Rev. Samuel Rodriguez is one of those preachers that understands what it means to be a Christian in a political world. I watched his interview on Bill Moyers Journal and knew this was someone who had come to terms with the concept of the separation of church and state. As President of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, Rev. Rodriguez helps serve 16 million Hispanic born-again Christians.

I have no patience for most politically active preachers, at least the ones with regard to which I am most familiar, those of the religious right, the ones with big mouths, small minds and million dollar homes, who tend to have agendas that are anything but Christian. And yet, thousands of thinkless sheep follow them down the path to destruction, destruction of American institutions and destruction of true religion. Such leaders are willing to pervert our political institutions, our courts, our legislatures, in order to motivate their flocks to keep giving them money, money, money. But enough about them!

I was curious about Rev. Rodriguez after I saw the Moyers’ interview, primarily because he obviously recognizes the growing political power of Hispanic Americans. And yet, listening to him it was apparent that his message is significantly different than that of the religious right. For one, he believes in the separation of church and state, not the attempted manipulation of the state by religion, such as we have seen in the last 8 years. He seems to understand that if religious faith motivates political activity, it does so within the confines of political discussion in a free country, not as a religious discussion where God supports one side and the other is going to hell.

I also wanted to know what Rev. Rodriguez thought about immigration and illegal aliens. He believes we need to stop secure our borders and stop the flow of illegal aliens. At the same time he believes that we need to find a solution to deal with the illegals who have been in America for years. I realize that many people, including me, want all the illegals to leave the country and enter legally, but, my point is that Rev. Rodriguez’ position is, in the very least, just might provide a basis for resolution of a difficult issue.

What I like and appreciate about Rev. Rodriguez is that his Christianity encompasses much more than abortion, gay rights, etc. He believes that fighting poverty, taking care of the environment, decent wages, affordable health care and all sorts of similar things should be on any Christian’s political agenda. A discussion with Rev. Rodriguez is like a breath of fresh air compared to the bigoted, braggadocio of the kind of preachers that support John McCain.

Even more importantly, although I cannot put it into words in this short post, he makes you understand, almost intuitively, that a Christian can be involved in the political process without demanding that the separation of church and state be abolished. If there is any hope for America, religiously and spiritually, it lies with men like Rev. Rodriguez, not the Hagees and Parsleys and similar Pharisees.