County GOP ad touts Christian heritage

A color ad published Thursday by the Augusta County Republican Committee positions a GOP vote in the local election as preserving religious heritage for Christians.

"Preserve our Christian Heritage! VOTE REPUBLICAN" on Nov. 3, says the inserted ad in The News Leader.

What's it mean to talk about America having a "Christian heritage"? What actions in public office will Augusta County Republican officials take to preserve it?

Readers have started to weigh in.

"What does it mean?" wrote local author and Democrat Cliff Garstang. "It means that the local Republicans (probably the national party also) are bigots. Non-Christians not welcome. Pure and simple. ... I have been outraged since I opened the paper this morning and saw it. The only thing missing is the swastika."

Tim Martin, GOP candidate for Commonwealth's Attorney, said he didn't see the ad before it ran, but kind of laughed when called Thursday. "That's funny. I'm Christian, so I don't have a problem with it. ... As a prosecutor I will be guided by my Christian values. Paramount in my book, is justice, mercy, fairness and the positive values enumerated in the Bible."

"In this line of work there is a balance between protecting the public safety and seeing it to it that mercy is doled out appropriately to individuals. I feel commanded to love them. ... I’m proud to be a Christian and I’m proud to have that associated with me. ... If I were to have invented the ad, I might have substituted 'values' rather than heritage. But parsing words is a dangerous game. I don’t distance myself from it."

"Christian heritage" of the United States is an idea that has been claimed by groups beyond the mainstream. The white supremacy group Council of Conservative Citizens pushes the political idea in its statements of values, according to the Washington Post. "We believe that the United States of America is a Christian country, that its people are a Christian people, and that its government and public leaders at all levels must reflect Christian beliefs and values," the group's statement of values reads. "We therefore oppose all efforts to deny or weaken the Christian heritage of the United States."

The Republican ad was designed by 87-year-old Larry Roller, who is a member of the Augusta County Republican Committee. He said he was aware of white supremacy groups using the idea of Christian heritage when he made the ad.

"There are quite a few Ku Klux Klans trying to maintain the Christian heritage," he said. "Just because some people have misused the words does not mean there is anything wrong with using 'Christian heritage.'"

But Roller, who is a former educator and educational administrator, said the nation's founding fathers were clear about who should hold a political office.

"They said a person should not be allowed to run for office if they were not a Christian," he said. "Our Constitution is based on Judeo-Christian principles and biblical principles, and they would not understand how to implement them if they were not a Christian."

Nationally, the "Christian heritage" phrase seems to differ whether it's a personal statement, an academic argument about history or a political statement.

(This video is one national youth ministry's explanation/argument for a "Christian heritage" view.)

Marshall Pattie, North River District supervisor, dismissed questions about the ad.

"I don’t worry about any of that stuff, it’s just politics," he said. "What I do is focus on talking to people in my district."

Virginia Del. Dickie Bell, 20th District, said he saw a proof of the ad ahead of time. How would he protect Christian heritage?

"I don’t have legislation that specifically address that. It's hard enough to protect our constitutional freedoms," he said. "That’s a full-time job. It’s attacked all the time by the liberal left and whoever else might not ascribe to Christian values. Those folks out there (who) have taken pot shots at Christians. That’s the way most of us feel.

"Christians have a bad reputation just because we have the freedom to worship as we please. We are not trying to impose our will on everyone else."

And Bell didn't seem happy on social media about the attention the ad was receiving.

Will Hammer, Dickie Bell’s Libertarian opponent, said “using religion to pander for votes is an egregious act.”

“The most important factor when electing representatives to the government is if they are principled and will represent and protect the natural rights of the people, the individual, not corporations and other special interest groups," Hammer said.

Some of the candidates, including Virginia Sen. Emmett Hanger, 24th District, said they did not see the ad before it ran.

"I sent my picture to the committee by email a couple of months ago," he said. "That was my total participation in the ad."

Hanger said he has already been contacted by a voter concerned the ad inferred that anyone who was not a Republican was not a Christian.

"I'm sensitive to people of faith and, for me, I think the Republicans are making a mistake if we are trying to define ourselves as the Christian Party," Hanger said. "Christianity is not the property of a political party. I identify with the Republican party, but I wouldn't overplay that statement.

"I wouldn't put that out there as to why people should vote for me over someone else," he said. "That would be making a judgement about the other party or the other person's faith."

Georgia Long, chairwoman of the Augusta County Republican Committee, said the ad was an attempt to be a reflection of the Republican creed. Specifically, she said the ad was designed to address the sixth bullet point in the creed that states, "faith in God as recognized by our founding fathers is essential to the moral fiber of the nation."

“Maybe the word 'Christian' might not have been the right word to use,” Long said. “Maybe we should have said ‘our religious heritage' instead.”

Democratic House of Delegates candidate Angela Lynn, 25th District, said the ad got her attention.

"Right away it struck me as propaganda that one party had more Christians than another party," Lynn said. "It's erroneous to believe that either party has more Christians or non-Christians. I believe it is a negative reflection of them being out of touch and not doing a good job of representing all of the people.

"Virginia heritage has always been welcoming to all faiths," said the Democrat candidate. "What they are saying is not a part of our heritage. They are claiming something that is not true. Especially with today — we have to be more in touch with the people, all the people who live here."

The News Leader inserted advertisement includes these candidates:

Jean Shrewsbury, Commissioner of Revenue

Ben Cline, 24th District, House of Delegates

Emmett Hanger, 24th District, State Senate

Steve Landes, 25th District, House of Delegates

Dickie Bell, 20th District, House of Delegates

Carol Brydge, Clerk of Court

Derek Almarode, Sheriff

Tim Martin, Commonwealth's Attorney

Richard Homes, Treasurer

Marshall Pattie, North River District

Carolyn Bragg, South River District

Terry Kelley, Beverley Manor District

Mike Shull, Riverheads District

Chris Morrison, Pastures District

Gerald Garber, Middle River District