Dobson on culture war: "We have lost all those battles"

One of the leaders of the Christian right acknowledges that, for now, the movement's causes have largely been defeated.

Published April 10, 2009 6:50PM (EDT)

This week has seen quite a bit of discussion about the state of religion in the U.S., and the power that Christianity -- especially conservative Christianity -- has in the country's politics. Now, from the other side of the pond, there's a bit of a scoop regarding how one of the most prominent leaders of the Christian right views his movement's efforts to date.

In the Telegraph, Alex Spillius writes that the religious right has conceded defeat in the culture wars. That's probably an overstatment; certainly, there's not much optimism coming from that side of the debate, but the movement is by no means retreating. Still, James Dobson, who stepped down recently as chairman of his organization, Focus on the Family, has at the very least conceded a long string of losses.

"We tried to defend the unborn child, the dignity of the family, but it was a holding action,” Dobson said in a farewell speech to staff, according to Spillius. “We are awash in evil and the battle is still to be waged. We are right now in the most discouraging period of that long conflict. Humanly speaking, we can say we have lost all those battles."


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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