Progressive Democratic politicians have won major electoral victories across the country in recent months amid growing frustrations surrounding inequality, affordability, and potential threats to job security posed by artificial intelligence. As the economy becomes a flashpoint for the November midterms, many of these candidates and voters who support them are citing their Christian faith or other religious beliefs as a justification for their positions.
Religion and Politics
Abdul El-Sayed, a former gubernatorial candidate who is running as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, began speaking about how his Muslim faith informs his progressive views. El-Sayed asked a group of faith leaders, "What does the inspiration of holding yourself accountable to something bigger than you mean for what you do for the people around you?" He added, "If you can’t eat food and I have something to do about it, I better do it."
El-Sayed’s campaign has made "Medicare for All" a central issue, and he is running against the more moderate Rep. Haley Stevens. If elected in November, he would be the first Muslim senator in U.S. history.
Faith and Economic Issues
Religious support for progressive economic and labor movements is not new, even if it has ebbed and flowed in the U.S. over the centuries. Pope Leo XIII’s seminal 1891 text on labor, wages, and unions helped shape Catholic social teaching. This embrace of religion isn’t unique to the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, but as left-leaning Democrats and democratic socialists score wins in local and national races, Republicans have repeatedly decried the party’s progressive wing as being devoid of religion.
Experts say that narrative carries less weight among many younger Americans who have no memory of the Cold War and the anti-religious associations it begot. The Rev. Andrew Wilkes, who co-pastors the Double Love Experience Church in New York City, became interested in democratic socialism more than a decade ago after presiding over a funeral for someone whose insurance wouldn’t cover a critical operation.
Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.
