I think most people want competence first and ideology second. That would include religious belief. Knowing where -- or if -- someone attends religious services and his/her view of God is interesting, but it tells me nothing about how the candidate, if elected, will run the country. Too often in the past, presidential candidates on both sides have used religious language and practices as a tool for helping attract a certain demographic. But sometimes those presidents have been a disappointment, because the expectations that come from religious believers are not uniform.

Better, then, not to put one's faith up-front, but to first establish one's positions and vision in the public mind. Then, if a candidate wishes to talk about religious faith, that's fine. After all, we are electing a president of a country that is part of a fallen world. We are not members of a search committee looking for a new pastor. They are two different "kingdoms."