It always seems to follow, that when any local, regional, national or global catastrophe occurs, it is immediately followed by a number of conservative Christians leaders interpreting the incident as a direct message from the Almighty condemning some aspect of society. Usually the event is closely linked to whatever the “hot button” issue is at the time, whether it’s same sex marriage, abortion, etc. Although the response has become expected, it never ceases to amaze me that these people who call themselves Christians are so quick in their condemnation and their willingness to link unrelated events in the manner of some biblical prophet.
This practice, by certain acknowledged Christian leaders, is not only reprehensible but is clearly dangerous to the stability and well being of society. These Christian leaders are a group of, primarily white males, who are gifted with their ability of charismatic rhetoric, moving their followers emotively and “brainwashing” them into a state of blind obedience to the doctrines, dogma and practices of an extreme form of religious Christian philosophy predicated on a belief of a select few. These charismatic leaders advocate a set of moral imperatives that they claim are G-d given, taken from the King James version of the Christian Bible and must be strictly adhered to as they interpret their true meaning. However, these leaders and this movement is not just content with attempting absolute control over their committed followers, but want to extend it to society in general, creating for all intents and purposes, a religious/political society based on their unique interpretation of morality and correct action; in short a theocracy.
It has always been my understanding that the teachings of Christianity was directed to the adherent on how to live within a sinful and corrupt world without becoming a part of it, with the secular world representing the domain of the dark forces. Over the course of time that simple principle has changed to include a movement to craft a society that complies with a set of rigid moral principles that if not complied to will result in serious consequences. To me, this seems contrary to the principles and commitment to what the Christ advocated. So the logical question is why does this movement strive to change society and force everyone into compliance with their belief system?
For the outside observer, like me, it is all about the grabbing of secular power and wealth. During the 1970s the powerful conservative Christian leadership emerged from behind the curtains to become a voice for what they believed to be the disenfranchised political majority of Americans. One must remember that this was coming on the heels of the 1960s and early 1970s where the nation had been in political turmoil over the war in Vietnam, the restructuring of American society and the Civil Rights Movement. The emergence of the strong charismatic characters like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, put the Christian social conservative movement front and center and in a position to be king makers; which they did with the 1980 election of Ronald Reagan. Since that time, the Christian political movement has never looked back. Shortsighted conservative politicians came to the Christian Right to gain votes, but sold their souls in the process.
It now has come to the point that the Christian Right has created an “acid test” for politicians and the politicians must pass before they can gain the support of the social conservatives. In the recent Republican primaries and caucuses, the potential candidates were stumbling all over themselves attempting to establish who had the most conservative credentials. I find it a bit humorous that Mitt Romney came out on top, not because he was the most social conservative, but he was seen as being the most electable, to unseat the incumbent, Barrack Obama.
People should be fearful of the intent of the Christian Right and the elimination of one of our most fundamental democratic principles, freedom. When I speak of freedom, I am speaking of freedom of thought, free speech, freedom of choice and freedom to pursue one’s happiness. The Christian Right has proven to be the antithesis to the principles of our founders. This minority wants to severely restrict our freedoms.
What is the Christian Right all about; it is secular money and power under the guise of religion and the use of any means possible to obtain it. This is precisely why the leadership of the Christian Right makes such claims that horrific random events are G-d’s punishment of society. It is all about scaring the hell out of the vulnerable to keep them in compliance and never questioning.
Often you’ll hear Christian leaders refer to the shepherd and his flock. That is a true representation of the Christian Right; the shepherd in the form of the charismatic preacher and his followers, the sheep. Just like sheep they must be led and protected, because sheep don’t think for themselves. It is time for this nation to wake up and stop this insidious slide into theocracy. Sheep must learn to think for him or herself or continually face shearing by their leadership.
The Christian Right is not what this nation is all about. Whether it is political tyranny or religious tyranny, it’s still tyranny.
In Revelation 22:13, Jesus describes Himself as: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." And in 22:16, "I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.” In Exodus 3:14, "God said to Moses, “I am who I am..." In my view it is clear that God has explained himself as all of existence. But individuals with little flexibility of mind have relegated God to an easily-digestible compartmentalization that inhibits people (in my opinion) from perceiving and exploration the nature of God. These so-called "Christians" do their "flocks" no service by deflecting them from the deeper reflection that can lead to an un-rigid understanding of God.
Me thinks you've been watching a bit too much of the programing on Angel, Angel 2, and The Bible Network! Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson?!?! Get with the times, Joel Osteen is where it's at today! "The Christian Right has proven to be the antithesis to the principles of our founders. This minority wants to severely restrict our freedoms." How so exactly? I hope you weren't duped by one of those late night tv guys tying to sell you a Miracle Prayer Cloth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-uhfXc_EA0
My intent is not to demonize Christianity, but to point our how a segment of those calling themselves "true Christians" are posing a very real threat to our society. Don't you remember when 9/11 occurred that Falwell got on the tube and claimed we were being punished by G-d? Aurora is only the latest incident where this occurs. As far as extremists go, the left has their fair share, but I can't see that there is a widespread following such as there is with the Christian Fundamentalist Movement. The extreme Left doesn't have the kind of funding that the extreme Christian Right enjoys. Look at all the corporate sponsors the Christian Right has. Chic-fl-a is only the latest one to hit the media.
My statement about "The Christian Right has proven to be the antithesis to the principles of our founders. This minority wants to severely restrict our freedoms." I'll give you one good example. The efforts of the Christian Right curtailed valuable research that was being gained from embryonic stem cells. They are continuously fighting against science, secular humanism and the implementation of such things as taking personal responsibility regarding birth control; and, this only represents a minor tip of the iceberg. Taking the wraps off, it is clear it's all about money and power. I would hope that it isn't the case, but my view as a non-Christian minority, makes this movement pretty threatening who don't share their views or philosophies.
As far as extremists go, the left has their fair share, YOU NAILED THAT ONE.President Obama is one of them .As to the funding of any group it is always tied to the numbers. Obama has every left wing nut in hollywood sending him money. Chick-fil-a is demonized for doing NOTHING wrong by the left. They hold the same belief President Obama held when he ran for President. Why isnt he an evil bastard? He just evolved a few weeks back for purely political reasons. The united state has never been further away from the so called Theocracy you fear. The much greater threat is Obama . He is a left wing nut hell bend on destroying the very foundations of the country. YOU SEE MY POINT is its all perspective and we still have 1 person 1 vote (atleast if your a conservative ). You see the fringe as the threat and I see the very liberal CORE as the threat. Yours is the far bigger and funded movement than the fringe right wing bible thumper. We certainly couldnt have you be the referee or me. We have our own perspectives .
Even if they have a acid test views. that's fine. You certainly have them yourself. You paint christian belief as if its something seemingly toxic.I guess that's an acid test for a liberal. If I did that to gays you would have a COW! It is your perspective that is lacking!
skinnyDUDE, when you are so far to the right the center appears to be far left. I am clearly disappointed that neither Obama or the Republicans adopted the recommendations of the Simpson - Bowles Commission. The liberals should be so lucky to have the organization that the conservatives have put together. The political right has out organized, out thought, out planned and out communicated the political left. The Christian Right has been able to create a steady source of revenues and can clearly claim a following of a 25 million. Show me any leftist organization that has that kind of following.
We're punishing ourselves, via the consequences of our bad decisions and our gullibility. I was born in the wrong time - five generations from now, the world's religions will be defunct, and I'd love to be there to say "good riddance."
Like I said you lack perspective. I am with no right wing group . And now YOU have class envy and even organizational envy. You want a good organization you need two things. People who believe in a common cause that are will to donate more than they take . Perhaps the left needs a better plan than making everyone a victim . As to Obama .....He's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. That might be true but fortunately he is THE LEADER of the left so doesn't have to have any real core values. He merely has to have enough victims to help . Fortunatelly for you he is growing the victim base quite a bit .His record speaks for itself. He is the most liberal President EVER! SO your base of victims will never be satisfied. You dont have Imagine the obvious. You built the beast and now need to feed it . Don't whine to me about it.
This country, out of any, championed the right of individuals to freely speak of religion. I find that this freedom of speech leads to much contention among various religions, which, yes, I believe Satan encourages, yet I would never want to see that freedom taken away. I will only speak for myself and say that I am no blindly led sheep. I have simply decided that the safety of following the shepherd beats being prey to the wolves. By the way, if you are using God's name respectfully you shouldn't be afraid to type the whole thing.
Those who closely follow their religious leaders lead don't think they are being misled or that they are simple sheep being taken advantage of. However, when their money and resources are drained away to support these leaders and they power brokering, then that is clearly the shearing of the sheep. When one looks at these charismatic movements, then I tend to follow the money and what is done with it. I remember Reverend Ike on TV claiming that G-d told him he needed a Cadillac. I don't have any problems with people supporting their religions, but I do have a problem when those same organizations turn around and get involved in secular policy making. BTW, I follow the long held Jewish tradition of substituting for the name of the Ruler of the Universe. The other permissible printed names include El Shadi, Elohim, Adonai, and YHVH; but for the purpose of writing I prefer G-d to an audience of gentiles.
I'll believe a god is punishing us when a Tsunami about to crush Haiti, Indonesia, or Japan disappears then suddenly reappears in Wisconsin. I can certainly see how taking religious extremism too far is a bad thing, like any other belief system. Belief systems (political, national, religious) are abused to control people, which often takes advantage of hardship and relies upon fear. The widespread continued hardship and rising fear in this country is likely to continue to fuel that effect. However, it doesn't negate the positive influence the comfort of faith in any belief system can exert.
It seems to me that you might be the one that is attempting to 'infuse the populace with fear'... http://shorewood.patch.com/blog_posts/why-ayn-rand-objectivism-the-extreme-right-and-paul-ryan-all-have-it-wrong-for-america "Those of us who are Progressives and Progressive Conservatives must engage against the dark and evil forces of the Randian Right." "Regardless of their looks, their personalities, their personal fortunes, and their fine educations, the adherence of politicians such as Paul Ryan and the others to Objectivism makes them a HUGE danger to this Nation." "America’s democratic republic is being threatened by these Randians"
Another example of how the Christian "Right" is impeding social advancement in our country.
I just heard that the world was going to come to an end because of cow flatulence.