In a politics-meets-religion-meets-blunt-international-diplomacy gesture, President George W. Bush attended a Christian worship service in China this morning.  Good for him.

If I were President, I probably would have done the same thing (which might be only the second time in his presidency that I could say I agree with him – the first being when he built a Tee Ball field on the South Lawn of the White House).  Now, I am generally somewhere between uneasy to outraged by the way this Administration blurs politics and religion into a misguided, moral crusade.  But in this case I am glad – proud? – glad that my president is advocating for the religious freedom of millions of oppressed Chinese.  (But it would have been even better had he attended a mosque – China has a large Muslim population, especially in western China – or worshippined in one of the many underground, illegal, Roman Catholic churches . . . . but heck, this is politics, and the Prez’ base is Evangelical, so he needed to attend a protestant church . . .).  Regardless, it was a powerful and meaningful gesture.

Thank you, Mr. President.