I’ve pointed out here and here when Democrat leaders seem of touch with religious people. So it is only fair to point out the following example showing a Democratic leader who is comfortable with religious language and doesn’t shy away from using it out of fear of alienating the Democratic base.

Rich Lowry writes in National Review about Barack Obama’s keynote speech at the Democratic Convention:

"AN AWESOME GOD." The emotional high point of the speech may have been his declaration that "We worship an awesome God in the Blue States." He thus rebutted the notion that the Democrats are the secular party, and did it in authentic, unashamed language. The theme of faith was woven throughout the speech, from near the very beginning when Obama talked of "a faith in the simple dreams of [America's] people, the insistence on small miracles." This is language that Democrats often can’t muster, , and it gives added oomph to two other key themes from the speech.

"MY BROTHER’S KEEPER." Democratic social programs often seem mushy or purposeless or pandering. Obama connected them with one of the deepest of all ethical imperatives — to love our neighbors as ourselves: "It’s that fundamental belief — I am my brother’s keeper, I am my sisters’ keeper — that makes this country work." This is a liberalism with some emotional depth, and a meaning much more profound than the dollar signs next to line-items in a federal budget.

"THE AUDACITY OF HOPE!" We’ve heard a lot of talk of how important it is for the Democrats to be optimistic. But the optimism of forced smiles and focus-grouped phrases can be a wan thing indeed. Obama’s optimism was expressed in the language of faith. When he talked of "the audacity of hope!" he was reaching for something inside the breast of every religious believer, and connecting with the audacious hope that has fueled heroic American projects, from the nation’s very founding to the civil rights movement.

I didn’t listen to the speech, so I don’t know the context in of the above quotes. I also don’t know about Obama’s beliefs, so I am not certain what he means when he speaks of God. Is he Jewish, Muslim, Christian or what? I don’t know. Based on the exposure he is getting at this convention, I think we will be learning more about him in the near future.

But regardless of what he means, it is not every day you any hear a political leader use the phrase "We worship an awesome God," particularly one from the Democratic party, and so this speech is noteworthy.