Did Obama Lie About His Faith Commitment During the 2008 Presidential Campaign?

After attending church regularly during the 2008 Presidential campaign, Mr. Obama has not attended church on a regular basis since being elected President and has yet to find a church home.

Just this past week, the President did not attend any Christmas services with his family. President Obama also did not attend any Christmas services in 2009 shortly after he was elected President.

As a candidate, Obama made his Christian faith and involvement in a local church community with regular church attendance a key component of his campaign. Once he was elected President, there has been no relationship with a local church and he did not even attend any Christmas services celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ with his family.

The issue is not if a person has to attend church to be an effective President. They do not. The issue for Obama is one of integrity and honesty with the American people.

The President's actions give the appearance, that his regular attendance during the campaign and his comments about how important his local church community was to his family, were not deeply held core beliefs but rather a crass political calculation to curry favor with the faith community.

Along with his lack of church involvement since being elected President, Obama has shown other troubling signs regarding the depth of his Christian faith. A faith which he says is a foundational aspect of his life.

A few examples:

• The President covered up a white cross and a symbol for the name of Jesus at a Georgetown University speech.
  

• President Obama did not publicly celebrate the National Day of Prayer at the White House yet celebrated Gay and Lesbian Pride Month as well as Islamic religious observations at the White House.

• For the first time in 43 years, the Obama Administration banned a military flyover at a "God and Country Rally" in Nampa, Idaho.

• On a White House Christmas tree, the President asked that no religious ornaments be seen, yet they displayed an ornament with the image of the brutal dictator, Mao Zedong, a leader who oversaw the deaths of over 50,000,000 million of his own people.

• The President issued strong support for a Senate Health Care Bill which included public monies to fund abortions.

• In the midst of the worst economic downturn in decades, Team Obama spent $150, 000,000 on the Presidential Inauguration ignoring the needs of the poor and struggling across the country.

• President Obama refused to meet with the Dali Lama to discuss human and religious rights after the Chinese government asked him not to.

Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, Director of the Washington, D.C. based Christian Defense Coalition, adds these comments and observations,

"It is important to note that it was President Obama who made his regular church attendance and the importance of a local church community a major part of his campaign. He stated in the national press that he, 'regularly attends church while on the campaign trail.'

"The issue is not whether a President has to attend church on a regular basis to be an effective President. They do not. The issue is one of integrity and honesty. To portray yourself as person of deep Christian faith and very involved in the life of the local church during the campaign and then abandon that position after you are elected reduces faith to a commodity and religion to a political tool.

"Finally, the White House has said they have not found a church home for President Obama and his family in Washington, D.C. because they do not want to be a disruptive factor for the local church. This is a completely disingenuous and misleading argument. The overwhelming majority of churches in the Washington would love to have the President and his family attend their church and would welcome them with open arms.

"Simply stated; Mr. President if your Christian faith and involvement with a local church means as much to you as you say it does please find a vibrant local community for you and your family to worship Christ."