Kamala Harris Says She is a Baptist
This is the religious identity she claims according to the Deseret News.
Throughout her political career, Harris has also drawn strength and inspiration from the Baptist tradition, which is one of the many Christian denominations that comprise Protestant Christianity.
She was introduced to the Baptist Church by her father, Donald Harris, and still identifies as a Baptist today, as the Deseret News previously reported.
In her memoir, Harris cited her early experiences in Christian churches to explain some of her work in politics.
My “earliest memories of the teachings of the Bible were of a loving God, a God who asked us to ‘speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves’ and to ‘defend the rights of the poor and needy,’” she wrote, per Sojourners.
As a religious leader, it is important to examine when a famous person claims to be on your team. This is not a hit job, it is a simple clarification of what might confuse some.
There is more than one kind of Baptist.
Kamala Harris claims a connection to the Third Baptist Church of San Francisco, which is part of the American Baptist Convention. The American Baptist Churches USA, formerly known as the Northern Baptist Convention, fell into theological liberalism in the early 1900’s. Groups such as the General Association of Regular Baptists, and the Conservative Baptists separated from the NBC from the 1930’s. At that point, the primary mission of the ABC shifted to social issues and away from the gospel, and that is where it is today. While the doctrinal statement of today’s ABC seems fairly evangelical, its practice is a continuation of the theological liberalism of 100 years ago. It continues to not only tolerate but champion the most abhorrent forms of theological and moral liberalism within its ranks.
According to her pastor, Harris attends his church because of its position on social issues.
The Rev. Brown took a class from the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as a college student and was active in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.
He remains known as a civil rights activist, as well as for building bridges with leaders from other faith groups, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“You are the quintessential embodiment of the best leadership in the faith community of the United States of America anywhere to be found south of heaven, north of hell,” the Rev. Brown said about President Russell M. Nelson in June 2021, as the Deseret News reported at the time.
The Rev. Brown recently told Sojourners that the vice president was drawn to Third Baptist due to its work on civil rights.
“She came to this church because she knew our ways, she knew our history,” he said.
Is that all she is?
Harris also claims ties to Hinduism through her mother’s ethnic and religious background and claims that Hinduism as motivated her thinking regarding social justice. But she also claims ties to Judaism through the religion of her Jewish husband, Douglas Emhoff, and her step-children.
Some think this amalgamation of religious backgrounds is a healthy thing. Certain the writer of the Deseret New article—a Mormon publication—thinks so. The article seems to purposefully paint a picture of Harris that would make her a palatable choice for Mormon votes.
There is no indication either by statement of faith, personal belief, or lifestyle, that Kamala Harris has a born-again type of faith in Jesus Christ. Her political positions (such as the Do No Harm Act, which would have severely limited religious liberty for religious institutions) indicate hostility to any fundamental/conservative form of Christianity.
So, the answer is NO. She is not one of us.
Christians who are looking for a “Christian” excuse to vote for any politician should beware. “She or he is one of us” is a bad reason to vote for a candidate. Politicians love to wave Bibles and kiss babies as a means of garnering votes. This happens on both the political right and left.
What should we consider when voting?
Who will best advance our biblical values, not just in campaign promises but also in executive function? If we wait for the ideal candidate, we will never vote again. We must choose from among the crowd of flawed individuals to find someone who will lead our nation. We are not electing a pastor or Sunday School teacher, we are electing presidents, senators, representatives, governors, and many other workers.
Biblically, what are we supposed to seek in rulers?
We should vote for those who will punish evil-doers and protect the innocent (Romans 13:1-10). This is basic justice. This fleshes out pretty simply. Protect people from abuse by other people–that includes protecting their lives, bodies, and property from being damaged or stolen by others.
We should vote for those who protect our ability to live quiet and peaceable lives (1 Timothy 2:1-5). If we should pray for it, we also vote for it when we have the opportunity. We should vote for those who will allow us broad freedoms to practice our faith consistently in our personal and public lives. This includes public and private worship, raising our children in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord, and living out biblical principles in our social and work lives. We should vote for those who will allow us to share our faith without hindrance (according to verse 4).
Other things matter too, but this is basic, and when these principles are applied, the choices become clear.
Listen to the audio version of this post here: Kamala Harris Says She is a Baptist (substack.com)