Giles Fraser: When the US Right was not so religious

Evangelical Christians and the Republican Party may seem perfect together, but it was not always thus, writes Giles Fraser, Team Rector of Putney, in the UK.

“Every good Christian should line up and kick Jerry Falwell’s ass” was [Barry Goldwater's] reaction to the founder of the Moral Majority. Goldwater famously defended abortion. “I don’t have any respect for the religious Right,” he said. “There is no place in this country for practising religion in politics. That goes for Falwell, Robertson, and all the rest of these political preachers. They are a detriment to the country.”