Bible Quoting Dems

I caught this article in the Indianapolis Star about Democrats whose Christian faith is informing their progressive politics. But I had to wonder about the blatant bias of the columnist:

It may be puzzling to non-Bible readers, but many Christians and Jews take the Scriptures seriously and look to it for God's answers to the world's problems. Make fun of that assumption if you like, but Democrats are listening to their critics, looking at election losses and learning to take this view of the world more seriously.

That explains why some people in this Democrats-can-have-faith-too movement are appealing to the Bible for a minimum wage hike. The Bible doesn't address the topic directly, but the Scriptures do speak about the principle of just wages and fair treatment of workers.

In Indiana the attempt to revive the Bible among Democrats may take on a little different shape, especially in southern Indiana. Former House Speaker John Gregg of Vincennes is unashamed both of his Christian faith and his Democratic Party affiliation. Since stepping down as speaker, he has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the seat in Congress now held by Republican Rep. John Hostettler. "I'm a Bible-quoting, gun-toting Democrat," he likes to tell people, emphasizing that he can compete with Republicans for the faith and values voters in a conservative state.

Similarly, state Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, is articulate about her Christian faith and sees reflection of the Bible in her party's traditional stance on justice issues. When she jumped into politics with her first race in 1998, some conservative Republican friends wondered how she could be a Democrat. Isaiah 1:17 became a key passage, "Learn to do right. Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow."

"That helped me see that the long-held Democratic Party principles are in the Bible -- to take care of those who can't take care of themselves," she said.

Welch, Gregg and other conservative Democrats in Indiana already tend to side with Republicans on family values issues such as abortion or gay marriage. The challenge for the national party will be whether a faith-based approach will be permitted to challenge the traditional orthodoxy of a right to abortion. Historically, the party has a tradition of standing up for the little person.

Yet until the little one in the womb is recognized as a human being, Democrats are going to have a hard time gaining a strong appeal to this group of voters in national campaigns.

The little one in the womb? Maybe this was an opinion piece. I also liked the "bible-quoting, gun-toting" line.