Looks like religion and the 2012 presidential election is the talk of the blogosphere today, with folks like Robert Jones, CEO, Public Religion Research Institute, weighing in over at the Houston Chronicle on how will religion will impact the race to the White House:

“In addition to the specifics of the 2012 horse race, there is a second, simpler answer to why religion will matter in the 2012 election: Americans are generally highly religious, and it is at least one important lens influencing Americans’ views of political candidates.”

Kate Shellnutt of the Houston Chronicle had a similar take in her piece “Onward Christian Voters“:

“The country calls itself ‘one nation under God,’ and approaching the 2012 presidential elections, Americans want a leader under God.

A majority of adults say it’s important for a candidate to have strong religious beliefs, the Public Religion Research Institute found in a survey in July. Exactly how voters want to see candidates talk about God is much harder to determine.”

And CNN’s Belief blog focuses on the faith Mormon presidential candidates Mitt Romney and John Huntsman:

“While the U.S. Constitution says ‘no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States,’ Republican candidates for the White House Mitt Romney and John Huntsman – who are both Mormons – may have more ground to make up on this issue than previously thought.

Comedian Jon Stewart has decided to weigh in on the ongoing kerfuffle between people who want to put the “World Trade Center Cross” in the 9/11 and atheists who oppose it. Apparently, Stewart isn’t buying the atheist argument.

Rachel Hackenberg at the Christian Century blog is hoping to dispel that “myth” about Christian pastors:

“The myth about pastors, simply stated, is that we are helpers; that ours is a helping profession, counted alongside doctors and nurses and emergency responders and teachers and social workers.”

Finally, our Tweet of the Day comes from the Christian Post. The tweet mostly just points to an article, but the sheer power of this statement of faith is worth a double take:

@christianpost – I Love Jesus More Than Bacon http://bit.ly/pIVaWG

So what do you think, dear readers? How will religion play a roll in 2012? SHOULD it play a role in 2012? Is Jesus really better than bacon? Weigh in below!

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