But sometimes it's not what they say that is important, but what they don't say. And sometimes what they don't say speaks volumes for their potential hypocrisy.
What two issues are Christian culture warriors known for jumping on? Homosexuality and Abortion. Both Dobson and Mohler have spent considerable time arguing that "activist judges" have hijacked the US constitution and passed laws that go against God's will. In this, the Roe vs Wade decision is an important point. As a result, they have both given relatively unqualified support for the nomination of Harriet Miers to the bench of the Supreme Court - based on their belief that Miers as an evangelical Christian will uphold Christian values as one of the nation's most important judges.
I would like to know, however, what Dobson and Mohler have said about the instances of torture inflicted upon prisoners-of-war by US troops during the war on Terrorism. I would like to know their thoughts on the imprisonment without trial of those "illegal combatants" in Guantanamo Bay.
Americans generally have very diverse thoughts on these two subjects - but for an Evangelical the issue is a no brainer. A person who loves God and who adheres to Sola scriptura cannot, in good conscience, support an administration that encourages the torture of prisoners of war - they can't. Moreover, Evangelical Christians have a great love of justice - so why is it that these Evangelical leaders have not spoken out against the detention without trial of these suspects in Cuba?
The reason is simple - their goals are not biblical nor god-honouring, but essentially political.
There is every reason to criticise the Evangelical George Bush for misleading the world about Iraq, and for his administration's abysmal stance on prisoner abuse. As an evangelical myself, I cannot fathom how a person regenerate of the Holy Spirit can order the invasion of a foreign nation - with all the suffering that it has caused to millions of people - without any real plan on how to bring that nation to peace and prosperity. I certainly can't fathom how a born-again Christian can defend the use of torture.
But Dobson, Mohler and others are conveniently silent about this. For them, it's all about defeating the godless liberals and bringing America back under God's rule. It's all about mom and apple pie. It's not about Iraqi children being blown apart by cluster bombs.
This selective stance overtly favours the incumbent party and the Bush administration. Because the GOP is the party of the godly, criticism - especially from the culture warriors from Colarado Springs - is not helpful. Loyalty to the party line is, in the practice of these evangelical leaders, more important than loyalty to the Bible.
And that, essentially, disqualifies them from being true evangelicals.
So while Dobson and Mohler speak loudly about the decline in moral values in American society, is it any wonder that they are increasingly seen as simplistic party hacks, drinking the Republican Kool-Aid and telling people to stop thinking and trust that the President is doing the right thing?
True evangelicals will speak out about sin - but they will do so without fear or favour for any party or, for that matter, any president who claims to be an evangelical. They must be seen to be fair in their assertions and loving in their engagement with the world. They must engender respect from their opponents for their honesty and their courage, refusing to use the tools of the enemy.
Who are these true evangelical leaders? No one that I know of.
From the One Salient Overlord Department
© 2005 Neil McKenzie Cameron, http://one-salient-oversight.blogspot.com/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.
5 comments:
True evangelicals will speak out about sin
True evangelicals "pick and choose" the sins they talk about. What I have noticed about the evangelicals, is that they speak from the old testament. You never hear them spouting what Jesus taught.
Neil,
What I notice about Mohler and Dobson is the way that they, and many conservative American Evangelicals like them, reduce issues of gospel and culture to advocating for policies of the conservative "Right" in America and fighting "liberals."
What is noticable about churches in the USA compared with churches in your own country, or NZ for that matter, is that as a "political liberal" I can worship together with a "political conservative." Even though he might think my politics are right off in many ways, he generally wouldn't question that I had a commitment to articulating and expressing a biblical worldview.
I'm convinced the far Right *wants* a Civil War - they've failed to 'take America by storm' the way they've been barking about for decades and now they're going the political route. The Republican party's elite, to their undying dishonor, has embraced this evil plan and aligned their neo-con agenda to the Christers.
We're quickly running out of time - the blantant, shameless parade of abuse of Justice, disregard for 'the least of us' and the endless falsehoods threaten to overwhelm our system of government - with the willing and active help of corporate media.
All the while, glazed-eye religious zombies keep telling us that they 'love us' and just want to 'save us'.
Yeah. Right. They'll stand outside the wire of the death camps and cheer each blast of gunfire and then sing hymns as the bulldozers cover the mass graves.
These people are INSANE and have to be stopped. They make the Nazis look like Mr. Rogers.
Doog,
I appreciate that this is how you might feel about the current situation. However, please believe at least from me that I would certainly stand against this would it happen - and still call myself a true Evangelical.
Paul,
You're right about Christians in OZ and NZ being less politically conservative. Nevertheless if you look at Sydney, you'll find that the "Bible Belt" is pretty much synonymous with safe Liberal seats.
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