Sinners in the hands of an angry GOP

[BR_Parkway]

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/03/29/waronchristians/

A strange mix of dejection and ecstatic expectation pervaded the War on Christians conference. It was organized by Scarborough's group, Vision America, the same outfit that put together last year's Confronting the Judicial War on Faith gathering. At a time when the foot soldiers of the right feel weary and betrayed by the administration they helped put in office, it was meant to rally the base for 2006 by presenting the election in eschatological terms. The energy in the room sometimes felt sluggish, and people were clearly worried about November, forcing their leaders to work all the harder to motivate them for the political crusade.

"Bush has hurt his own troops very badly with what he's done on immigration," Phyllis Schlafly told me in a room outside the hall. "I think he's really destroying his base with his views on bringing in more guest workers." Others complained about Bush's failure to push a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. People were shocked that the government America midwifed in Afghanistan seemed close to executing Christian convert Abdul Rahman. In the face of lassitude, speakers repeatedly cautioned against giving in to disillusionment and apathy. They reminded the audience that they are one judge away from overturning Roe v. Wade. They warned that Christianity is on the verge of being criminalized in America, and they harped on the manifold dangers of the "homosexual agenda."

<snip>

These issues are nothing new on the religious right, of course -- anti-gay and antiabortion politics have been central to the movement for decades. But the sense of crisis among the speakers was especially acute, and the calls to go on the offensive seemed urgent. Many proclaimed that America's very survival is at stake. Some suggested that if the country doesn't purify itself soon, it might not deserve to survive at all.

<snip>

At one point, speaker Herb Titus held up a copy of Kevin Phillips' "American Theocracy," offering it as evidence of the putative war on Christians. It was an audacious move, given that Sara Diamond, the preeminent scholar of the Christian right, reported in a 1998 book that Titus was forced to resign his post as dean of the law school at Pat Robertson's Regent University because he refused to renounce Christian Reconstructionism. Christian Reconstructionism is a theocratic sect that advocates the replacement of civil law with biblical law, including the execution of homosexuals, apostates and women who are unchaste before marriage. Christian Reconstructionists used to be politically radioactive, but a new generation of religious right leaders like Scarborough have embraced them, and some members of today's GOP apparently see no problem associating with them. This does not mean that America is on the verge of theocracy, but it signals an important shift. The language of religious authoritarianism has become at least somewhat politically acceptable.

The whole article needs to be read, not just these snips.

[LostinVA]

1. Interesting article -- thanks for posting n/t

[greekspeak]

2. "Some suggested that if the country doesn't purify itself soon...

it might not deserve to survive at all." Sounds familiar. I think such language can be found in Nazi diatribe, the kind that ended up in camps where human beings that didn't "measure up" were enslaved, tortured, experimented upon, gassed, etc. And again, I say, who is starting this "war?"

[electropop]

6. They're becoming dangerously desperate.

Watch for another surge in right-wing violence.

[gratuitous]

8. I think you're right

And watch as that wave of violence is portrayed as a righteous backlash by a victimized minority fighting for its life. Not for them any media-generated tags like "eco-terrorist." And unlike someone who burns a couple of well-insured SUVs or spray paints graffiti on house underlayment which will soon be covered by siding, the violent spasm out of the religious right will kill, maim and hurt people physically. And this new crop of Eric Rudolphs and Timothy McVeighs will again be lionized in certain circles.

[C_U_L8R]

3. What a bunch of whiners

bitching that no one likes em...

awww poor poor shitheads
what do they expect
when all they do is spew hate
and try to take away other
people's rights ????

They're not christians at all.. I can't imagine anyone less so..
they're more like angry spitting cockroaches
and they reap EXACTLY what they sow.

A pox upon them... or at least a can of Raid.

[ninkasi]

4. These are some scary people

Sadly, in all of their rantings and ravings about America's problems, they do not seem to consider the huge gap in wealth between the rich and poor, the disappearing jobs, the people who lack medical insurance, the people mired in poverty, children who go hungry, or any of the other things Jesus preached about. They are willing to crucify gays, and condemn women to have children regardless of the circumstances, so other than dictating to women and gays, they seem to have to message other than hate.

Consider their fondness for Tom Delay, one of the most corrupt politicians ever to serve in Congress. He has the ethics of a hyena, yet they embrace him simply because of his views on gay marriage and abortion. They seem to be willing to overlook the law breaking and greed of this loathsome man, simply because he echos their hateful message. I hope that rational Americans, after having endured the Bush presidency, will wake up and see that these "moral" politicians, all Republicans, are a disgrace, and a party of hate.

[AussieDave]

5. They can see that the majority of the country isn't buying their schtick

so they trot out the "war/persecution" theme - the only persecution is the paranoid delusions going on in their fevered imaginations. I don't think these loons would know the "Word of God" if it walked up behind them and stuck a finger up its collective ass.

They're as bad as the Taliban - putting their own warped interpretation to Christianity - they're about as Christian as Osama and as dumb as a box of rocks.

[AndyA]

7. There's a double standard the GOP adheres to

In the GOP world, everyone must conform to their view of how things should be. However, once you've been admitted to the GOP's inner sanctum, the rules change. You can then make the rules. And it's perfectly OK to make them up as you go along, once you're accepted as one of the GOP elite.

In the name of Christianity, you can lie, cheat, steal, have adulterous affairs, divorce, condemn others, discriminate, perform crimes against humanity, and that's OK. Because you're making the rules.

You lie to people and tell them you're a Christian. You don't have to do any of the things Christians do, you just say you're one and that's good enough. The fact that The Bible, the book that Christians use to guide their lives and beliefs, is for the most part ignored by the GOP elite is also made an exception. Apparently they have a different version of The Bible that the rest of us don't know about. It gives them, and them alone, special instructions on being a good Christian.

You condemn any and all who do not agree with you or support you. You label them as terrorists, sinners, morally corrupt individuals who are condemned to go to hell for all eternity. In reality, the condemned are none of these things, but they are labeled that way anyway, and the Christian flock, wary of being thrown into one of these groups, tags along blindly.

You make the people believe that you are answering to a higher calling. You are protecting them from evil - terrorists, people who want to force their agenda on the populace at large, etc. The fact that the GOP elite are viewed as terrorists from around most of the world is not factored in to this. The fact that gay people only want the same rights and considerations as anyone else is also not a consideration. They condemn these things, even though as they do they are doing much worse.

This is why in the minds of the GOP Christians, it's perfectly OK for them to judge and condemn others. They can break every one of the Ten Commandments and still go to heaven, but if you don't agree with them and support them, you are a sinner and will go to hell.

Why mainstream Christians allow this to happen is anyone's guess. In a normal world, under normal circumstances Christian leaders would come together and denounce this behavior as anti-Christian, and as going against the teachings of The Bible and of Jesus Christ. But for some reason, they remain silent. Perhaps out of fear of being labeled a terrorist, who hates America.

The Bible has warned us of these GOP Christians. We have been advised to beware of a wolf in sheep's clothing, and were told of false prophets. But it does no good. The things that the GOP Christians do are so horrific people cannot fathom the evil, so they choose to believe it cannot be so. In spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the mainstream Christians allow the deceit and destruction to continue.

It is not too late to save America, but people must start protecting their rights and liberties, they must start questioning the authority figures who are not abiding by the laws of the land and the teachings of The Bible. They must stand up for what they know in their own hearts to be right. When that happens, and there's a growing movement that indicates it is indeed happening, we will see the evil doers among us be exposed.

Exposing the evil for what it is will be the first step toward restoring America's values, integrity, and leadership in the world.

[sinkingfeeling]

10. These folks are self-righteous. And I do believe that Jesus had

something to say about them.

Luke 18:10-14 (spoken by Jesus)
Two men went up into the temple to pray;
the one a Pharisee, and the other a tax-collector.

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself,
“God, I thank you that I am not as other men are,
“extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax-collector.
“I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.”

And the tax collector, standing afar off,
would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven,
but smote upon his breast, saying,
“God be merciful to me, a sinner.”

I tell you, the tax collector went down to his house justified
rather than the Pharisee:
for every one that exalts himself shall be brought low;
and he that humbles himself shall be exalted

[drduffy]

9. the christian right reflects an array of

psychopathologies. It really is no different from a cult except for the number of people involved. None of these folks have anything positive to offer to anybody. Hatred, fear, poison.

[BR_Parkway]

15. But if I started the Church of Zeus, put up billboards that He was

watching, and tried to recruit others to my religion - they'd have me locked up in a loonybin.

The War on Christians is actually a backlash against any critism of them.

[yellowcanine]

11. The Christian Reconstructionists are downright scary. "The Handmaid's

Tale" would become reality if they were in charge.

[CTyankee]

12. Channeling ole Jonathan Edwards, lol!

There's a college at Yale called Jonathan Edwards (Yale has colleges in the manner of Oxford and Cambridge).

[Bake]

13. Here's what I'm waiting for:

"GOPers in the hands of an angry God!"

"Religious Right in the hands of an angry God." (may be the same thing).

Complete with all of Edwards' imagery, except LITERAL.

Bake

[depakid]

14. Just read Kevin Phillips' "American Theocracy,"

and it's far from a "war." It's simply an (exhaustive) expose' in historical context.

If anything, he's far too kind.