{"id":16156,"date":"2012-08-21T14:39:17","date_gmt":"2012-08-21T20:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/?p=16156"},"modified":"2016-09-30T17:05:19","modified_gmt":"2016-09-30T21:05:19","slug":"i-have-a-job-to-do-as-president-that-does-not-involve-convincing-folks-that-my-faith-in-jesus-is-real","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2012\/08\/i-have-a-job-to-do-as-president-that-does-not-involve-convincing-folks-that-my-faith-in-jesus-is-real\/","title":{"rendered":"“I have a job to do as president, and that does not involve convincing folks that my faith in Jesus is real.”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

President Obama gave a rare interview about his religious views to the magazine of the National Cathedral. \u00a0Politico has highlights:\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

In an interview with the Washington National Cathedral magazine, President Obama\u00a0discussed<\/a>\u00a0how his faith influenced his politics \u2014 saying that at the end of the day \u2018God is in control.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst and foremost, my Christian faith gives me a perspective and security that I don\u2019t think I would have otherwise: that I am loved. That, at the end of the day, God is in control,\u201d\u00a0Obama<\/a>\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

Obama also tied faith in God to his belief in a compassionate role for government.<\/p>\n

\u201cFaith tells us that there is something about this world that ties our interest to the welfare of a child who can\u2019t get the health care they need, or a parent who can\u2019t find work after the plant shut down, or a family going hungry,\u201d Obama told the magazine.<\/p>\n

\u201cFaith has always provided a moral framework and vocabulary for this country to come to terms with its most pressing challenges. One of the great things about this nation is that it is a place where people from all walks of life can advocate on behalf of their faith and beliefs and be open about what drives and motivates them,\u201d Obama said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom slavery to the suffrage movement to civil rights, faith \u2014 and the moral obligations that derive from our faith \u2014 have always helped us to navigate some of our greatest moral challenges with a recognition that there\u2019s something bigger than ourselves: we have obligations that extend beyond our own self-interest,\u201d Obama said.<\/p>\n

Obama also briefly addressed the ongoing (false) doubts about his faith \u2014 including rumors that he is a Muslim (which he is not).<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a job to do as president, and that does not involve convincing folks that my faith in Jesus\u00a0is legitimate and real. I do my best to live out my faith, and to stay in the Word, and to make my life look more like His,\u201d Obama said \u201cWhat I can do is just keep on following Him, and serve others\u2014trying to make folks\u2019 lives a little better using this humbling position that I hold.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Read more.<\/strong><\/a> \u00a0And you can download the complete article\u2014which also includes an interview on the same subject with Mitt Romney\u2014at this link.<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Obama gave a rare interview about his religious views to the magazine of the National Cathedral. \u00a0Politico has highlights:\u00a0 In an interview with the Washington National Cathedral magazine, President Obama\u00a0discussed\u00a0how his faith influenced his politics \u2014 saying that at the end of the day \u2018God is in control.\u2019 \u201cFirst and foremost, my Christian faith […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[130,593],"class_list":["post-16156","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-barack-obama","tag-mitt-romney"],"yoast_head":"\n"I have a job to do as president, and that does not involve convincing folks that my faith in Jesus is real."<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"President Obama gave a rare interview about his religious 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