bernie Sanders Was Wrong to Punish a Nominee for His Religious Beliefs @TheAtheistVoice | Uploaded June 2017 | Updated October 2024, 3 hours ago.
Bernie Sanders Was Wrong to Punish a Nominee for His Religious Beliefs
Hemant Mehta (friendlyatheist.com, patreon.com/Hemant , facebook.com/friendlyatheist)
patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/06/08/bernie-sanders-was-wrong-to-challenge-a-christian-nominees-theology
Bernie Sanders did something recently that really bothered me, and I don't say that lightly because I really like him as a politician. I like that he's not especially religious and that he's a liberal who makes other liberals look conservative. I voted for him in the Democratic primaries last year and I hope he moves the party more to the left.
But imagine this: You're an open atheist nominated to a high-level government position. You go in front of a Senate subcommittee for your hearing. And instead of asking you about your job qualifications or how you'd treat people you'll swear an oath to help, they just pick apart your atheism. They ask you if you think religious people are wrong, which you do, but who cares?
I think most of us would say our beliefs are irrelevant. We can uphold the Constitution and think we're right about the whole atheism thing. They shouldn't punish you for what you think. They should criticize you, if it's warranted, for how you act.
And yet Bernie Sanders basically said he wouldn't vote for a nominee because he was an evangelical Christian.
Let me explain what happened.
A couple of years ago, at Wheaton College, the evangelical school in Illinois, a professor got into a lot of trouble when she posted a picture of herself wearing a hijab, in solidarity with Muslim women whom she felt were oppressed. She also said Christians and Muslims worshipped "the same God." That was not okay to say, according to the administration -- and, I'm sure, a lot of donors to that school. They suspended her and began putting together a case to fire her.
And she wasn't just a typical professor, either. She was an African-American woman. You don't see a lot of those professors at evangelical campuses. So this wasn't just about theology, this got to the heart of how a well-known Christian school would treat a black woman who dared to push back against evangelical orthodoxy.
Well, a guy named Russ Vought graduated from Wheaton, and he felt the school was right to punish her. He wrote an article for a conservative website taking the side of the school, and he also used the opportunity to basically say evangelicals are right about God, and Muslims are wrong about God, and they are absolutely not the same God. In fact, he said Muslims have a "deficient theology." Weird wording, but I'm sure he thinks that about everyone who doesn't believe in his form of mythology.
That brings us to what's happening now.
Russ Vought was nominated by Donald Trump to be the Deputy Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget. That's a big deal. He was in his confirmation hearing when Bernie Sanders blasted him for what he said about Islam.
Let me quote you what Sanders asked him:
- Do you believe that statement [about Muslims have a deficient theology] is Islamophobic?
- Do you believe that people in the Muslim religion stand condemned?
- What about Jews? Do they stand condemned too?
- Do you think that people who are not Christians are gonna be condemned?
- Do you think that’s respectful of other religions?
Vought kept giving him the same response: He didn't say yes to anything. He just said he was a Christian. An evangelical Christian. Which is to say of course he believes others are condemned.
And I can't believe I'm saying this, because I think Vought's ideology is harmful, but none of his personal beliefs matter here. Unless! Unless someone can show they'll impact how he does his job.
.
.
.
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Bernie Sanders Was Wrong to Punish a Nominee for His Religious Beliefs
Hemant Mehta (friendlyatheist.com, patreon.com/Hemant , facebook.com/friendlyatheist)
patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/06/08/bernie-sanders-was-wrong-to-challenge-a-christian-nominees-theology
Bernie Sanders did something recently that really bothered me, and I don't say that lightly because I really like him as a politician. I like that he's not especially religious and that he's a liberal who makes other liberals look conservative. I voted for him in the Democratic primaries last year and I hope he moves the party more to the left.
But imagine this: You're an open atheist nominated to a high-level government position. You go in front of a Senate subcommittee for your hearing. And instead of asking you about your job qualifications or how you'd treat people you'll swear an oath to help, they just pick apart your atheism. They ask you if you think religious people are wrong, which you do, but who cares?
I think most of us would say our beliefs are irrelevant. We can uphold the Constitution and think we're right about the whole atheism thing. They shouldn't punish you for what you think. They should criticize you, if it's warranted, for how you act.
And yet Bernie Sanders basically said he wouldn't vote for a nominee because he was an evangelical Christian.
Let me explain what happened.
A couple of years ago, at Wheaton College, the evangelical school in Illinois, a professor got into a lot of trouble when she posted a picture of herself wearing a hijab, in solidarity with Muslim women whom she felt were oppressed. She also said Christians and Muslims worshipped "the same God." That was not okay to say, according to the administration -- and, I'm sure, a lot of donors to that school. They suspended her and began putting together a case to fire her.
And she wasn't just a typical professor, either. She was an African-American woman. You don't see a lot of those professors at evangelical campuses. So this wasn't just about theology, this got to the heart of how a well-known Christian school would treat a black woman who dared to push back against evangelical orthodoxy.
Well, a guy named Russ Vought graduated from Wheaton, and he felt the school was right to punish her. He wrote an article for a conservative website taking the side of the school, and he also used the opportunity to basically say evangelicals are right about God, and Muslims are wrong about God, and they are absolutely not the same God. In fact, he said Muslims have a "deficient theology." Weird wording, but I'm sure he thinks that about everyone who doesn't believe in his form of mythology.
That brings us to what's happening now.
Russ Vought was nominated by Donald Trump to be the Deputy Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget. That's a big deal. He was in his confirmation hearing when Bernie Sanders blasted him for what he said about Islam.
Let me quote you what Sanders asked him:
- Do you believe that statement [about Muslims have a deficient theology] is Islamophobic?
- Do you believe that people in the Muslim religion stand condemned?
- What about Jews? Do they stand condemned too?
- Do you think that people who are not Christians are gonna be condemned?
- Do you think that’s respectful of other religions?
Vought kept giving him the same response: He didn't say yes to anything. He just said he was a Christian. An evangelical Christian. Which is to say of course he believes others are condemned.
And I can't believe I'm saying this, because I think Vought's ideology is harmful, but none of his personal beliefs matter here. Unless! Unless someone can show they'll impact how he does his job.
.
.
.
Join the conversation. Leave your questions and comments below and we'll try to address them in future videos. Don't forget to subscribe for more!
Also, follow us at ...
twitter.com/atheistvoices
facebook.com/TheAtheistVoices
plus.google.com/u/0/b/106662137332631352312/106662137332631352312/posts/p/pub
theatheistvoice.tumblr.com
theatheistvoice.com
The Atheist Voice provides a platform for discussion for atheist leaders, authors, bloggers, activists, and everybody else who is passionate about atheism, and secularism. Join the discussion by commenting under the videos or submitting video responses. If you'd like to collaborate on this channel or if you'd like to appear in our videos please visit our website www.TheAtheistVoice.com
