There are few public thinkers the Holy Post cites more often than David French, and he’s finally here in person! (Well, in person via Zoom.) French is the Senior Editor of The Dispatch, a columnist for Time, and a pro-life conservative attorney. Although many Christians are worried about the erosion of religious liberty, French says, “We have never enjoyed more religious liberty than we do right now.”
The problem is that Christians are losing cultural power, and our attempts to retain it are often doing more harm than good. He helps us understand recent Supreme Court rulings about religious liberty and LGBT rights, why conservatives who are against face masks aren’t really pro-life, and how both the Left and Right get racism wrong. French explains why he will not vote for Trump, and why evangelicals have gone from holding their noses to enthusiastic support of a president who lacks both character and competency. Plus, what is “David Frenchism” and should we be worried about it?
The Case for Religious Liberty is More Compelling than the Case for Christian Power - The Dispatch: https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/the-case-for-religious-liberty-is
Phil, Skye, Christian: I have a major problem with David French's understanding of religious liberty. When the discussion got around to the Utah compromise and when discussing recent Supreme Court decisions, it became clear that the discussion centered around "religious organizations" vs secular organizations. But, the First Amendment is not fundamentally about organizations and institutions. It's about people. Organizations have rights only because people have rights.
Religious liberty must not be limited to Freedom of worship. It is not about what happens inside a church or private homes. It is about freely acting in the public marketplace according to one's religious convictions.
I do agree with the podcast discussion of face masks. That kind of protest is silly and embarrassing.
@Sarah Moore, your friends must think you are a secret racist then.
@Sarah Moore - If your friends of color recommend it, I'd say defer to them and read it! You don't need David French's approval. The perspectives/experiences of your friends of color matter immensely in this area, and French's opinion should take a back seat.
I'm interested in knowing more about the book White Fragility. It was not recommended by David French, but I have friends of color who recommend it. What are the points it makes? Are there any good resources out there to help me learn more? Should I just read it?
I don't think white people like French get to decide whether or not something is "over-racialized." His example (this is my paraphrase of what he said) is that criticisms of Obama for playing too much golf were obviously neutral and couldn't possibly be racist or race-related. But we can't just assume that off-hand. The question has to become: Did Obama actually play more golf than other presidents, or not? If he did, then the criticisms happen to be valid; if not, then something else is going on.
If Obama didn't actually play more golf than other presidents, (and frankly, even if he did), then it's very possible that people made negative comments about his golfing because they were placing a…