My Respects

I just read this interesting article about President Ford and the way he chose to keep his strong religious beliefs private.

In a time when the current president won't shut up for a second about how he's been "born again," how he talks to Jeebus every day, and how close he is to the big man upstairs, it's relieving to see that our country did have, at one point, an effective leader who didn't feel compelled to prop himself up all the time.

He understood that, in order to lead effectively, one needed to listen to both sides, and to keep one's personal beliefs from becoming polarizing. He understood, better than any American president before or since, that our constitution is a secular document, not a spiritual one, and that our leadership should reflect this. He saw our country as a safe haven for practicing one's beliefs, and felt there was room enough in the tent for people of all faiths (or lack thereof!)

On the day of his funeral, I remember his commitment to secularism, and hope that our political climate will one day allow more like him to flourish. With all the problems our country is facing, we need to be focused on the issues at hand, not on the afterlife.