Ted Cruz Religion
Ted Cruz - Religion
What
is the religion of Ted Cruz? Is Ted Cruz a born-again Christian?Senator Ted Cruz of Texas is reputed to be a conservative Christian but what he has said about his religion, as well as what he has not said, and his actions raise more questions than provide answers about his religion.
Ted Cruz was born in Canada to an American mother and a Cuban refugee father, who converted from the Roman Catholic religion when Ted Cruz was eight years old and now serves as a pastor and director of Purifying Fire Ministries, founded by Suzanne Hinn, the wife of Benny Hinn (see Ted Cruz Background).
After attending Christian high schools in Texas, Princeton University and Harvard Law School, Ted Cruz clerked for judges for two years and practiced law for two years before joining George W. Bush's presidential campaign (1999-2000).
In 2001, he married Heidi Nelson, a Seventh Day Adventist and fellow aide to George W. Bush. Ted Cruz then served as Associate Deputy U.S. Attorney General until 2003, as Texas' Solicitor General for the next five years, and as a corporate lawyer for the subsequent four years before winning his 2012 U.S. Senate seat, endorsed by Rick Santorum and Sarah Palin, who is now distancing herself from him.
Is Ted Cruz a born-again Christian?
Ted Cruz attends Houston's First Baptist Church today and identifies himself as a Southern Baptist. When asked about his faith by a Christian reporter in 2013, however, he gave a theologically correct but impersonal reply:
"At the end of the day, faith is not organized religion; it's not going to a church. It is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior." - Ted Cruz, Christian Broadcasting Network, February 20, 2013
When pressed by others about his faith, he has spoken about his father's conversion out of Roman Catholicism and his wife's Seventh Day Adventist parents and brother serving as missionaries in Africa and Haiti, respectively, but he has yet to speak about his personal conversion.
In 2016, Ted Cruz took questions from a Christian audience at a campaign event in Iowa. When a pastor asked him whom he intends to serve first and foremost - whether he would put his allegiance to God first or his allegiance to America first - if he were to become president, Ted Cruz replied:
"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord... I'm a Christian first, I'm an American second, I'm a conservative third, and I'm a Republican fourth... Before we launched [our campaign], we brought our senior team together in my pastor's office at the church. Heidi and I are both members of First Baptist Church in Houston. Our pastor is Gregg Matte, who is a wonderful, wonderful friend. And we spent two hours in prayer. We had my extended family. We had all the senior campaign team. We spent two hours in prayer to launch the campaign... As we went around the room, each of us shared something, each of us lifted up different prayers. I remember our campaign chairman, who is a dear friend, recounted a story from the Civil War, that one of Abraham Lincoln's generals went to him in the darkest days of the Civil War and said, 'Mr. President, are you praying that God is on our side?' And Lincoln is reported to have responded, 'No, I am not. I'm praying that we are on God's side.' And that was very much the prayer that [my campaign chairman] offered... And this is our prayer from the beginning, that we are not seeking God's hand. Our prayer has not been, 'God, let us win.' Our prayer has been, 'God, let the people of America see your face. Let this campaign bring glory to you. If it is His will that we win, then we will win.'" - Ted Cruz, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, January 25, 2016
Fine words, which raise five questions for Ted Cruz.
1. Does going to a fundraiser at the home of a prominent homosexual couple in New York City to seek campaign donations from their homosexual friends and telling them that confronting homosexual marriage isn't your priority bring glory to God (see Bible verses about Homosexuality)?
2. Does mass mailing deceptive flyers that pretend to be from the government and that make false accusations bring glory to the Lord (see Lord, Liar or Lunatic)?
3. Does falsely claiming during a caucus that a rival candidate is dropping out and asking his supporters to support you instead bring glory to God (see Justice of God)?
4. Should a campaign that seeks to bring glory to God exemplify honesty and integrity and rely on God, or rely on political strategists and their tricks?
5. If you are truly born-again and believe God determines who wins elections, why do you shy away from sharing your Christian testimony?
When Ted Cruz responds to the questions above and below, his answers will be shared on this page (see Ted Cruz Ratings and Ted Cruz Platform).
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2. When and how did you become a Christian?
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3. How did becoming a Christian change you?
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4. How would you describe your relationship with Jesus today?
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5. Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God?
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6. Do you believe Jesus is God?
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7. Do you believe Jesus died on the cross?
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8. Do you believe Jesus Rose from the dead?
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9. Do you believe Jesus Ascended to heaven?
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10. Do you believe Jesus will return someday?
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11. Which person, if any, do you believe represents Jesus on earth until He returns?
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12. By what criterion do you believe people go to heaven?
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13. By what criterion do you believe people Go To Hell?
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14. In the past 12 months, how much time have you spent in prayer daily?
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15. When you pray for our nation, what do you pray for?
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16. In the past 12 months, how much Bible-reading have you averaged daily?
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17. What are your 2-3 favorite Bible verses and why?
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18. In the past 12 months, how many non-Christians have you told Why Jesus Died?
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19. In the past 12 months, about how many church services have you attended?
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20. Which church do you attend most frequently?
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21. Which gift(s) has the Holy Spirit given you and what fruit(s) have they borne?
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22. Why would Jesus want you to be our next president?
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23. What experiences have prepared you to be our next president?
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