VideoTranscript
Yes, I think that religious life does allow you to see and to respond to the other in a way that may not always be similar to those who are outside of religious life. So if you just focus on the Christian perspectives, that you are to love your neighbour as yourself, that these kinds of admonitions, or commandments, move people to – if they’re serious about their faith – to try to reflect that in their social and political life.
So it is true, church attendance is a very strong predictor of voting turnout, a strong predictor of other forms of civic engagement. And while I don’t want to argue that it’s necessary for everyone to go to church in order to have a healthy society, I do want to acknowledge that it contributes. Religion is an important contributor to those kinds of things that we desire.