Heaven Can't Wait

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Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, released in early 2004, focuses almost exclusively on an infallible Christ's pain and suffering before and during his crucifixion. Many critics railed against the film, arguing that it was nothing more than an anti-Semitic advertisement for redemptive violence. After it was released, though, conservative evangelicals lined up outside theaters to buy tickets. It was the number one film in America for weeks and, in retrospect, presaged President Bush's electoral victory.

A FEW WEEKS AFTER my megachurch story hit the street, a talk show host at a local Christian radio station invited me onto his show. Knowing his reputation as an attack dog, I decided it would be a good place to test my newfound faith. The interview began just as I'd hoped.

"Are you a Christian?" he asked.

"Yes," I answered.

Before he could recover, I went on to explain that while I appreciated his preoccupation with salvation, my main concern was good works. That the Jesus I met in the Bible would be more concerned about curing AIDs than outlawing homosexual marriage, more troubled by world hunger and violence than an erosion of "family values."

His tenor changed, the studio phone line lit up, and we actually had a conversation. Instead of being on the show for 15 minutes, I stayed on for an hour. In the end, we agreed to disagree. He listened to what I had to say, though. So did his audience.

If progressives want to reclaim the moral high ground, it will require a series of similar risks, rhetorical and substantive. First, and this is particularly true of the Democratic Party, there must be an unwavering commitment to a set of values. If civil rights, civil liberties, and nonviolence are ideals that can't be compromised, then that's that. On the core issues that once defined the liberal tradition -- such as charity and justice -- there must be resolve, expressed in a language of right and wrong.

The next step is to invite people of all faiths to join the cause. No matter what their religious backgrounds, if people share like convictions, that's what matters. There are liberal evangelicals, progressives who have been born again, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and Pagans who use their faith to define and fortify themselves. They should be welcome to express their values in their own language and on their own terms. In fact, they should be encouraged to speak about sin or redemption or prayer, to use words like God and forgiveness, if only because it will perk up the ears of those who might not otherwise listen.

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