Last weekend GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum made news by openly questioning President Obama’s religious beliefs. At event Saturday with the Ohio Christian Alliance Santorum stated that President Obama has a “phony theology” that is “not based on the Bible.” Lest anyone thought Santorum’s remarks were simply an off-the-cuff, not well thought out remark, he stood by his stance in a Sunday morning interview on CBS’ Face the Nation. Santorum stated that he was not questioning whether President Obama is a Christian, but went on to say that President Obama has a “worldview” which is “different than most people in America.” This “phony theology” and “different than most people in America” talk is not new. Indeed, Santorum’s attacks seem to almost be a carbon copy of Glenn Beck’s criticisms from 2010.
In July of 2010 Beck spent multiple shows arguing not that President Obama was not a Christian per-say, but that he held a “different” theology than the rest of us. Beck argued that Obama held an “illegitimate” and “evil” theology based on “collective salvation.” Later Beck would claim that President Obama had a “liberation theology” and warned that this could eventually lead Americans to the gas chambers.
Santorum and Beck have a friendly relationship. At one point Beck called Santorum the “next George Washington.” Anyone who knows Beck knows that this sort of compliment is just short of Beck calling Santorum a god. Santorum boasts of Beck’s endorsement on his campaign website. Santorum has also expressed admiration for Beck and many of Beck’s beliefs, so it is not unreasonable to assume that Santorum has heard many of Beck’s attacks on President Obama before.
In his own critique over the weekend, Santorum left out any gas chamber reference in questioning President Obama’s religion, but the same, basic Beckian argument was still there. Many Americans would be offended by the idea of one man accusing another of not being a Christian, so Santorum does not go that far. Instead, Santorum suggests that the president holds a “phony theology.” This “phony theology” makes him different, and the implication is that different is dangerous.
President Obama is not the first to receive this critical examination from Santorum. In a 2008 speech Santorum said that “mainline Protestantism” is in shambles, and that “it is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it.” Santorum is a very conservative Catholic, who does not personally use birth control, and has promised to speak about the dangers of birth control if elected. In this way, Santorum’s own views could also be called “different” than many protestant Americans. By attacking President Obama’s religion, Santorum could be attempting to make a strength of what otherwise may be a potential weakness in his candidacy.
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