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McCain May Pray For Pastors to Zip It

Hagee not talking, but another high-profile preacher may be in news soon

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted May 8, 2008 9:33 PM CDT

(Newser) – John McCain may be heading for his own preacher problems, but at least one of his problematic pastors is clamming up for now, Newsweek reports. John Hagee, who called Hurricane Katrina “the judgment of God,” and Catholicism a “false cult system,” recently answered a request for comment by saying, “It's better that I don't.”

McCain is walking a tightrope with Hagee; the senator condemned the remarks on New Orleans but has not renounced his endorsement. But there’s another pastor, and perhaps another scandal a-brewing: Rod Parsley, McCain’s self-described “spiritual guide,” has preached that America’s historical duty is to see Islam—a “false religion” and “the greatest religious enemy of our civilization and the world”—destroyed, Mother Jones reports.

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McCain with Rev. John Hagee, a televangelist from Cornerstone Church, in San Antonio, Texas. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

Hagee addresses a crowd of his followers and Israeli supporters at a rally at the Jerusalem convention center, Sunday, April 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)

Senator John McCain makes a joke while speaking with host Jon Stewart during a taping of The Daily Show Wednesday. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

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McCain's "Spiritual Guide" Wants America to Destroy Islam:Spread this video, digg it: http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/McCain_s_Spiritual_Guide_Wants_America_to_Destroy_IslamYou may have heard of Rev. John Hagee, the McCain supporter who said God created Hurricane Katrina to punish New Orleans for its homosexual "sins." Well now meet Rev. Rod Parsley, the televangelist megachurch pastor from Ohio who hates Islam. According to David Corn of Mother Jones, Parsley has called on Christians to wage war against... (bravenewfilms)

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McCain May Pray For Pastors to Zip It