Jesus? Heck yeah! Church? Not so much ...

Amy Sullivan, an editor of Washington Monthly and sometime guest-blogger on Political Animal, has just published an excellent article in The New Republic on Dubya's church-going habits ... or rather, his lack thereof.

Sure, when he weekends at Camp David, Bush spends Sunday morning with the compound's chaplain. And, every so often, he drops in on the little Episcopal church across Lafayette Park from the White House. But the president who has staked much of his domestic agenda on the argument that religious communities hold the key to solving social problems doesn't belong to a congregation.

Now, I have to admit, this really surprised me. Bush has made so much, both implicitly and explicity, of being "born again" that I just assumed he'd be a regular church-goer. Of course, as Ms. Sullivan points out, it shouldn't really matter:

A president's religious habits often reveal far less about his faith than the decisions he makes. But, more than any other president, Bush has staked his political reputation on being a devout man of faith. The implied and often explicit responsibility for one another that undergirds congregational life is at the heart of Bush's faith-based policy agenda. The fact that he isn't himself a member of a congregation should be relevant.

I have to agree, particularly given the willingness of his party to make religiosity a political issue. Anyway, it's an interesting read - especially if you, like me, are closely related to some born-again, thank-God-for-Dubya folks. Go check it out, and tell them After School Snack sent you.