New Location

You can now find this blog at http://2cor814.wordpress.com.  It's just so much more refined over there.

Arizona Republicans Float "God Oath" as HS Graduation Requirement

The right-wing march toward an outright false-Christianity despotism continues:

A group of Arizona politicians — all Republicans, of course — have proposed a law (House Bill 2467) requiring public high school students to recite the following oath in order to graduate:

I, _______, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge these duties; So help me God. 

When I read things like this, I often wonder just where these individuals found their faith.  At a Church led by a false prophet; the proverbial wolf disguised as a lamb?  From an intolerant grandparent who used religion as a crutch?  In a graffiti-covered dumpster behind a run-down gas station?

Consider the following words from Christ himself, recorded in the book of Matthew.  Quite obviously their theological education is lacking.

“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil." (Matt 5:33-37, ESV, 2007)

Men and women who propose laws forcing adherence to a Judeo-Christian ethic clearly have no scriptural basis for their actions.  At least not a scriptural basis rooted in Christianity.  The entire focus of Jesus' message is based upon the free-will choice we have as individuals.  We can either accept or reject his freedoms and salvation.  The choice is of no one's making but our own.

HuffPo: Why Evangelicals Hate Jesus

"Hate" in a figurative, highly inflamatory-to-get-page-views sense, of course:

It is perhaps one of the strangest, most dumb-founding ironies in contemporary American culture. Evangelical Christians, who most fiercely proclaim to have a personal relationship with Christ, who most confidently declare their belief that the Bible is the inerrant word of God, who go to church on a regular basis, pray daily, listen to Christian music, and place God and His Only Begotten Son at the center of their lives, are simultaneously the very people most likely to reject his teachings and despise his radical message.

This is a article I would highly reccomend reading, if anything for the phraseology "Terminator Jesus."  Instant classic.  The article finishes thusly:

Of course, conservative Americans have every right to support corporate greed, militarism, gun possession, and the death penalty, and to oppose welfare, food stamps, health care for those in need, etc. -- it is just strange and contradictory when they claim these positions as somehow "Christian." They aren't. 

An author after my own heart.

Forgiveness as an Excuse

One of Newt's former wives will reveal on ABC's Nightline tonight that he wanted an "open" marriage.  (See the story at Huff Po)  The response from the GOP field?  "Eh, God'll forgive him."  The hypocricy is sickening.  The party of family values and traditional marriage accepts a man who has not only been married three times but, as it's now revealed, wanted to sleep around during the second?

It is quite clear that those claiming to vote their "values" and "morals" have neither.  Their goal is not to legislate the Christian faith, nor is it to ensure a just nation founded on Biblical precepts.  It is about voting for what they believe to be their faith.  That is, voting for the comfortable charade they put on as a faith; voting for the golden calf they've named Jesus.

Christianity is about charity, real forgiveness, and doing what's best for society as a whole.  The GOP embodies none of that.  Rather, it embodies a mere blasphemous charade of those tenets, wearing them as a mask to obtain the support of willing dupes who'd rather believe a lie than embrace the truth.  The fact that they're prepared to accept Newt Gingrich as their president, despite his blatant disregard for the beliefs they claim to hold, is ample evidence of such.

Preaching Today

FYI - I'll be preaching at Centerville Baptist Fellowship, meeting at the Lakeview Elementary Cafeteria, at 10am today, and at Hope Baptist Fellowship, meeting at the Corydon bowling alley, at 1pm. Feel free to stop in!

It Was Bound to Happen

Wednesday nights, Denise and I host a Bible study at our home.  Toward the end of last week's, the topic of conversation turned to politics; specifically, who our new state representatives would be following the upcoming district realignments.  A few names were brought up, and I mentioned how I had met all the individuals in question and found them to be warm individuals.  One participant asked where I had been to meet three of our elected officials.  I replied I that I had met them at "last month's meeting," referring to the Democratic central planning committee meeting held each month.
"You're a member of the planning committee?" They asked.
"I attend the meetings," I answered.
"Well I've never seen you there." They responded with an odd look on their face.  Here it comes, I thought.
"I go to the meetings...."
"Republican?"
"Nope..." I smiled.  The room fell silent as the proverbial pin dropped. Then the question was asked.
"How can you be a Christian and a Democrat?"
This a question I'm not unaccustomed to, nor am I unprepared for it.  I laughed, and gave my standard "there's more to politics than gay marriage and abortion" response.  Given that we host a Southern Baptist Bible study, it was a response that took many by surprise.  It led to a quite spirited debate about the purpose of government and our elected leaders.  All in all it went as good as could be expected, with some even agreeing on some very left-of-center views, such as the need for a living wage standard.

Amen

The only possible reason I can see for God telling all these people to run for office is so we can see how hypocritical and ignorant they are.