Least Common Denominator Faith

In a recent interview at the Compassion Forum (view transcript here), Senators Clinton and Obama made explicitly religious comments in a way that I do not believe they have ever done before. Certainly, this is ground-breaking territory for liberals.

What I find fascinating is how our culture is becoming increasingly populated with a very mild least-common-denominator religion that passes for orthodoxy. This is not just occurring amongst liberals. The President has repeatedly made least common denominator religion comments.

When I read the transcript from the Compassion Forum, I had just finished reading another chapter in J. Gresham Machen's 1920s book Christianity and Liberalism. Machen's book is his controversial thesis that the liberal theology of the 1920s, which bears so many similarities with the least-common-denominator today, is not Christianity. Machen's book proved so controversial that it led to his expulsion from Princeton Seminary. Caught between the liberals and the fundamentalists, Machen, a reformed Presbyterian pastor, predicted that the least-common-denominator faith would sink orthodox Christianity. Personally, I think Machen is right.

Returning to the Compassion Forum and evidence of least-common-denominator faith and its place in American politics in the 21st century, some excerpts and comments below:

CLINTON: You know, I have, ever since I've been a little girl, felt the presence of God in my life. And it has been a gift of grace that has, for me, been incredibly sustaining. But, really, ever since I was a child, I have felt the enveloping support and love of God and I have had the experiences on many, many occasions where I felt like the holy spirit was there with me as I made a journey.

It didn't have to be a hard time. You know, it could be taking a walk in the woods. It could be watching a sunset.

In this comment, Senator Clinton reduces the Holy Spirit to a graceful, nebulous, and inspiring force that warms the heart of humans. No mention of the Holy Spirit within the context of conviction, sin, or redemption.

The clearest insight into Senator Clinton's least common denominator faith came in response to a question from Newsweek editor John Meacham.

CLINTON: But I also believe that, you know, faith is just -- it's grace. It's love. It's mystery. It's provocation. It is everything that makes life and its purpose meaningful as a human being.

Once again, we see a non-sectarian, nebulous, and vague religion.