I just received this through our local Obama list and found it very encouraging. Matthew 25 (including a selection of religious leaders) is troubled by Palin's "unchristian" tone and her attacks on Obama.
For those who are unfamiliar, Brian McLaren (et al) and Matthew 25 sponsored an ad for Senator Obama recently showing that people of faith support his candidacy. This email is directed to those evangelical Christians who are the target of the Palin vice presidential candidacy.
The Matthew 25 Network
Dear Friends,
If you watched Governor Sarah Palin's acceptance speech to the Republican National Convention last night, we're sure you were as disappointed as we were in the tenor and content of the speech.
As Christians, we are called to be respectful and loving toward our neighbors, honoring their intentions even if we disagree. We are also called to be truthful in all things, to "put away falsehood" (Eph 4:25) and refrain from slandering, belittling, or speaking out of contempt for anyone.
If these are the standards God has set for us in our personal lives, our church communities, and our neighborhoods, how much more so should they be for those who choose to be in the public eye? Shouldn't we expect our brothers and sisters in politics to also speak the truth in love and to extend respect and goodwill even to those who disagree with them?
It's because of these standards, and because Governor Palin has been so public about her Christian faith, that the Matthew 25 Network found her address last night at the Republican National Convention so disappointing. We call on her not only as a political figure, but as a prominent Christian, to commit herself to campaigning in good faith, with love and respect for her political opponents and a strong commitment to truth-telling.
Please join religious leaders Brian McLaren, Douglas W. Kmiec, Rev. Dr. Susan B. Thistlethwaite, Vincent Miller, Delores Leckey, Peter Vander Meulen, Rev. Dr. Derrick Harkins, and Sharon Daly by signing the Matthew 25 statement in response to Gov. Palin's speech. View the statement here.
We will share this petition with the McCain-Palin campaign and with the national media. Please add your voice and sign the statement now.
Join us in saying-- this time-- in this election-- we will not allow the politics of fear and division to win the day! Together we will lift up a compassionate religious voice that calls out the very best in every one of us and in the promise that is America.
Thank you for all you do,
The Matthew 25 Network Team
PS. As always, please consider a donation to help us keep spreading our message.
Let's hope this gets out to as many of those Christians as possible.
Updated: Thanks to Progressive East Texas for posting the ad by Matthew 25.