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THE QUESTION
Obama's Overtures to Islam
What's your reaction to President Obama's recent statements to the Muslim world that "the United States is not, and never will be, at war with Islam" and that "we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation"?
Posted by
Sally Quinn and Jon Meacham on April 15, 2009 7:03 AM
FROM THE PANEL
Obama: The Christian as President
Christians like President Obama govern as Christians without forcing others to be Christians. We know a good bit about President Obama's values, for good and bad, by knowing the form of Christianity he embraces
Posted by John Mark Reynolds, on April 16, 2009 12:12 PM
A "Christian" Nation Wouldn't Act This Way
When people tell me that we are or have been a Christian nation, I want to ask, "When?"
Posted by Brian D. McLaren, on April 16, 2009 8:30 AM
An Obama Nation of Citizens
I am comfortable celebrating a nation "bound by ideals and a set of values," most of which I would consider to be Christian, but none of which should be considered exclusively so.
Posted by Phil Davis, on April 15, 2009 10:06 PM
President's Statements Too Simplistic
It would be more appropriate if President Obama asked Muslims to renounce those who perpetrate terror in the name of Islam.
Posted by Charles "Chuck" Colson, on April 15, 2009 4:47 PM
Good Words, Now We Need Good Actions
Frankly, I find it disturbing, as well as a bit sad, that so many people feel it necessary to congratulate the president for understanding and speaking about basic concepts of religious freedom and pluralism.
Posted by Welton Gaddy, on April 15, 2009 3:09 PM
Obama Declares End of "Clash of Civilizations"
President Obama understood what his Muslim audience needed to hear to begin to dissipate the phony notion that the Muslim world and the West are embraced in an irreconcilable "Clash of Civilizations."
Posted by Feisal Abdul Rauf, on April 15, 2009 2:54 PM
One World, Under God
This war has never been about religion. It so happens that Iraq is a predominantly Muslim nation, and America is predominantly Christian, but the war has been about oil and power, not religion
Posted by Susan K. Smith, on April 14, 2009 8:06 PM
Why Islam Needs an Apology
His critics believe that Obama is giving aid and comfort to the enemy no doubt, by apologizing to the Islamic world, but from his perspective he's beginning to treat Muslims like normal human beings.
Posted by Deepak Chopra, on April 14, 2009 7:08 PM
Not Muslim or Anti-Muslim, Christian or Anti-Christian
We are nation with a couple hundred million Christians, and if they live up to their charter in the gospels, they will be good and generous and free and value-rich citizens, who will contribute to the public good "in church and state"
Posted by Martin Marty, on April 14, 2009 4:17 PM
Obama's Wishful Exaggerations
President Obama's claims about both America's relationship with the global Muslim community, and the extent to which we are not a "Christian nation", are partial truths which express a hope more than a reality.
Posted by Brad Hirschfield, on April 14, 2009 3:55 PM
We Are At War
We are at war with the part of Islam that persecutes women, sends suicide bombers in God's name into crowded markets, and threatens nuclear annihilation, claiming to love death.
Posted by David Wolpe, on April 14, 2009 12:55 PM
Obama's Chance and Challenge
Obama's handling of Afghanistan, Pakistan, the withdrawal from Iraqi, the US relationship with Iran and dictatorial governments across the Muslim world will all hold far more weight than any speeches he makes.
Posted by Pamela K. Taylor, on April 14, 2009 11:38 AM
America Does not Support or Oppose Any Religion
America neither supports nor opposes any particular religious faith.
Posted by Kenneth E. Bowers, on April 14, 2009 9:11 AM
Thank God for Secularism
Our successful American experiment in religious diversity enables President Obama to state plainly that our nation cannot be "at war" with a whole religion
Posted by Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite, on April 14, 2009 9:06 AM
A Christian People Created a Secular Government
To war against any particular religion is, for America, inconceivable.
Posted by Willis E. Elliott, on April 13, 2009 9:50 PM
Reviving Secular America
I believe that President Obama is bringing the United States back to its truly secular state.
Posted by Arun Gandhi, on April 13, 2009 5:33 PM
Obama Revives Forgotten Principle Of Founders
We are not a Christian nation, and our government is not a Christian government. That's a simple fact, and one of the glories of our history--as the founders understood.
Posted by Susan Jacoby, on April 13, 2009 5:21 PM
FEATURED COMMENTS
bcass05: President Obama's recent statements to the Muslim world that "the United States is not, and never will be, at war with Islam" and that "we ...
monotheist: Our country was founded on freedom OF religion, not freedom FROM religion. Our founding fathers came here because they did not want anyone...
