I got an invitation for a celebration party for Hector Balderas. He easily won his re-election as State Auditor based on his anti-corruption stands. This party is mainly being sponsored by lobbyists in Santa Fe. Go figure. They probably see him as a possible gubernatorial candidate in four years. I like him a lot, but this is a little disappointing.
I am getting word that the Susana Martinez transition is way behind the curve in getting its work done. Compared to eight years ago when Richardson was spending 14 hours a day having meetings, the current transition is not seeing many people. This might be setting the pace we will see in a Martinez administration.
Congressman Martin Heinrich hasn't been sworn in for his second term yet but an Albuquerque City Councillor, Dan Lewis is thinking about running for the seat. He is a part time preacher. Someone should find out if he thinks the world is only 6000 years old. That might make a difference on what kind of congressman he would make. We don't need any more fundamentalist kooks. I hope he isn't one. He seems to be an okay guy but Martin would be hard to beat at any rate.
5 comments:
I don't mind fundamentalist cooks. It's the kooks I can't stand!
Isn't Dan Lewis the guy who ran that really nasty campaign against Michael Cadigan in District 5?
kooks....yes
You Decide
Article in the Weekly Albibi:
Is there a conflict in being a Christian pastor and a city councilor who represents constituents of many religious paths?
My job as councilor is to serve every person in this city no matter who they are or what they believe. Many people base their view of pastors or Christians from a negative experience they have had or from the media's perspective that is often skewed. I understand how that happens, but I think tolerance should go both ways. It's important for people to know that you can have a very effective city councilor or elected official who is conservative, has a solid Christian faith, is compassionate, respectful of every person, fair, ethical and honest.
Was your role as a pastor part of your campaign pitch?
During the campaign, I explained my background and included the fact that I am a pastor, former high school teacher and athletic coach, small business owner, and have served the community in a variety of ways. I've never tried to push my faith or position as a pastor on anybody, but I've also never tried to hide it—either way would not be authentic.
What was your formal instruction for becoming a pastor?
I have a B.A. from Grand Canyon University with a communications and Christian studies emphasis. I have a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Theological Seminary with extensive emphasis in Hebrew and Greek languages.
Your father was a Baptist pastor. Did that influence your decision to become a pastor yourself?
I have great respect for my father and grew up being a part of several great churches where he was the pastor. My father is a public servant who has given his life to helping people. I rebelled against my church upbringing. If I was going to be a Christian, I was going to have to find it on my own, and I did.
Do you receive a salary from your church?
Our church staff is all bi-vocational. We all have other sources of income to support our families and to be able to give back to the church all that we can. The church employs five staff members, including me, who all receive a salary from the church and all also have other jobs and careers.
What is the best thing about leading your church?
A church is a true family where people accept one another, encourage one another, use their God-given gifts to serve one another, and reach out and help the community around them. Soul Rio is just real authentic, practical, imperfect people interested in following God’s word.
How do you balance running two businesses and raising a family with City Council obligations and your church?
I've always tried to develop a team around me in everything I do. I have wonderful business partners and friends that I team up with. And I have a very supportive family that participates in all that I do and understands how important it is to give our lives to public service, meeting people's needs and making the world better.
What is your stance on abortion?
I believe that life begins at conception. I don't believe that there is such a thing as an "unwanted" pregnancy. If a baby is conceived, then I believe that God wants that baby to live, and God has a special purpose for that baby. Our church has supported many teenage and single moms and many families who have adopted both locally and from other countries.
When did you know you had the calling to be a pastor or a city councilor?
I felt a calling to be a pastor as a teenager. I never sought a particular position; I just wanted to help people and live out the purpose that God has given me.
I considered becoming a city councilor when several other businessmen and leaders in the community asked me to run. I looked around at the need for better roads, quality parks, safer neighborhoods and jobs and felt like I could do something about it.
On government and religion - particularly so-called America's Christian principles some politicians like to talk about.
These United States were founded by great men, a few of them Christian, but many more of them Deists who, although they believed in a "supreme being", doubted Jesus was devine adn didn't believe in the validity of the bible. They did NOT found a new nation based on “Christian” or any other religious principles.
This FACT is readily evidenced in Article 6, Section 3 of the Constitution of the United States, which specifies that "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." Also, in 1796 in article XI of the treaty with Tripoli, written under the presidency of George Washington and ratified under the presidency of John Adams it states that, “the Government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion”.
The writings of the founders offer many examples of their thinking. Benjamin Franklin wrote “In the affairs of the world, men are saved, not by faith, but by the lack of it.” The irrefutable FACT that the founders truly intended there be a clear separation of religion from politics, James Madison wrote “The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries.” Thomas Jefferson who authored the Declaration of Independence wrote “I do not find in orthodox Christianity one redeeming feature”. In his Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, he wrote “No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever”.
And maybe even anticipating the very attitude we find in many rightwing fundamentalist Christian politicos Islamophobia, Jefferson wrote, “On the dogmas of religion, as distinguished from moral principles, all mankind, from the beginning of the world to this day, have been quarreling, fighting, burning and torturing one another, for abstractions unintelligible to themselves and to all others, and absolutely beyond the comprehension of the human mind”.
Well meaning or not, all politicians elected to represent "the people" need to represent ALL of the people, and the best way to do that is to leave religion out of it completely.
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