Christians believe that government exists to preserve order and do justice. So a believing Christian should vote for that person who can best discharge those responsibilities, looking to his integrity and ability (just as Jethro advised Moses). As Luther famously said, he would rather be governed by a competent Turk than an incompetent Christian.

So the critical question is not how a person worships, but how his faith informs his public policies. It is those policies and values Christians would vote to support or not support. In every area of public policy Governor Romney has made his policy views very clear, and one can see the way in which his faith informs them. While Christians do not vote for someone according to their theology, we do vote according to how their theology plays out in life, that is, their values and convictions about public and social questions. Governor Romney made this distinction very clear. He also gave a stirring defense of religious liberty and the religious influence in public life. He made the very case our founders did and the Supreme Court did as late as the 1950s, that our freedom and form of government presuppose a people living by religious values. I applaud and appreciate his statement.

This much-heralded speech was being likened to John Kennedy’s 1960 speech. Ironically, Romney handled the situation in a more consistent way than Kennedy did, the latter saying he would not allow his religious convictions to influence his policies. But for any person of faith, his religious convictions cannot be ignored. Romney walked the fine line better than Kennedy did.

So while I do not endorse candidates and do not believe religious leaders should do so, for me as an evangelical, Romney’s speech was reassuring and resonated with the deepest of American values.