Senior Editor at the GR-based Acton Institute defends Islamophobia

Joe Carter, the Senior Editor of the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion & Liberty, recently wrote a story on the organization’s PowerBlog that defends Islamophobia. 

The article written by Carter is entitled, Bernie Sanders imposes a religious test for public office, focuses on a confirmation hearing last week for Russell Vought, nominated for deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget.

What Senator Sanders too issue with during the confirmation hearing was the following comment written by Russell Vought in an online publication called The Resurgent. 

“Muslims do not simply have a deficient theology,” wrote Vought, pushing back against a claim made by theologian John Stackhouse. “They do not know God because they have rejected Jesus Christ his Son, and they stand condemned.”

Senator Sanders challenged this statement and pushed Russell Vought to own it, which you can hear in this video.

Vought never really answers Sen. Sanders’ question, he only argues that he is a Christian and we are all supposed to deduce from that, that as a Christian he rejects all other faiths.

The Senior Acton Editor then ends his post with these comments:

The fact that Sanders and Van Hollen are profoundly ignorant about both Christianity and Islam is neither surprising nor all that disconcerting. But for them to imply that anyone who holds a traditional Christian view on salvation is unfit for public office is repugnant and unconstitutional.

Although most of America has been distracted by the Comey hearing, we shouldn’t ignore this threat to our religious freedom. We must send a clear message to Washington: Such displays of anti-Christian bias by politicians like Senator Sanders and Van Hollen has the potential to set a dangerous precedent and will not be tolerated.

Such contempt should come as no surprise to anyone who has followed the Acton Institute over the years. Their founder, Rev. Robert Sirico, is a close friend of Erik Prince (the founder of Blackwater). In fact, Sirico performed the ceremony at Prince’s wedding and acts as somewhat of a “spiritual Advisor,” according to Jeremy Scahill’s book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army.

Erik Prince even sees himself as a modern day crusader who seeks to eliminate infidels around the world, including those who practice Islam. It would seem that Joe Carter is simply continuing the position of Islamophobia that the Acton Institute’s founder has endorsed for some time now.