Rhetoric and Religion in Contemporary Politics

By Brett Lunceford
Editor: Contemporary Journal of Rhetoric

The United States has long grappled with the question of how to maintain an appropriate combination of religion and politics in the public sphere. The current electoral cycle is no different, as Presidential candi-dates attempt to negotiate both the political and religious landscapes. This essay introduces a special fo-rum on rhetoric and religion in contemporary politics and touches on some recent instances of how reli-gious differences have played out in the current political environment. Some of the issues discussed include the separation of church and state, Mitt Romney’s membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), Rick Santorum’s conception of the “war on religion,” and the controversy over contraceptives at religious institutions and Rush Limbaugh’s attacks on a Georgetown law student.
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