Is Warped Christianity Threatening Our Democracy?

[Joanne98]

Cross Posted at Legal Schnauzer

A misguided view of Christianity is chipping away at fundamental American principles, according to a new book about a shadowy religious/political organization in Washington, D.C.

Jeff Sharlet , in the new book C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy, shows how the group known as "The Family" influences foreign policy, the military, and other key elements of our government.

Based on personal experience, I would say a C Street-like mindset has invaded our courtrooms and corrupted our justice system at all levels. We also suspect that many boardrooms, and even universities, are infected with a values system that gives elites exalted status over everyday folks. In the end, this bastardized form of religion might pose a greater threat to America than Osama bin Laden ever could.


This is Sharlet's second book about C Street. In 2008, he wrote The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. In an interview about his new book, with Scott Horton of Harper's, Sharlet provides some frightening insight into the C Street mindset. Much of it is based on a relatively obscure passage from the Bible, Acts 9:15: "This man is my chosen instrument to take my name" before the Gentiles and their kings."

The original passage was about the Apostle Paul. But members of The Family evidently think it applies to them. Horton asks, "How do the men who gather at C Street interpret this passage?" Replies Sharlet:

The clue is in the emphasis the Family puts on those last two words. "Their kings" is italicized in the document from which I quote it in the book, "Eight Core Aspects of the vision and methods." It was distributed to potential new members of the Family, the organization behind C Street, at the 2010 National Prayer Breakfast, the Family's only public event. Every year, the Family uses American political leaders--they refer to them as "bait"--to attract foreign leaders they want to evangelize. The focus is on leaders, or "kings." The Family twists Acts 9:15 into a justification for a complete inversion of Christianity, a faith that, whatever else one thinks of it, was born of a radically egalitarian premise. To the C Streeters, Christianity is all about elites. They pay lip service to helping the poor, but they believe the best way to help the weak is to help the strong.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Is-Warped-Christianity-Thr-by-Roger-Shuler-101115-681.html

[cleanhippie]

1. "A misguided view of christianity" is the view all christians have...

of other christians that do not follow the same view that they themselves hold, right?

Don't Baptists think that Methodists have a "misguided" view? Don't evangelicals think that Catholics have a "misguided" view?

Isn't one group think that the other groups having a "misguided" view THE problem?


As with all organizations (and christianity IS an organization), the most politically powerful control the "view". Anyone who is not in line with that has a "misguided view."

[nxylas]

2. Absolutely, and I'm a Christian

I believe that the pernicious "prosperity gospel" is a tool for giving divine sanction to the narrative that poverty is a moral failing and that immense wealth is a sign of grace.

[NeoGreen]

3. It is not just the 'warped' version... n/t

[The Doctor.]

8. Actually, it is.

To understand true Christianity is to understand 2 things here;

1) The majority of self-styled Christians are anything but.

2) True Christianity is only a threat to fear, greed, and tyranny.

The shame of it is that so many have hijacked the Faith and turned it into justification for their petty fears and actions. They have given Christianity a bad name. Christ would be very disappointed with them.

[Hydra]

21. The original poster has a point

As you correctly point out, most "Christians" are anything but

but...

When you have enough people in the group doing it wrong, what they're doing properly defines the group, despite original intention.

[The Doctor.]

24. Sucks, don't it? n/t

[Hydra]

25. Very much so

I like the values of the New Testament, sans the later puritanical stuff. Jesus was a great guy...but that whole thing about believing in him as a get out of jail free card has gone WAY too far.

[The Doctor.]

4. Yes.

This is as dangerous to Democracy as anything... if not more.

[thereismore]

5. Yes. Warped or straight, yes. nt

[thereismore]

6. Trickle down Christianity!!!

They pay lip service to helping the poor, but they believe the best way to help the weak is to help the strong.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[patrice]

7. Is Sam Brownback governor of Kansas? + 2 religious activist groups you may be interested in

I know people who have seen this group first hand in Colorado Springs (ex-hometown of Erik Prince) and they are filthy rich. Note the second to the last, most recent, person they knighted. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Golden_Spur

Check out the list of References on this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Society_for_the_Defense_of_Tradition,_Family_and_Property

[ProgressiveProfessor]

9. Self delete

[DirkGently]

10. "Our gov't has been inflitrated by an insane pseudo-Xtian cult" sounds like a loopy conspiracy

theory, which it is. Unfortunately, this one is a documented fact. And if you look at the words and actions of a lot of our political leaders of late, it rings even more true.

This a nothing short of a Cult of Greed. Somewhere a Scientology leader is jealous.

[Hydra]

22. Conspiracy theories have a bad habit of having real roots

Truth is stranger than fiction.

[Fearless]

11. When you have a competing ideology...

Wherever it comes from, you will have a sharpening of views for some and a dilution of views for others.

[Kablooie]

12. Wow. Talk about taking a quote out of context.

It is bizarre how they can take one single sentence out of the whole bible and say that this is the key to everything in your life.
And they have to find some twisted, nonsensical interpretation of in order to make it something they can use.

It boggles the mind.
Hell, my mind has been boggled so much in recent years that I'm surprised it hasn't been boggled out.
But it still boggles.

[DCKit]

13. It's what they do.

As far as I can tell, the only part of the Constitution they love is the second amendment - and the first, but only when it applies to their speech.

They do the same with the Bible and would have stoned President Clinton over a BJ, yet not a whisper about Republican shenanigans.

[nxylas]

18. Yep, they're very selective in their reading of both Bible and Constitution

If they weren't then no religion, warped or otherwise, could be a threat to American democracy, since the Founding Fathers were very clear on the need to keep religion in the private sphere.

[BlueMTexpat]

14. Yes. Just yes.

Any "warped" religion is a threat to democracy. Amen.

[swilton]

15. If we need to ask this

we already know the answer.

[Festivito]

16. Whether religions or chambers of commerce, it is still the love of money that corrupts.

Always has been, always will be.

[Diclotican]

17. Joanne98

Joanne98

I think if you want to learn how to be a "christian", you need to read the bible for yourself, and with that I mean, every page, every paragraf, every word of the bible. And not just read it, but also try to understand the constext the book was written, and to understand the world the bible was living in.. From the old Testamente, to the New Testamente, you have to read what the Bible really say, about wrong and right, And maybe trying to study what really the meaning of it all was when it was written.. That means you have to be educated about a large field, who is both interesting, and also clearly confrontational many times.. And also try to understand what lord want you to understand... Not let others tell you want to belive, but to get the word for yourself

I had ha uncle, who was christian, and who tried his best to "educate" us in the bible when I and my brother was younger. In our young ages we might not be as interesting in the bible, but I have at least, as older I get, been more intersting in the whole affair and I try to eductate myself, by reading the bible, but also to understand the context.. And I try in my fable way, to be a good person, and to live by my word. Not a easy task I admit, in fact it is difficult to do it.. But I try at least...

And many have distorded the whole consept of christianity, that is so true.. It is sad when man is distording the word of the Lord I would say... But then I am just a single man, who try to live what I teatch... And lying is one of the bad sins I understand.. And if you distord the lords word, you are really LYING... And ready for some nasty punishment when the time is right for it...

The bible if full of what become of big leaders, who was pushing it to thin... But also a lot of promises if we do right... And that is something many forget when they are putning things out of context..

Diclotican

[Hestia]

19. True about immersing yourself into those times - lord means "mister" just a man,

no more no less. The word doesn't have the same meaning or context as we use the word today. Kinda changes things, huh?

If we don't see the larger picture, these people will keep trying to turning our country into a theocracy. It also justification of everything done to us, living out here in the real world. We are all trailer trash in their eyes and can't be trusted to even handle our checking accounts, so they have to charge us fees and late penalties for our own good to show us how irresponsible we are. And on with credit cards and mortgages, etc.

These are the real people we are fighting against, not just Republican or even Democratic. These are the ones that need to be rooted out of our government. This is the insanity that has rule our government for over 30 years. These people are the reason why we can't even have a decent conversation on anything. We don't feel the way they feel, so we are to trounced upon and ignored.

Kudos to Jeff Sharlett and Rachel Maddow for keeping these criminals in the public eye.

[Diclotican]

20. Hestia

Hestia

True, words have not the same context, or the same meaning today, as it had just a 100 year ago.. And a lot of the Bible is more than 2000 year ago. Old Testament goes back maybe 2500-3000 year ago, and in a language who was far different from everything who is spokable today, not to say a living language of today.. The name who was used by the old bible, are not known by many today, I belive fewer than 10.000 is speaking the language today, for the most part, newer languages have taken root in the whole of that area....

This pepole you are pointing to, is pepole who either do not know to mutch about what they speak about, or they do, but can not care less about what become of the truth, they might try to invoce a "greater spirit" but they are harming everyone if they want to have a theocracy.. And in the pursuit of that theocracy, they want to tramble on everything some else are caring for, even killing when their belife is not the mainstream.. Like bombing and killing abort clinics et all. Even tho I have my objections, I would never try to enforce MY objections, by killing anyone. It is up to eatch peopole to deside about that I would say... And it is still legal in many country to do abort, it is part of the laws, and should be accepted as sutch.. Hate crimes is never the answer to this type of things.. And it IS hate crime to kill anyone..

The insanity who have been the rule in your government for more than 30 year, is not easy to controll, not to say roote out of your government. Its like an illness who had been festered in a body for long time, As longer the illness is, the longer the cure for the illness have to take, to clean the body of the illness... And it is ironic to a degree, that US was going the same way, with more and more extrem religious fanatics, as the Islamic Republic of Iran was doing it 30 year ago. And the public in Iran want to get out of the sacles of extreme fanatic today. But USA is more and more going down that road, by electing political leaders, whoes world wiew is far away from most peopole, and who I doubt, reading a lot of treads about it here on DU, is anything near what the founding fathers of the 1700s wanted US to become.. US was after all, one of the first nations to have a difference between the STATE and the Shurch, and it have allways been celebrated as one of the real tools that have made US what it is today. A multi-cultural country, where everyone can settle, to live by their own belif, as long as it dosen't directly bother everyone elses belif and pursuit of happyness...

Collectively, as humans, we allmoust got it with mr Bush who was "voted" into office in 2000.. or shall I dear say desided by the suprime Cort in Washington DC in a 5-4 desistion.. And after that US have really going down hill. wasting billions, and billions, and billions of war not nessesary, just so the clown could deside that he was the mighty one on top of the power.. He was mad, and the administration he was head of, was likewice mad.. And today a lot of men/woman who are likely mad are in power where they can make a lot more hell than ever before.. I feel sad for US, as I feel sorry for all of us, becouse when US goes Insane, we all have to pay for it...

Diclotican

[cyr330]

23. How about Idiotic Christianity?

I'm NOT implying that all Christians are idiots, but I certainly find fundies & other loons (especially the repig type)simply beyond the pale. They are a menace to any democratic society.