The Christophobic Thugs?
Carlos printable version print page     Bookmark and Share
Tue Apr 18, 2006 at 11:21:26 PM EST
As the Christian Left becomes more visible and vocal, the attempt to discredit it also becomes louder. The Christian Right cannot tolerate a situation where there are multiple Christian inspired political visions. By working so hard to damage the reputation of the Christian Left, perhaps this will, in turn, hurt the Christian Right's own reputation and slow their dream of political control.
Two recent examples of how the Christian Right responds to the growing power of the Christian Left are Townhall columnist Doug Giles' attack on liberal Christians and Gary DeMar's magazine, Biblical Worldview, attack on Jimmy Carter.

From Doug Giles:

For the "Christian" to lean politically to the left means that he must blow off huge chunks of the Bible and replace the scripture with the make-believe notions of postmodernism's malleable "Christ." Only after torturing the scripture can the Christian then fit liberalism into his supposed relationship with God. [  ]

Liberalism has been hijacked by bizarre special-interest thugs who defy the Word of God and believe that the Bible has no place in public life (except maybe in a museum where people can look at it from time to time). [   ]

If the Christophobic thugs had it their way, Christians would be relegated to a marginalized spiritual ghetto on the sidelines of life. [    ]

Consider this, Christian pastor and Christian lay person looking to vote for the ludicrous left: the secular Mafioso's intent is to make your ministerial life difficult, your evangelistic work taxing and your voice minimized. And good luck, pastor and church committee, in trying to buy property and get zoning with the anti-Christian libs at the helm. [   ]

The Democratic Party's liberalism has degenerated over the last 40-50 years in regard to its view of Christianity and Christian rights. This party, which formerly embraced and protected our nation's great Christian heritage and teachings, no longer does so. Thus, today the Christian is between a rock and a hard place: he can either be a Christian or a liberal--but he cannot be both.

From Biblical Worldview's review of Jimmy Carter's recent book:

Jimmy Carter, America's 39th President (1977-1980), unequivocally has revealed himself to be an "imposter" Christian--joining ranks with the "men of depraved minds" that the Apostle Paul warns about in 2 Timothy Chapter 3. [   ]

Consensus is Carter's highest virtue, not Truth.The Apostle Paul warns us in 2 Timothy about men "having a form of godliness
but denying its power" and exhorts us to "Have nothing to do with them" (v 5). [   ]

Readers will seek in vain for Carter to discover, much less propose, authentic Christian solutions to today's moral crises. [   ]

Carter promotes "a different gospel--which is really no gospel at all" (Gal 1:7). This "gospel" preaches tolerance with no regard for Truth. [   ]

The most alarming maneuver is his moral equivalency of "Christian Fundamentalism" (his words) with militant Islam and other evil institutions like Imperial Japan's prisoner-of-war torture camps during World War II. Carter summarizes that all of these "more intense forms of fundamentalism" have these in common: "rigidity, domination, and exclusion." (pp 34-35). Carter deftly casts such terms in an extremely negative context, but do they
not describe Truth as well?

* Truth is rigid because it never changes. * Truth dominates because it declares what is always good and what is always evil. * Truth excludes because those who reject Christ will be separated from God for eternity, just as light always casts aside darkness.

If, as Carter proposes, we are to reject all things rigid, dominating, and exclusive, then where does that leave Truth?"They exchanged the truth of God for a lie," Paul writes regarding the outcome of "men who suppress the truth...their thinking
became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened...although they claimed to be wise, they became fools" (Rom 1:18-25).

In Our Endangered Values, Carter erroneously blames (wouldn't Carter call it "judging"?) Christians who follow the whole counsel of God ("fundamentalists") as the source of our cultural and political problems. Jude 19 provides the true assessment. Regarding those who reject God's Truth, Jude concludes, "These are the men who divide you." In Our Endangered Values, Carter attempts to offer a prescription to heal our divided nation and world. In truth, Carter's medicine is deadly poison.




Display:
Bad idea to attack Carter - he has serious Christian cred for his Habitat for Humanity work. People who thought he was a bad or mediocre president respect him for his charitable work.

by NancyP on Tue Apr 18, 2006 at 11:44:05 PM EST

I agree, NancyP. Maybe by seeing reviews like these more people will question the fundamentalist bias that is not too below the surface of the more finely tuned public image of the Christian Right.

by Carlos on Wed Apr 19, 2006 at 12:26:50 AM EST

The Religious Right's leadership lives by prohibitions designed to stifle religious dissent because they believe that will also help stfifle political dissent.

The Religious Left emphasizes the Golden Rule; the Religious Right lives by what Hillel called "commentary."

The Religious Right leadership is denigrating faith by using it to further unrestrained self-interest; the Religious Left uses it to make the world a better place.

The Religious Right is exclusionary; the Religious Left is inclusionary.

The Religious Right believes that faith should be "unapologetically dogmatic;" the Religious Left believes that faith is how one treats their fellow human being.

The Religious Right  movement is funded by Rev. Moon, the Scaife and Bradley Foundations; the Religious Left is a grassroots movement.

And the Religious Right believes that the Religious Left is the movemnt devoid of true Christian values?

by Frank Cocozzelli on Wed Apr 19, 2006 at 07:44:35 AM EST


Nice summary, Frank. Speaking of religious dissent, some Southern Baptists are composing a resolution on Baptist dissent to be proposed at this summer's annual convention.

by Carlos on Wed Apr 19, 2006 at 11:54:28 AM EST


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