Dear Y,

Having just seen a commentary by Pamela Geller on the American Thinker blog, I think I can understand what might have prompted you to ask me the other day whether I thought it could be true, as some are saying, that President Obama was a closet Muslim. Ms. Geller, a courageous and capable reporter for whom I have considerable respect, has put together quite a case for that, hasn’t she?

Nevertheless, my answer remains the same: No, I don’t think so. True, he does appear to have had a Muslim upbringing—insofar as we have been permitted to know anything about his past. But we Christians know all too well that having a Christian upbringing is not the same as being a Christian.

Now, he may indeed have given the assurances to the Egyptian foreign minister that were quoted by Ms. Geller—although, I would note that the public statements of an Arab politician are not a whole lot more reliable than the statements of Mr. Obama. But even if he did assure the Arabs that he was a devout Muslim, against that we have the assurance of the White House press secretary that the President is “a devout Christian.” What is more, candidate Obama defended his Christianity with such ringing testimonies as, “I pray to Jesus every night.” and “I believe in the redemptive death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

I could be wrong, but I believe what we have here is merely the well-known phenomenon of a man devoid of character and integrity and without principles of his own seeking to be “all things to all people.” A particularly outrageous manifestation of that phenomenon, to be sure, given that this entity is the POTUS; but still, as far as his religious convictions are concerned, I doubt that it means any more than that. From what I have seen and heard, I think it is safe to conclude that Mr. Obama adheres to the tenets of none of the world’s religions: he is a secularist—which, of course, deserves to be considered a religion in its own right, even though its adherents don’t usually think of themselves in that way, but would rather be known as “the Brights,” or, even more humbly, as “the People.”

Politically and economically, on the other hand, Mr. Obama does give evidence of adhering fairly consistently to a particular ideology: Marxism—albeit of the “soft” variety that is sometimes called “progressivism” or “democratic (as contrasted with violent revolutionary) socialism.” I used to think that the “soft” variety was at least preferable to the “hard” kind, but I am not so sure of that anymore.

You may have noticed that a few of the progressive propagandists who helped put Mr. Obama in the Oval Office have recently expressed frustration and disillusionment with his presidency. My take on this, however, is that these progressive critics still share the President’s goals, and that their new-found anger is directed at what they perceive (rightly or wrongly) as his weakness and ineptitude in attaining them. They are worried that, through his bumbling, the apparently successful socialist takeover of America they have been celebrating will somehow fail after all.

The conservative bloggers I read have not impressed me much as they respond to all this. It seems to me that they can’t seem to make up their minds whether this President is a fool or a knave. But, as one of them who is noticeably wiser and more perceptive than most has asked, Why can’t he be both? Indeed, why not quite a bit of both?

That he is a knave is, I think, evident, for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear. Even apart from the torrent of lies, broken promises, and double-talk, whenever he departs from his script to make an unguarded remark, the “inner thug” shows. That he is a fool, or “stupid,” as some of my conservative friends are wont to say, is not nearly so evident to me. While he is clearly far from brilliant, he strikes me as a man of at least average intelligence—perhaps even slightly above average. I am much more willing than some of his supporters are to believe that he is doing the best he can under the circumstances to implement his agenda. After all, in real Reality, you can’t always “control the narrative,” as some progressive editorial writers have been angrily exhorting him to do. Stuff happens, and it’s up to you to deal with it. It was no secret that this candidate had no previous executive experience, that this would be his first real job. I think these writers are being more than a little unfair.

If you ask me, the problem is not so much that Mr. Obama and those around him are stupid, but that they are sold out to a stupid and destructive ideology—one that has “lighted fools the way to dusty death.” And, sadly, we know there is great terror and bloodshed along that dusty way. The history of the last century yields abundant proof: Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Castro, Pol Pot, Mugabe—it’s a very long list. The self-styled intellectuals of the 20th century cheered most of them on, and some are cheering still. If you are asking, “When will they ever learn?”—all I can say is, if you are looking for it to happen apart from God’s gracious intervention . . . well, don’t hold your breath. I have been told on good authority, however, that God’s gracious intervention is something that can be prayed for.

Long before the twentieth century, a man reputed to be very wise once blogged: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it is the way of death.” (Proverbs 16:25, HCSB)

Once upon a time there was a national leader—by no means a major player like the POTUS, merely the head of a tiny, non-Muslim country in the Middle East said to have been illegally occupied by Poles and Germans about 3,200 years ago—who wrote a song about fools:

The fool says in his heart, “God does not exist.”
They are corrupt; their actions are revolting.
There is no one who does good.

The LORD looks down from heaven on the human race
to see if there is one who is wise,
one who seeks God.

All have turned away;
all alike have become corrupt.
There is no one who does good,
not even one.

Will evildoers never understand?
They consume my people as they consume bread;
they do not call on the LORD.

Then they will be filled with terror,
for God is with those who are righteous.

You sinners frustrate the plans of the afflicted,
but the LORD is his refuge.

Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come from Zion!
When the LORD restores His captive people,
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad. (Psalm 14, HCSB)

While the lyrics are admittedly rather downbeat—he really doesn’t have anything good to say about fools, does he?—notice that the song ends on a distinctly upbeat note. And, IMO, there is some excellent advice here, stated or implied, that is worth taking to heart. I heartily commend it to you.

Call on the Lord, who is “God with us.”
He is our Refuge and Deliverer.
Rejoice!
Be glad!

Sincerely,
TLP