The Rise of the Religious Left -- Why Christianity Isn't Just for Conservatives
Anna Hartnell, Comment Is Free
Belief: It's easy to paint American Christians as right wing free-marketeers -– but the truth is far more complex.
http://www.alternet.org/belief/143332/the_...r_conservatives
Full Version: The Rise of the Religious Left
QUOTE(Snuffysmith @ Oct 19 2009, 09:23 AM) 
The Rise of the Religious Left -- Why Christianity Isn't Just for Conservatives
Anna Hartnell, Comment Is Free
Belief: It's easy to paint American Christians as right wing free-marketeers -– but the truth is far more complex.
http://www.alternet.org/belief/143332/the_...r_conservatives
Anna Hartnell, Comment Is Free
Belief: It's easy to paint American Christians as right wing free-marketeers -– but the truth is far more complex.
http://www.alternet.org/belief/143332/the_...r_conservatives
A humanitarian constitutional democratic republic with an open market economy reject the authority of religious scripture and any person presuming to speak for God in the belief that only God speaks for God. Only the individual person communs with God and this spiritual experience is direct and personal...
Interesting article. Thanks Snuf.
The comment posts are even more interesting.
In essence Christianity if true to the founder's intent is about Love and against Hate. That means being FOR Forgiveness, Tolerance, Kindness, Faith, Charity, Truth-Telling and Wisdom. That means being Anti-Violence (Anti-War), Anti-Cruelty (Anti-Torture), Anti-Lying, Anti-Bigotry, Anti-Greed and Anti-Corruption.
For decades now the entire concept of "Love" has been relegated to something that sounds "Hippish" or "Namby Pamby" by the so-called "Real" Americans or the "manly" Tough-Guys on the Right. Aside from the fact as I've experienced it that those "Tough-Guys" are anything but, and just bullies, there never was anything "Namby-Pamby" about Love.
Those who advocate Hatred and tolerate Lies and Cruelty may be human beings and even citizens but they are not Christians.
The article and the comments suggest that there is a drift even among the evangelical communities to the Left as the "shadow" of the Religious Right fades. I think this is happening as more people search their hearts and see what is really important and not so important in life. And certainly after listening to the hate spewed from among those who were called or dubbed themselves "Christian Leaders" people can finally see what is true and not true regarding what Christ was about.
For one thing He never said anything about "Homosexuality" and nothing about "Abortion" either.
And on that point I want to copy one particularly interesting post from the comment section of the article Snuffy posted the link to on the Abortion issue that is dealt with in Scripture that rarely gets any attention.
The comment is as follows;
"who says "you don't have to protect the unborn" ?
[Report this comment] Posted by: vasumurti on Oct 17, 2009 6:48 AM
Current rating: 2 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Genesis 38:24. Tamar's pregnancy was discovered three months after conception, presumably because it was visible at the time. This was positive proof that she was sexually active. Because she was a widow, without a husband, she was assumed to be a prostitute. Her father-in-law, Judah, ordered that she be burned alive for her crime. If Tamar's fetuses had been considered to have any value whatsoever, her execution would have been delayed until after their birth. There was no condemnation on Judah for deciding to take this action.
Exodus 21:22-24. If two men are fighting and one injures a pregnant woman and the fetus is killed, he shall repay her according to the degree of injury inflicted upon her, and not the fetus.
Author Brian McKinley, a born-again Christian, notes:
"Thus we can see that if the baby is lost, it does not require a death sentence-it is not considered murder. But if the woman is lost, it is considered murder and is punished by death."
Halacha (Jewish Law) defines when a fetus becomes a nephesh (person), a full-fledged human being, when the head emerges from the womb. Before then, the fetus is considered a "partial life". The fetus has great value because it is potentially a human life, it gains full human status after birth only.
Abortions are not permitted on the grounds of genetic imperfections of the fetus. Abortions are permitted to save the mother's life or health. With the exception of some Orthodox authorities, Judaism supports abortion access for women. Each case must be decided individually by a rabbi well-versed in Jewish law.
The Babylonian Talmud (Yevamot 69b) states that: "the embryo is considered to be mere water until the fortieth day." Afterward, it is considered subhuman until it is born. Rashi, the great 12th century commentator on the Bible and the Talmud, states clearly of the fetus 'lav nephesh hu--it is not a person.' The Talmud contains the expression, "the thigh of its mother," i.e., the fetus is deemed to be part and parcel of the pregnant woman's body.
This is grounded in Exodus 21:22. That biblical passage outlines the Mosaic Law in a case where a man is responsible for causing a woman's miscarriage, which kills the fetus. If the woman survives, then the perpetrator has to pay a fine to the woman's husband. If the woman is killed, the perpetrator is also killed. This indicates that the fetus has value, but does not have the status of a person.
There are two additional passages in the Talmud which shed some light on abortion. They imply that the fetus is considered part of its mother: One section states that if a man purchases a cow that is found to be pregnant, then he is owner of both the cow and the fetus. Another section states that if a pregnant woman converts to Judaism, that her conversion also applies to her fetus.
Some Jewish authorities have ruled in specific cases. one case involved a woman who becomes pregnant while nursing a child. Her milk supply would dry up. If the child is allergic to all other forms of nutrition except mother's milk, then it would starve. An abortion would be permitted in this case, a potential person, would be justified to save the life of the child, an actual person.
Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform Judaism are formally opposed to government regulation of abortion. They feel that the decision should rest with the woman, her husband, her doctor and her clergyperson. Some Orthodox authorities agree with this stance. Polls have found up to 90% of American Jews supporting abortion rights.
The New Testament is more permissive than the Old. Paul claims Jesus told him three times, "my grace is sufficient for thee" (II Corinthians 12:8-9), and Christians misinterpret this verse to mean they're free to do as they please--ignoring Jesus' and Paul's other teachings. "
This is further evidence that the entire Abortion debate is a long term political strategy trumped up by the Republican Party as a phony "moral issue" that they never intended to do anything about when they were in power. It is further evidence that the republican party is totally corrupt. (Not that there aren't sincere people on both sides. There are.)
As the sincerely religious people in America see what the Republican party has done to them and their values and done to America as a whole I predict they will lose more support.
Still I think there is a plan among those who see themselves as "Masters of the Universe" to egg on the rabidly desperate in "The Party of the Totally Corrupt"! To not only egg them on but fund books (buy them in bulk) fomenting outright Rebellion under the guise of "A New American Revolution". I'm hearing this kind of talk more and more from Right Wing pundits who are skirting the edge of real sedition.
Just my opinion.
The comment posts are even more interesting.
In essence Christianity if true to the founder's intent is about Love and against Hate. That means being FOR Forgiveness, Tolerance, Kindness, Faith, Charity, Truth-Telling and Wisdom. That means being Anti-Violence (Anti-War), Anti-Cruelty (Anti-Torture), Anti-Lying, Anti-Bigotry, Anti-Greed and Anti-Corruption.
For decades now the entire concept of "Love" has been relegated to something that sounds "Hippish" or "Namby Pamby" by the so-called "Real" Americans or the "manly" Tough-Guys on the Right. Aside from the fact as I've experienced it that those "Tough-Guys" are anything but, and just bullies, there never was anything "Namby-Pamby" about Love.
Those who advocate Hatred and tolerate Lies and Cruelty may be human beings and even citizens but they are not Christians.
The article and the comments suggest that there is a drift even among the evangelical communities to the Left as the "shadow" of the Religious Right fades. I think this is happening as more people search their hearts and see what is really important and not so important in life. And certainly after listening to the hate spewed from among those who were called or dubbed themselves "Christian Leaders" people can finally see what is true and not true regarding what Christ was about.
For one thing He never said anything about "Homosexuality" and nothing about "Abortion" either.
And on that point I want to copy one particularly interesting post from the comment section of the article Snuffy posted the link to on the Abortion issue that is dealt with in Scripture that rarely gets any attention.
The comment is as follows;
"who says "you don't have to protect the unborn" ?
[Report this comment] Posted by: vasumurti on Oct 17, 2009 6:48 AM
Current rating: 2 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Genesis 38:24. Tamar's pregnancy was discovered three months after conception, presumably because it was visible at the time. This was positive proof that she was sexually active. Because she was a widow, without a husband, she was assumed to be a prostitute. Her father-in-law, Judah, ordered that she be burned alive for her crime. If Tamar's fetuses had been considered to have any value whatsoever, her execution would have been delayed until after their birth. There was no condemnation on Judah for deciding to take this action.
Exodus 21:22-24. If two men are fighting and one injures a pregnant woman and the fetus is killed, he shall repay her according to the degree of injury inflicted upon her, and not the fetus.
Author Brian McKinley, a born-again Christian, notes:
"Thus we can see that if the baby is lost, it does not require a death sentence-it is not considered murder. But if the woman is lost, it is considered murder and is punished by death."
Halacha (Jewish Law) defines when a fetus becomes a nephesh (person), a full-fledged human being, when the head emerges from the womb. Before then, the fetus is considered a "partial life". The fetus has great value because it is potentially a human life, it gains full human status after birth only.
Abortions are not permitted on the grounds of genetic imperfections of the fetus. Abortions are permitted to save the mother's life or health. With the exception of some Orthodox authorities, Judaism supports abortion access for women. Each case must be decided individually by a rabbi well-versed in Jewish law.
The Babylonian Talmud (Yevamot 69b) states that: "the embryo is considered to be mere water until the fortieth day." Afterward, it is considered subhuman until it is born. Rashi, the great 12th century commentator on the Bible and the Talmud, states clearly of the fetus 'lav nephesh hu--it is not a person.' The Talmud contains the expression, "the thigh of its mother," i.e., the fetus is deemed to be part and parcel of the pregnant woman's body.
This is grounded in Exodus 21:22. That biblical passage outlines the Mosaic Law in a case where a man is responsible for causing a woman's miscarriage, which kills the fetus. If the woman survives, then the perpetrator has to pay a fine to the woman's husband. If the woman is killed, the perpetrator is also killed. This indicates that the fetus has value, but does not have the status of a person.
There are two additional passages in the Talmud which shed some light on abortion. They imply that the fetus is considered part of its mother: One section states that if a man purchases a cow that is found to be pregnant, then he is owner of both the cow and the fetus. Another section states that if a pregnant woman converts to Judaism, that her conversion also applies to her fetus.
Some Jewish authorities have ruled in specific cases. one case involved a woman who becomes pregnant while nursing a child. Her milk supply would dry up. If the child is allergic to all other forms of nutrition except mother's milk, then it would starve. An abortion would be permitted in this case, a potential person, would be justified to save the life of the child, an actual person.
Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform Judaism are formally opposed to government regulation of abortion. They feel that the decision should rest with the woman, her husband, her doctor and her clergyperson. Some Orthodox authorities agree with this stance. Polls have found up to 90% of American Jews supporting abortion rights.
The New Testament is more permissive than the Old. Paul claims Jesus told him three times, "my grace is sufficient for thee" (II Corinthians 12:8-9), and Christians misinterpret this verse to mean they're free to do as they please--ignoring Jesus' and Paul's other teachings. "
This is further evidence that the entire Abortion debate is a long term political strategy trumped up by the Republican Party as a phony "moral issue" that they never intended to do anything about when they were in power. It is further evidence that the republican party is totally corrupt. (Not that there aren't sincere people on both sides. There are.)
As the sincerely religious people in America see what the Republican party has done to them and their values and done to America as a whole I predict they will lose more support.
Still I think there is a plan among those who see themselves as "Masters of the Universe" to egg on the rabidly desperate in "The Party of the Totally Corrupt"! To not only egg them on but fund books (buy them in bulk) fomenting outright Rebellion under the guise of "A New American Revolution". I'm hearing this kind of talk more and more from Right Wing pundits who are skirting the edge of real sedition.
Just my opinion.
LOVE is a verb...what you DO to facilitate the self-maintainance and growth of another...
QUOTE(rla @ Oct 21 2009, 07:58 AM)
LOVE is a verb...what you DO to facilitate the self-maintainance and growth of another...
I agree. And I'd include "voting" as a "doing" as well. If we love ourselves and our fellow man and we are citizens in a Democracy I'd say that voting for or against certain individuals and/or policies (as represented by "Parties") would apply to the concept of Love as a Verb.
The tenets of the religious throughout history have been invoked by would be rulers to garner support from among the faithful. Presumably to further their Gods' will. Here in America since the vast majority of people define themselves as "Christian" the tenets of Christ would then be an issue.
Certainly Truth and Love are what Christ represents. A certain political party has portrayed itself as representing those who believe in Christ.
I've said for a long time that Truth is paramount if we are to govern ourselves effectively. When a particular Political Party has not only abandoned truth but love as well what do we have left? Take for example Fox News which represents the morality and thinking of the Republican Party. If one watches it for 5 - 10 minutes any time of the day or night you will hear some lie by omission or commission starting with "fair and balanced". Actually it starts off with a lie by claiming to be "News". And I do not think I've ever heard anything that could even vaguely be described as a furtherance of the "self-maintenance and growth" of another . IE; "Love," as a noun or a verb - unless we are talking about "love" for fictitious persons (corporations) or pure Greed and Narcissism (self-"love").
The article may be suggesting that... Maybe, just maybe this is starting to sink in among the sincerely faithful.
Just my opinion.
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