The Saddleback Church “civil forum” on Saturday struck the right balance between church and state and is a worthy model for pastors and individual Christians who wish to dabble in the politics of the kingdom of this world. Warren, who announced in advance that he serves another kingdom, also made it clear he is friends with both men.

I have been amused at a few on the far-right who denounced Warren because he didn’t live down to their expectations. The Pharisees had the same attitude concerning Jesus. — They wondered how Jesus could keep company with “sinners” when, if He were from God, he would naturally want to associate with the fundamentalists of His day.

Warren avoided “gotcha” questions and by doing so was able to extract more insight and information about the world view of the two candidates than most journalists would have a prayer of doing.

By not seeming to favor either candidate and by asking mostly the same questions of each candidate, he performed a useful service to voters, to his country and even to that other kingdom from which all authority comes.

I would like to see more of these forums and fewer of the phony “debates,” which are not debates at all. Perhaps future election cycles will produce more of them. If they do, Rick Warren will have created a kind of “purpose driven” politics.