Skip to main content.
Religion News Blog is a non-profit service providing academics, religion professionals and other researchers with religion & cult news
ReligionNewsBlog

Religion news articles about religious cults, sects, world religions, and related issues

Navigation:
Web religionnewsblog.com
Home | Site Menu | About RNB | RNB Store | Cult FAQ | Cult Experts | Apologetics Index | Cult Information Search Engine
A Random Image
USA:

Bush’s Remark About God Assailed

Washington Post, USA
Nov. 22, 2003
Alan Cooperman
www.washingtonpost.com

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 5139 • Posted: Saturday November 22, 2003  

Click here... More articles on this topic: USA

Evangelical Christian leaders expressed dismay yesterday over President Bush’s statement that Christians and Muslims worship the same god, saying it had caused discomfort within his conservative religious base. But most predicted that the political impact would be short-lived.

At a news conference with Prime Minister Tony Blair in England on Thursday, a reporter noted that Bush has often said that freedom is a gift from “the Almighty” but questioned whether Bush believes that “Muslims worship the same Almighty” that he does.

“I do say that freedom is the Almighty’s gift to every person,” the president replied. “I also condition it by saying freedom is not America’s gift to the world. It’s much greater than that, of course. And I believe we worship the same god.”

Bush’s remarks sent immediate shock waves through Christian Web sites and radio broadcasts. A Baptist Press report quoted Richard D. Land, president of the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, as saying that Bush “is simply mistaken.”

Christianity vs. Islam
Even a most cursory reading of Islam’s scriptures, and a most basic understanding of Islam’s teachings show that the god of Islam is incompatible with the God of Christianity
The truth about Islam: Are Muslims the spiritual brothers and sisters of Christians and Jews? Do we all worship the same God? Are the Islamic holy scriptures, known as the Koran, inspired by God? Is Islam another path to God by which one can attain eternal life?
When it comes to theology, George Bush is not a reliable guide. While he may indeed be a Christian, he repeatedly demonstrates both a lack of knowledge and a lack of discernment.

“We should always remember that he is commander in chief, not theologian in chief,” Land said in a telephone interview yesterday. “The Bible is clear on this: The one and true god is Jehovah, and his only begotten son is Jesus Christ.”

The Rev. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, also issued a statement contradicting Bush.

“The Christian God encourages freedom, love, forgiveness, prosperity and health. The Muslim god appears to value the opposite. The personalities of each god are evident in the cultures, civilizations and dispositions of the peoples that serve them. Muhammad’s central message was submission; Jesus’ central message was love. They seem to be very different personalities,” Haggard said.

But both Land and Haggard, who are frequent visitors to the White House, doubted that the remark would cost Bush votes in 2004.

“This president has earned a lot of wiggle room among evangelicals,” Land said. “If he had said that Islam is on a par with Christianity, it would be a more serious case of heartburn. This is just indigestion.”

Gary Bauer, president of American Values, a conservative public policy group, said it is unclear what the ultimate fallout will be. “But the one thing that’s for certain is, it’s not helpful to the president. Since everybody agrees he’s not a theologian, he would be much better advised to punt when he gets that kind of question,” Bauer said.

The Rev. Brenda Bartella Peterson, executive director of the Clergy Leadership Network, a new organization of left-leaning clergy that seeks to counter the Christian right, declined to say whether she believes Christians and Muslims worship the same god.

“I would rather you not quote my theology,” she said. “But I have to say that I’m very pleased that President Bush wants to be so inclusive, and I think his inclusiveness in this particular comment speaks well for who we have been as a nation theologically. Not all of his policies and his actions have been as inclusive.”

Sayyid M. Syeed, secretary general of the Islamic Society of North America, responded to Bush’s statement with a single word: Alhamdullah, Thanks be to God.

“We read again and again in the Koran that our god is the god of Abraham, the god of Noah, the god of Jesus,” he said. “It would not come to the mind of a Muslim that there is a different god that Abraham or Jesus or Moses was praying to.”



Religion News Blog RSS feed Subscribe: Religion News Blog RSS feed  |  Religion News Blog RSS feed Subscribe by topic: USA
more cult news articlemore religion news More articles about USA

Like this story?

Today's Most Popular Articles

Share this

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:




Article and Site Tools

» PermaLink to: Bush’s Remark About God Assailed
   Need a shorter link? You can remove everything after the final /
» More news articles + news archive on USA
» More religion and cult news

Subscribe (RSS / Email) [What is RSS?]
» RSS News Feed - All Topics: Religion News Blog RSS Feed
» RSS News Feed - Single Topic: USA
» Headlines by Email: Daily Religion News Blog Headlines

More Article Tools
• Bookmark / Tag: Del.icio.us
• Bookmark / Tag: Furl
Save this article
Email this article
Print this article [Temporarily out of order]

More Information
Books about USA
Relevant books (and other goodies)

more religion news aboutmore Religion News Blog articles about

About Religion News Blog
Religion News Blog (RNB), published by Apologetics Index, highlights news items and other resources on world religions, cults, religious sects, alternative religions and related issues. RNB's non-profit news clipping service is used by - among others - Christian apologists, countercult professionals, anticult organizations, cult experts, teachers, religion professionals, reporters and other researchers.

Home
Latest Headlines
RSS news feed [?]
Headlines by Email
News Trackers
Free content for your site
About RNB
Privacy Policy
Contact RNB
Link to RNB
Advertise on RNB
Apologetics Index
Cult FAQ
Apologetics Search Engine
CounterCult Search Engine