I, for one, don't buy George W. Bush's "born again Christian" bull.

[Cyrano]

I think it's just one more costume that Karl Rove has dressed him in.

We've had compassionate conservative George, carrier-landing George, plastic turkey-serving George, "Bring-'em-on" cowboy George, the he-man brush-cutting rancher George, but the longest running Rove character is "Saint born-again" George.

Maybe it's tasteless to question someone's religious beliefs, but it's perfectly fair to judge them by their deeds. And his deeds show him to be self-centered, mean-spirited, ignorant, greedy, horribly grotesque human being. I suppose this definition could fit many on the religious right, but I'm just not buying the "George of God" fiction.

He's playing to the Robertson/Dobson zombies and Karl has told him that it's working out just fine. Except, of course, for the occasional slip, like when Laura told us he masturbates horses.

[Ravy]

1. To paraphrase the great fictional American, Forestt Gump...

Christian is as Christian does.

Bush is not a legitimate Christian in my book. CINO, perhaps would be the acronym catch phrase.

ohhhh.... CINO Evil! Wonder if we could make THAT stick.

[Kikosexy2]

15. a Christian...

of Convenience--whenever it suits him to be--but in short we call it Anti-Christ.

[mopaul]

2. I for two

[Cyrano]

14. Great illustration, mopaul, although

Margaret Mead and Diane Fosse would have found it demeaning to simians.

[lonestarnot]

29. I for three! He's the antichrist!

[graywarrior]

3. It's a marketing ploy

[maxsolomon]

4. no, his conversion was real, at least in his mind.

its the follow-through that's lacking.

to me, given that he's a thoroughly shallow political creature, his conversion in itself has the whiff of self-delusion - it was so conveinient: the timing, the politics, & so pleasing to everyone he wanted to please (especially to his harpy mother).

like tom cruise, he is so narcissistic & incurious he can convince himself he's really experiencing the emotions he's feigning. basically, he believes his own bullshit, but as far as understanding his motivations, he knows not to look at that part of himself or the facade crumbles.

[liberal N proud]

7. That is the cocaine talking!

Little voices in the back of his head.
George, you are the one and the only, most powderful.

[Lisa]

27. a highly suggestible fellow ...

I don't have enough info on Tom Cruise yet, but regarding George W., if someone told him he was the son of the Greek goddess Aphrodite, or an extraterrestrial from the planet Xanibar, I'm certain that he would convince himself almost immediately. I imagine him as one of those Imperial stormtroopers in the original Star Wars movie ("I don't need to see your friend's identification"). Or, in literature, Dr. Pangloss from Candide (secure in the belief that no matter what happens is "for the best") -- or Mrs. Harrison in Dorothy L. Sayers's "The Documents in the Case" (who is such a chameleon that her acquaintances delight in getting her to reinvent herself).

It's possible that Bush is psychologically incapable of self-examination, even more so than just knowing how shallow his motivations are -- he simply can't bring himself to do anything of the sort. Certainly he's poured scorn on anybody who does this kind of thing, deriding them for being wimpy and untrustworthy (see how many negative references to "therapy" there are in his speeches).

[The_Casual_Observer]

5. bush's handlers saw an opportunity to exploit religion for political

purposes and they took it. This is fairly well known. It should be none of my business what his personal beliefs are, however, he beliefs have been foisted off on all of us.

[moobu2]

6. Bush uses Christianity as a means to an end

Of coarse he isn't Christian.

[Warpy]

8. His belief is sincere, but it's a belief in John Calvin

not Jesus Christ. Look at his view on the cause of poverty (laziness) and wealth (ordained by god). That's pure Calvinism and goes completely against the teachings of Christ.

It's just too bad that there are so many uneducated Christians who take him at his word.

[bunkerbuster1]

9. He hardly ever goes to church.

When it was revealed last year that his local Methodist denomination rarely if ever saw him, Karl made sure that he got his ass to church the following Sunday.

I know, involvement with your local church isn't want makes you devout, necessarily, but I think it's interesting that he clearly has to be coaxed to go.

[wakeme2008]

13. But during the Clinton years

When B&H were in DC, they were in church on Sunday and the MSM carried it.

[bunkerbuster1]

20. And Big Dog took a lot of crap from Freepers for it

His faith was all a show, yadda yadda...

[formerrepuke]

10. "Wearing religion on his sleeve for political gain"... in the words

of Ron Reagan Jr (although Reagan did not mention * by name, that's who he was referring to). His 'faith' should be called "Lip-
Service Christianity."

[1932]

11. Jim Wallis in God's Politics says Bush is actually sincerely Christian.

However, he says that the Bush administration's priorities are deeply unchristian.

[Modem Butterfly]

12. I think he's sincere

It's just that he defines Xianity different than a lot of folks.

[whistle]

16. I never have believed it ....now Jimmy Carter was and is a born-again....

...Christian. I can tell you all this that George "Dubya" Bush is no Jimmy Carter. And *shrub never will be even one tenth the Christian man that Carter has been. Never!

[madrchsod]

18. jimmy carter will be judged

not by his words but his deeds. he still teaches sunday school!hell, i wish my sunday school teacher was an ex president of the united states.

[whistle]

19. Exactly, to be born-again means to show humility, love and service

...in deeds, expecting nothing in return.

[madrchsod]

17. he`s not born again

he`s a methodist..well he claims he is. he uses them for political gain and they use him for their own personal gain..neither one will buy them a ticket to heaven.

[Cyrano]

21. He doesn't need a ticket to heaven.

Last I heard, Poppy and the Carlyle Group were buying it up.

And if the buyout goes through, no needy or suffering people need apply.

[in_cog_ni_to]

22. It's all an act. I read a Newsweek article a few years back

about the chimp. He had been campaigning and used some common Bible quote. When KKKRove got back to the office, he had been BOMBARDED by phone calls from the Christian Coalition types. They told KKKRove that if they wanted to win the election the chimp should portray himself as a "born-again" Christian. THAT is when he went to Bob Jones University and made his speech. Remember that? I do.

The born-again Christian crap is nothing but a bullshit ACT.

[Lisa]

23. my favorite is "tree-man" Ranger George

Cavorting merrily through the woods as he waves at the bunnies and deer, and recites the names of the trees he encounters -- because, after all, only people who are rich enough to own large amounts of land actually care about the environment and know how to protect it (from being grabbed by Big Government treehuggers and made into parks so regular Americans can't enjoy it).

[spanone]

24. If they gave you millions, you'd be a Christian too!

[maveric]

25. Its all BULLSHIT!

He does NOTHING that Christ would do! NOTHING!
Its just another pandering tool used to gain support from the brain-dead, racist,homophobic, rapture-ready evangelicals that make up 93% of his voter base.
He's as much of a christian as I am a Yankee fan!
Its all BULLSHIT!

[kentuck]

26. I'll say it.

He's a fake. By ye works ye shall be known. By his works, he will cook in the middle of the kettles of hell.

[LibDemAlways]

28. If it was politically expedient for the chimp

to be a devil worshiper, that's how Rove would tout him.

The repukes' natural base is the upper 1% which obviously wouldn't win them many elections. The wealthy worship only their bank account, and as long as it's protected with generous tax cuts, they're happy.

The key to garnering enough votes to be able to steal a close election is the "God and family" types. Without them, the repukes can't win.

Notice how much lip service the chimp pays to religion. That's all it is - lip service, and it's amazing how these naive people continue to be fooled into believing religion means anything to the BFEE.

Reagan was another one - never went to church - came up with all kinds of excuses why he couldn't go - and the morons still believed he practiced their brand of Christianity.

These people would probably line up to buy ocean front property in Arizona!