Is anyone else appalled by this ......

[RedEarth]

Frist Set to Use Religious Stage on Judicial Issue
By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK

ASHINGTON, April 14 - As the Senate heads toward a showdown over the rules governing judicial confirmations, Senator Bill Frist, the majority leader, has agreed to join a handful of prominent Christian conservatives in a telecast portraying Democrats as "against people of faith" for blocking President Bush's nominees.

Fliers for the telecast, organized by the Family Research Council and scheduled to originate at a Kentucky megachurch the evening of April 24, call the day "Justice Sunday" and depict a young man holding a Bible in one hand and a gavel in the other. The flier does not name participants, but under the heading "the filibuster against people of faith," it reads: "The filibuster was once abused to protect racial bias, and it is now being used against people of faith."

Organizers say they hope to reach more than a million people by distributing the telecast to churches around the country, over the Internet and over Christian television and radio networks and stations.

Dr. Frist's spokesman said the senator's speech in the telecast would reflect his previous remarks on judicial appointments. In the past he has consistently balanced a determination "not to yield" on the president's nominees with appeals to the Democrats for compromise. He has distanced himself from the statements of others like the House majority leader, Tom DeLay, who have attacked the courts, saying they are too liberal, "run amok" or are hostile to Christianity.

The telecast, however, will put Dr. Frist in a very different context. Asked about Dr. Frist's participation in an event describing the filibuster "as against people of faith," his spokesman, Bob Stevenson, did not answer the question directly.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/15/politics/15judges.html?ei=5094&en=0b42a55582cd9ab5&hp=&ex=1113624000&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print&position=



Christianity is being hijacked by the Christian right and as a person of faith(Methodist/DOC for 55 yrs)it makes me absolutely sick. I've seen this fundamentalist movement creep along over the last 15-20 years and now it has become mainstream. It makes me wonder what will our country will be like 10 or 15 years from now.

[RevCheesehead]

1. That is greatly disturbing.

I'll check some of my sources (like United Methodist News Service), and keep an eye out for anything posted.

I'm wondering if Jim Wallis has anything to say about this as well.

On the other hand, this situation could very well work to our advantage. Some of these conservatives need a big-time slap-down. And they seem to forget the power of the Seniors. First they threaten their Social Security...now they're defining who is and is not religious.

Is Frist committing political suicide? Could be....

[GOPBasher]

2. This is disgusting.

I get so sick of this shit.

[Telly Savalas]

3. Let 'em have their rope such that they may hang themselves, I say.

If Democrats aren't able to stop such sleazy and obvious exploitation of religion with a flick of the finger, then it's pretty clear that the U.S. electorate is incapable of supporting a democracy.

[regnaD kciN]

6. We HAVE to fight this...

Sorry to be pessimistic, but it matters little how much "rope" we given them vis-a-vis the electorate. Right now, it's down to whether we can convince another four Republicans to jump ship and vote against Frist on this matter, SOON. If we can't, they'll kill the filibuster, and there's nothing we can do to stop it. By the time the supposedly-outraged electorate can go to the polls again, the far right will have had the chance to fill not only lots of lower-court seats, but possibly another two or three Supreme Court vacancies, at least one of which will likely be one of the "liberal" judges. You can be sure that the Repugs will fill these seats not only with the most right-wing people they can find, but with the youngest...so that, even if/when the Democrats regain control of government, there will be nothing they can do to change the composition of the court for decades, while the G.O.P. justices write their own ideology into "precedent" that will be the law of the land.

[realFedUp]

4. Yes

and it would be a good thing if
sane voices spoke out now....
especially liberal Christians.

[RevCheesehead]

5. On Ron Reagan's show (MSNBC),

they had a good spokesperson for the religious left. I didn't catch her name, but she really spoke out about how offensive Frist's comments were to her and other like-minded people. She even mentioned "not only are there liberal Christians, there are many of us who choose to be Democrats precisely because of our faith."

[Maat]

7. I like that quote.

But maybe they are going to go too far and 'hang themselves,' so-to-speak.

I think that fair-minded people are going to realize that these people don't represent them in any way, and perhaps a few will make a tough decision and move to a congregation that is pro-human-rights. Maybe they will speak up.

Or maybe I'm just an idealist who still believes in the 'tooth fairy.'

[RevCheesehead]

8. Well, here's what I'm going to do on Sunday about it:

The lectionary text is John 10:1-10.

"Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of the stranger."

Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So again Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I AM the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."

What I'm planning on doing is addressing the comment made by "a politician" who is claiming to speak with the voice of the shepherd. This false shepherd is telling the sheep that one political party is the enemy, the party of "anti-sheep." There are many frightened sheep, who hear this voice, and start running to the gate, because they don't want to be attacked by wolves. But Jesus stands at the gate, as the one who knows his sheep. And when the sheep calm down, they will hear HIS voice, and realize that only the true Shepherd stands at the gate, keeping them safe, and opening it for all those sheep that have come to him for safe-keeping.

I think it will preach.

[realFedUp]

9. alright!

false shepherds....love it.