The Responsibility of the Christian Left (good article)

[Dob Bole]

The Responsibility of the Christian Left
By Neil Elliott



On my office wall, nestled between contemporary icons by Robert Lenz of Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero and the Jesuit martyrs of the Central American University, hangs an image of Noam Chomsky. It's a framed poster I had prepared years ago when, as a faculty member in theology at a Roman Catholic women's college, I invited Professor Chomsky to speak on the topic “The Responsibility of Intellectuals in a Democratic Society.”

Facing an audience of Midwestern Catholic women, Chomsky stuck to his assigned theme by addressing the legacy of Archbishop Romero and the Salvadoran martyrs. The very brains of the Jesuit academics, he reminded us, were the “weapons” of liberation theology that Ronald Reagan's advisers had declared the greatest threat to U.S. interests in Latin America. The so-called “Santa Fe document” had specified the vital role the church was to play in the “new world order”: protecting the sanctity of “private property and productive capitalism,” and presenting no challenge to the empire's theological axiom that “war, not peace, is the norm of international affairs.” Needless to say, Chomsky saw our responsibilities differently.

http://thewitness.org/agw/elliott120204.html

[NC_Nurse]

1. Excellent article.

Thanks for posting it! :yourock:

[skylarmae]

2. I wonder why they credit Reagan with so much good when

actually the havoc he reeked in Latin America did so much harm and brought so much death. People forget about Iran-Contra. Reagan comes out smelling like a rose instead of dung and Ollie North becomes a super-hero with his own 'faux war hero' show. Go figure.

Oh, I forgot, its taken them 25 years to rig everything (the Repukes)
No wonder our reputation in the world is what it is. We've created so much horror that the good deeds we accomplish pale in comparison.

[Dob Bole]

4. yeah..

Everybody seems to love Reagan. Fortunately, I know about this stuff because I studied 3rd world history under one of the most leftistest people ever. So my chances of being conservative hover around 0.

[RevCheesehead]

3. Great article - thanks!

All I can say is that SOMETHING is getting through.

I was pleasantly shocked when our children's Sunday School teacher showed me a collage the kids made called "The Faces of God." Shocked, because they included photos of Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

I regularly remind people in my sermons that God has enough love for anybody, including OBL and SH; and that we are told to LOVE our enemies and PRAY FOR those who persecute us. This teacher told me she told the kids that we include pictures of EVERYBODY - even those we do not love - because God's love is greater than our own.

It's still amazing to actually see how the power of love can destroy anything, including the power of hatred. These kids are in good hands, and they put me to shame.