The Rev. Pat Robertson's promise to seek the Republican Presidential nomination if three million followers signed petitions of support for him within a year has summoned up half-forgotten childhood memories. Like Mr. Robertson, I was reared in Virginia, and like many teen-agers of the early 1950's, I attended several Christian revival meetings with my friends.
They were held in a huge tent a few miles south of my hometown, Alexandria. I strongly believe those meetings still provide an important clue to understanding the men and women who form the core of Mr. Robertson's political support.
For some of my classmates, attending a revival and being religiously ''born again'' was a normative rite of passage. For the rest of us, especially for a Jew, it was an opportunity for socializing akin, say, to attending high school football games and drinking milk shakes together.
They were held in a huge tent a few miles south of my hometown, Alexandria. I strongly believe those meetings still provide an important clue to understanding the men and women who form the core of Mr. Robertson's political support.
For some of my classmates, attending a revival and being religiously ''born again'' was a normative rite of passage. For the rest of us, especially for a Jew, it was an opportunity for socializing akin, say, to attending high school football games and drinking milk shakes together.
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