Politics Daily asked the major candidates in the upcoming election to answer some questions about their religious background and beliefs. Here is how Sen. Michael Bennett, running for reelection in Colorado against Tea Party candidate Ken Buck, responded (my italics at the end):
What is Michael Bennet’s religion?
Bennet does not affiliate with a particular religion but says he believes in God.
Where does Michael Bennet worship?
Bennet does not worship with a congregation. He and his wife were married by an Episcopal priest.
What religion was Michael Bennet born into?
Bennet’s father is a Christian and his mother is Jewish. “I was raised with two different heritages, one was Jewish and one was Christian,” Bennet has said. “I am proud that both heritages are part of me, and I believe in God.” His maternal grandparents and his mother escaped from Poland during the Holocaust.
[…)
Is Michael Bennet concerned that his agnosticism will affect his campaign?
“I’m not concerned about that at all,” Bennet said about his atypical Coloradoan heritage. “I think we’ve moved beyond that in our politics.”
That is such a sweet thought. If I lived in Colorado, I would totally vote for Bennett just for that charming belief in American political maturity:
In Colorado . . . well, in Colorado they (the Democrats) are running Michael Bennet — the Senator who Barack Obama is said to feel “most warmly” toward. In Colorado, home of Focus on the Family and a huge evangelical movement, the Democrats have decided to go the opposite way.
Michael Bennet, you see, rejects religion. Yes, he says he believes in God, but he makes clear he does not go to worship, does not believe in organized religion, and does not affiliate with a religion.
And they say the Republicans are running candidates outside the mainstream.
No longer is it enough in American politics to profess a belief in God to qualify for public office. Now you have to “believe in organized religion,” and attend one specific religious worship facility that is formally affiliated with a specific organized religion.
Via Steve Benen.
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