One of the more painful things I have had to read in the past few weeks has been the growing chorus of panic and dismay amongst Christian Bloggers who are going crazy over the prospect of a Barack Obama/Democrat victory.I have had to remove one Christian blogger from my bookmarks because the standard of his writing now befits that of a propaganda apparatchik. Lee Grady, the editor for Charisma magazine, has also gone ballistic over Obama and has also found himself removed from my bookmarks.
Look - it's not that supporting McCain/Palin and the Republicans is the issue. The issue is when Obama/Biden and the Democrats become agents of the devil who will destroy America.
There's also the sources that these bloggers use that is concerning. When reporting events they tend to link to Drudge, Worldnet daily, neo-con commentators, Townhall and other "reliable" sources of information. This is not to say that "the MSM" are wonderfully accurate - but the fact is that "the MSM" depends upon more readers and watchers and there is a greater element of responsible veracity in "the MSM" than there is among Right-wing rumour sources.
I honestly think many of these Christian bloggers are bearing false witness by repeating the lies that they have heard without checking them properly. Moreover, they speak so badly of Obama that they come close to Jesus' warning about those who speak evil of others being just as bad as murderers.
This is not to say, of course, that it is somehow wrong for Christians to be critical of politicians. A casual perusal of this blog will show you my opinion of George W. Bush, John Howard and others. By contrast to the "Obama is evil" Christian bloggers, I have spoken kindly about John McCain and tried to examine his religious beliefs more objectively. In regards to Sarah Palin, I gave as objective a summary of her background at first, and then spent considerable time examining and then debunking many of the smears on her character that appeared soon after her VP nomination. Yet I do not think the McCain/Palin ticket is the better solution.
In short, I have not demonised McCain/Palin in the same way that Christian bloggers have demonised Barack Obama.
Moreover, I have to say that I am starting to get concerned about where this will lead. Polls suggest a much greater chance of an Obama win than a McCain win, which means that a situation might arise in which a great number of angry, terrified Christians are faced with an Obama White House and a Pelosi/Reid Congress.
What will these Christians do? Hopefully they will settle down, look back at what they believed in the lead up to his victory and then begin to exmaine their beliefs more objectively. Unfortunately, given the propensity of American Christians to be convinced that fiction is fact (eg Harry Potter and Satanism) I don't think this is going to happen. I'm worried, though, that violence may occur in response to an Obama/Reid/Pelosi victory as Christians take up the arms guaranteed by the constitution, refuse to pay taxes and begin overt resistance to the world of evil that they believe exists in the form of Obama and the Democrats.
I'm an Evangelical Christian. That means I do believe in the spirit world, including the existence of Satan. At the moment, though, I would guess that Satan is hiding more behind the actions of out of control American Christians than behind Barack Obama. If violence does ensue after the election - violence backed by and instigated by Christians - it will be the worst thing to happen to the church since the Spanish Inquisition. This time, however, at least I am expecting it.
Dear God, I do not pray for an Obama victory. Neither do I pray for a McCain victory. I pray that whomever you have sovereignly chosen to occupy the White House will be a man whose actions and policies make America and the world a better and more peaceful place. I pray that your church maintain its faith in you through this process and not be tempted by the excesses of any political belief they may hold, whether that be "politically conservative" or "progressive" in nature. Give your church a desire for personal holiness, an enthusiasm for your Word, the Bible, and a focus upon Christ on the cross, the empty tomb and the prospect of his eventual return. Amen.
14 comments:
You're right but you've only covered half of it. If Obama loses there have been hints of prospective violence, too, from some of his more rabid followers. Violence with a racial aspect to it. If I weren't a Christian I might be frightened, particularly if I lived in a part of the country with a history of urban violence (Detroit, Philly, Newark, certain parts of LA, etc.). Scary times.
The very first things that angels say when they come to men is, "Fear not." The only thing we are told to fear is God, and frankly I have my ideas of what that fear actually is. Physical hate and dread are not it, I am pretty sure.
The worst thing about the religious wing of the Republicans, whatever you might call it, is that its dependence on fear inevitably moves the people further away from the divine.
I hold out a lot of hope for Obama because he appears to understand the need and have the ability to sooth and to not awaken fear. To speak quietly, to move slow and surely, like quieting a terrified child.
The "Publicans have a lot to answer for, in all the worlds.
Noni
Noni - I don't hold out a lot of hope for either McCain or Obama. I believe for anyone to stake their hope on either one of those two, one must make a conscious decision to move away from the Divine. They are in for a deep and disturbing disappointment - in this world.
Obama and McCain are politicians, after all. As someone who has been the "beneficiary" of the policies of both Republicans and Democrats, this idea that the Democrats are something new and good and the Republicans are all evil is absurd.
No man Republican or Democrat will ever make this world OK.
Only Jesus has The Power and Authority To bring about that change.
KJV
Your prayer is very sound OSO. As you know I unsubscribed from a Christian newsletter here because they demanded we pray for McCain/Palin victory.
I said we should be praying for Obama's safety with the hatred that is being generated with the kind of statements and the blogs I have seen.
For these blogs to have any truth then Obama must be the biggest liar around.
Then Today NSW newspaper SMH was mocking Palin as an early earth creationist and a believer in the second coming in her lifetime.
Why couldn't she have said she believes in Creation and that the Lord will come again sometime.
Has anyone asked Obama where he stands on such matters?
That's precisely why I stopped writing about it.
bil said: I believe for anyone to stake their hope on either one of those two, one must make a conscious decision to move away from the Divine...
Now you're getting a little carried away, and mixing up your worlds.
Electing a president is complicated because you are actually making two choices -- first, you are hiring a guy to do a job, and you have every damn reason and responsibility to pick a competent person whose aims are consistent with the overall good of the nation and then, that achieved, also more-or-less consistent with your own preferences. This isn't rocket science. It's just a job, though an important one, you are not winnowing the populace to find a messiah.
Secondly, the elected person does become a figurehead of the nation, in the best sense of that word. "The land and the king are one," as it is said. The new leader ought to realize this, and be able to act in accord with this status, be obedient to it.
Currently our group is reading "A Preface to Paradise Lost" by C.S. Lewis, with a pertinent quote: "this quality will be understood by anyone who really understands the meaning of the Middle English word solempne. this means something different... from modern English solemn.
Like solemn, it implies the opposite of what is familiar, free and easy, or ordinary. But unlike solemn it does not suggest gloom, oppression, or austerity.... above all, you must be rid of that hideous idea, fruit of a widespread in inferiority complex, that pomp, on the proper occasions, has any connection with a vanity or self conceit.
A celebrant approaching the altar, a princess led out by the king to dance a minuet, a general officer on a ceremonial parade... all of these wear unusual clothes and move with calculated dignity. This does not mean that they are vain, but that they are obedient...
...the modern habit of doing ceremonial things unceremoniously is no proof of humility; rather it proves the offender's inability to forget himself in the rite, and his readiness to spoil for everyone else the proper pleasure of ritual."
Obama manifestly understands this -- Bush patently did not.
Noni
Noni - Who's getting carried away? You seemed to be saying there is justification for people to put their hope for the divine in a presidential candidate. You also implied there is something spiritually distinctive or marvelous to Obama.
I disagreed. How am I getting carried away?
Selecting a president is not that difficult. Have you ever done it? This is my ninth presidential election. It's not mystical, or spiritual nor does it have any elements of the divine to it.
You seemed to be saying there is justification for people to put their hope for the divine in a presidential candidate.
Bil, I see I did not make myself clear.
A national leader has two jobs. One is to run the nation, and that's hard enough. The other is to understand that, whatever they may be in themselves, they are also willy nilly the representative, the "self" of the nation. This doesn't require them to be any more sacred or mystical than you or I, but it does require that the person recognize this part of the job.
Bush giving an impromptu shoulder-rub to Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, is a jawdropping example of a person completely unaware of this element of his position. This would be the sort of thing one would expect of an untutored child or a mentally disabled adult, not the leader of a world nation.
Obama, along with several hundred thousand or probably millions of Americans, understands this. McCain probably does. Bush did not.
Noni
Has anyone asked Obama where he stands on such matters?
Great question, Ron. My biggest problem with this campaign is that the press has displayed what I referred to elsewhere as a "curious lack of curiosity" regarding Obama's background, credentials and beliefs.
Not that his religious beliefs would ordinarily have any bearing, but he attended for 20 years the church of an ugly, race-baiting, foul-mouthed preacher and the press doesn't seem to care. Obama's obvious lying about his attendance was accepted at face value.
Yet, Sarah Palin is getting criticized heavily for a church she only attended for a short while and has not attended for years.
I'm not saying let up on Sarah Palin, I'm saying the press is not doing its job in accurately informing the public on all the candidates. It's vaunted skepticism is one-sided.
Noni, that was not at all the meaning I got from your original comments.
Thanks for the clarification.
As my husband stood before our congregation this morning and said, "I encourage you all to make an educated vote ..." the Southern Baptist heads were a nodding. Then he followed up with, "Yet, I also want to say that I think it goes against the teachings of Christ for us to live in fear or to spread rumors that instill fear in others."
Boy, howdy, did those heads stop a noddin'! When he insinuated that God doesn't belong to one political party, I'm pretty sure some of them just fell over.
Some of them assume that their behavior is scriptural. It's painful to change your default thinking.
Give that pastor a hug for me, Christine! (Love your button!)
Our minister preached five or six sermons just about elections and politics, never giving any hint as to which person or party he favored, but impressing upon us the need to take the election seriously, study, think and vote.
Noni
Gosh... I hope I'm not one of those Christian bloggers that you found fault with!
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