Religious Right, "The Times They Are A-Changin"
From an article by Bill Berkowitz;
To paraphrase Mark Twain's comments upon reading his famously premature obituary: The news of the death of the religious right has been greatly exaggerated.
The Religious Right -- as almost all parties to the debate agree -- is in a transitional period; old leaders, as Dobson pointed out at the National Religious Broadcasters conference, such as the Rev. Falwell, and the lesser known but equally as influential, Dr. Kennedy, the head of Florida's Coral Ridge Ministries and several Washington D.C. political enterprises, have passed from the scene.
New leaders such as Warren and Hybels are emerging. This generation of evangelical leaders is grappling with new issues, hoping to broaden their appeal, particularly among young people. While they remain anti-abortion and opposed to same-sex marriage, those are not the only arrows in their quiver. Many are concerned about the environment and the impact of global warming on the poor, immigration policy, social justice, racial reconciliation, and combating poverty and AIDS in Africa.
Voters identified as Christian evangelicals are apparently up for grabs in this election; perhaps for the first time since Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980. So-called "values voters" no longer appear to be in lock-step with the Republican Party, the Barna Research Group, a credible Christian polling firm, has found. (Read More...)