Evangelical Minister Attacks Sen. Brownback’s Catholicism

A supporter of Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee went negative on rival Sam Brownback’s Catholicism, says Fox News.

The supporter, Rev. Tim Rude (great name) sent an e-mail to Brownback supporters pointing out that Huckabee is an evangelical Protestant and Brownback is…gasp…a Catholic. Here’s my favorite line:

“I know Senator Brownback converted to Roman Catholicism in 2002,” Rev. Tim Rude, pastor of Walnut Creek Community Church, wrote in the e-mail. “Frankly, as a recovering Catholic myself, that is all I need to know about his discernment when compared to the governor’s.”

In the e-mail, Rude calls Huckabee “one of us.”

Rude apologized Tuesday, saying he never meant to sound critical of Catholicism. Yeah. We’re probably reading too much between the lines. Nothing was meant by what he said. He loves Catholics.

Now, of course, the politics has started. Huckabee is distancing himself from the good Rev. Rude. And Brownback is demanding an apology from Huckabee’s campaign.

Just a note, however. Can you imagine a Hillary supporter sending out an email saying, “Obama’s not one of us.” Whoa! We’d have non-stop coverage.

But other than Fox News nobody has picked up on this story. Nobody. Maybe that will change but somehow in my mind’s eye I see editors shrugging their shoulders and saying “So what?” Anti-Catholicism is the last allowed bigotry.