Ted Cruz, who won the Republican Iowa caucuses on Monday, decided to run for president after “six months” of prayer, culminating in a two-hour session on bended knee during which the Texas Senator was given the nod.
Pastor Rafael Cruz, the Senator’s father, made the revelation to a religious TV station last week.
Speaking of the fateful prayer session, Cruz senior said: “It was as if there was a presence of the Holy Spirit in the room and we all were at awe and Ted, all that came out of his mouth, he said, ‘Here am I Lord, use me. Here am I Lord, I surrender to whatever Your will for my life is.’ And it was at that time that he felt a peace about running for president of the United States.”
Like his son, Rafael is not a fan of the Obama administration. And like his son, Rafael’s views can stray to the conspiratorial. For example, Pastor Cruz has stated that gun control measures are a precursor to the imposition of a dictatorship.
He has also argued that the use of the word “gay” for LGBT people is a plot to make homosexuality socially acceptable through its association with happiness. He also believes President Obama is a Muslim and that atheism leads to sexual abuse.
During his victory speech on Monday, Cruz reached for Scripture, thanking God for the win.
"God bless the great state of Iowa," he said. "Let me first of all say, to God be the glory."
In recent months, Cruz's rival Donald Trump has displayed his own fidelity to faith, noting that the Bible is the only book better than his own "The Art Of The Deal."
