I love oranges. They are pretty. They taste good. And they are even good for you. Since my hometown is Lakeland, Florida (World Citrus Capital), I also have an appreciation for the economic impact of oranges. Oranges create jobs.

But when about the composition of an orange, the specific nutritional elements contained within, or the best irrigation and environment in which oranges grow and thrive, I would plead ignorance. Even though I have walked and worked often in orange groves, even though my home was surrounded by citrus, in fact, my knowledge of oranges is superficial and merely observational.

So, too, is Obama's knowledge of faith.

For two weeks, I have been struggling to process President Obama's Cairo speech to the Muslim world. That speech reflects Obama's insipid comprehension of faith, a vapidness that is now becoming a part of so many of his speeches on matters of morals and ethics..

Were I to make grand pronouncements on oranges, anyone who knows anything about citrus would soon find me out to be a poser. Likewise, Obama's continuing pronouncements on matters of faith are reflecting poorly on his actual knowledge of it. Moreover, he is revealing the shallowness of his own personal faith, and his own lack of real formation or development. Instead of a robust, fully formed faith, what Obama is revealing is a warmed-over mush of sentimentality and nice feelings. As if all religion could be reduced merely to one or two rules (e.g., Be kind to one another). While we can afford for millions of humans to walk around with that misconception, it is not acceptable for the President of the United States to be making grand pronouncements and policy decisions about faith when he has no understanding of the issue. My ignorance of oranges is embarrassing; Obama's ignorance of faith is dangerous.

Three cases in point. And in all three I will give the prescription for Mr. Obama's spiritual and intellectual development in order to grow in faith rather than mire in mush.

Case 1: Islam and Religious History

In the Cairo speech to Muslims, President Obama says that he has encountered Muslims on three continents. I have encountered oranges on four. Does that give me any real knowledge of oranges? Not really. Again, I merely like them. I KNOW nothing substantive about them.

Obama demonstrates a rather superficial, if not simplistic, understanding of Islam and history. For example, he says, “I also know civilization's debt to Islam. It was Islam...that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe's Renaissance and Enlightenment.” Offering meaningful support (beyond his questionable declaration that Islam gave us pens) is required for such a bold statement. Obama either is woefully educated or he is intentionally deceptive. The claim that Islam carried the light of learning through so many centuries is merely wrong.

Worse, however, is Obama's declaration that, “...throughout history, Islam has demonstrated through words and deeds the possibilities of religious tolerance and racial equality. ...Islam has a proud tradition of tolerance. We see it in the history of Andalusia and Cordoba during the Inquisition.”

Is he serious? Can he cite any real example besides this to support Islam's alleged “proud tradition of tolerance?” Any other solid examples in 13 centuries of Islamic history? More importantly, does Obama even know how Islam found its way into Andalusia and Cordoba in the first place? Through violent conquest from the east. Not through peaceful conversion. It arrived, as it always does, through the very imperialism with which Obama seeks to paint the west but fails to recognize in Islam itself.

PRESCRIPTION: For starters, he should begin with an excellent book to READ history rather than merely absorb what the politically correct, Harvard culture wants him to believe. A thorough history of imperialism and Islam's bloody role in that would be a good place to begin. Islamic Imperialism, by Efraim Karsh, and published by the Yale Press, will work nicely.

For example: The birth of Islam...was inextricably linked with the creation of a world empire and its universalism was inherently imperialist. It did not distinguish between temporal and religious powers, which were combined in the person of Mohammed, who derived his authority directly from Allah, and acted at one and the same time as head of state and head of [religion]. This allowed the prophet to cloak his political ambitions with a religoius aura and to channel Islam's energies into... aggressive and [violent expansion]...

Case 2: Life.

President Obama's shortcomings in arriving at any kind of decision that supports life are well-known and well-chronicled. I will merely remind you of his famous quote when pushed into a corner. “Look, I got two daughters — 9 years old and 6 years old,” he said. “I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.” And therein lies a key revelation into the malformation of his faith.

Obama's view of life and its dignity can be summarized as: Babies, children, and human lives are meaningless unless we choose to give them meaning. Children may be a blessing, or they may be a punishment. They have no inherent value in and of themselves. The unborn are subordinate to the needs and desires of the already born. As a result, unborn human life is disposable. It is not a natural outflowing of love; life is not a gift from God but rather a gift chosen by doctors or mothers; and humans are not really created in the image of God. I.e., humans are nice, but they are not all that. Continued...