Another article that may be of interest:

Charles Lewis: Why don't Canadians want to hear about our politicians' religious beliefs?
Posted: August 07, 2008, 3:35 PM by Dan Goldbloom
Charles Lewis
An Angus Reid poll released this week asked Canadians their feelings about mixing politics and religion. Among its major findings: 66% of Canadians thought it was wrong for politicians to talk about their religious beliefs, while 25% thought is was perfectly acceptable.

Mario Canseco, director of global studies for Angus Reid, said it was also worth noting that the more conservative the respondents were, the more likely it was they would not object to politicians musing about their religious feelings.

That is not all that surprising, he said, given the religious values of many conservatives more closely mimic their total world view. In other words, it is harder for religious conservatives to park their faith at the door when they head out into secular society — often referred to by the non-religious as the "real world."

But for that other 66%, what is it that makes them so nervous at the thought of politicians sharing their religious beliefs?

A colleague suggested many people are made nervous by anyone who speaks with moral clarity. In a society that wants to be accommodating to all views, anyone who announces that they have a deep faith in one specific religion may trouble those who do not share that particular faith. And, of course, there is the fear that some crazed religious person may take power and start telling everyone else what to do. Funny that no one ever worries about a crazed secular person telling everyone else what to do.

But if a politician was dreaming of creating a theocracy — like the Ayotollah Khomeini — most of us would want to hear that before he got into office.

Most Canadians know that Pierre Trudeau and Paul Martin were deeply believing Catholics and most Canadians know that Stephen Harper is an evangelical Christian. But why should their silence about their faith be of comfort? It is not that hard to find out what a Catholic believes. Even the Complete Idiot's Guide series has the Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Catholicism. None of this is a secret.

Someone who is Catholic, an evangelical or an Orthodox Jew may hold conservative views about abortion and same-sex marriage. But their faith may also inform their compassion for the poor or their feelings about going to war. It may also say nothing at all about how they would behave in office. Either way, finding out is not that frightening.

And it could tell us something else, that everyone might find comforting.

In a world so maddeningly complex, there is very little that one political leader can do. Often the best we can hope for is knowing how that person would stand up under extreme pressure, how they react in a crisis or their willingness to change course when things are not working out or even, on occasion, admit to being wrong.

And knowing whether someone is leaning on their faith to get through difficult trials is not the worst thing to know about.