A place to discuss Orange County. Standing in the Pews, The Laity Speak on the Failings of Radical Religion
I need your help. Recent events have culminated in my decision to jump off a cliff. I have no parachute, I have no training, but jump I must. Four events have occurred, which lead me to believe that we, the Democratic Party, could benefit from an idea that has percolated into my head. Trying to remove this idea has been as futile as scrubbing up red wine on a white carpet. Only makes it spread wider and deeper.
My idea is to have you, the Democratic faithful, describe in a series of essays how the radical religious ideas of the right have lead to a failure of faith. From time spent here, I know that there are many among you who are religious, and I know that you have issues with various religious organizations. What I am asking is not easy and what I am proposing is just hard enough to make me crazy. I am asking the willing to spend some serious time dissecting your beliefs, your favorite religious texts, and the words of those who oppose you; then, I ask you to describe why their fanaticism has failed their religion. In each of these "essays" I would ask you to share your personal experiences as they relate to the specific topics you are addressing.
As an example, in Christianity, it is clear that Jesus means for us to care for the poor. That is his prime mission in teaching, yet the radical right care nothing for the poor, as is found in their writings and in their actions.
What will be done with these essays? I can only say that I will work without fail, without ego, without fear, to make sure that these essays appear to the public before the 2006 election. These essays need to stand next to religious vitriol that is funded by the CorporaCons. We must fight lies with truth, deceit with clarity, and hate with love. We must show that our faith, the faith of all progressives, even those that do not partake of specific religions, we must show that our faith is based on compassion, equality, opportunity, and caring.
So, please, email me if you have any interest in joining with me in this task (chucklesthedem@hotmail.com). And, also, please send this email to any and all friends and acquaintances who might be interested in participating.
Thank you.
4 comments:
Admirable effort, keed. Please don't include the Catholic Church in the problem. JP2 went to the wall to prevent the PNAC invasion of Iraq. Official Catholic pronouncements on abortion, since that is what everybody's concerned with, are entirely consistent with official Catholic pronouncements on the Death penalty and war in general.
I believe Teilhard was the second second coming, which I suppose makes me a nutcase or a threat to national security. Obviously, the worlds problems lie in obscne, and anti-Chritian upward distribution and consolidation of wealth.
Hi Anonymous,
Thank you for the post. While I agree that Catholicism went to the wall over the Iraqi war, I believe you will find many Progressives that disagree with Papal doctrine, as it disagrees with biblical doctrine. My personal itch with religion is about poverty, but everyone will have different viewpoints. That is why I think it is important for Progressive voters to make their viewpoint heard.
Although Jesus certainly cared for and about the poor, I disagree that this was His primary mission. His primary mission was to show people what God looked like, and encourage them to abandon their self-seeking ways, and to follow God. While that entails caring for the poor, it does go beyond that.
For instance, His message also encompassed justice, reconciliation and purity of heart. He showed we were sinners, unable to save ourselves, and that He had come to have mercy upon us in our weakness. His basic message was love for all, including, but not limited to, the poor.
OK. There are a fair number of statements from Jesus in the Bible that focus on poverty. You are right that his primary mission was to bring the word of God to life. I won't argue with that. Personally, as his first Beatitude and numerous other statements support, I believe ONE of his primary messages was to care for those who were less fortunate.
To paraphrase, "Whatever you did to the overlooked or ignored, that was me, you did it to me."
In my book, that means if you wage philosophical war against a group, you are waging philosophical war against God.
Let me take this opportunity to say that I am trying to serve as a conduit here for people who have a story to tell. As I clearly state, I am not the person to be doing this, but I am the person who IS doing it. I will leave debates to those more worthy of debating.
Thanks for your interest.
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