ALARM BELLS! HERE'S WHAT WE ARE UP AGAINST AS BIBLE-BELIEVING AMERICANS

Bruce Lawrence writes in his book, excerpted by the blogger Mudrake, Defenders of God: The Fundamentalist Revolt Against the Modern Age:

"Many, perhaps most members of the Christian Right feel that it is one thing to permit dissidents to live in peace, quite another to say that any set of values is just as good, or just as functional, as any other set."

Exactly right. We don't believe all sets of values are equally as good or equally as functional nor something to promote in public education and policy. E.G. polygamy, female circumcision and the Planned Parenthood theme: "sexual exploration is OK for unwed teens as long as they use condoms." The proof that all values are not equal is abundant in the results in peoples' lives. In the character of individuals and nations.

Christianity cultivates humaneness --compassion--kindness --responsibility --ethical behavior--morality--and CIVILITY in discourse. When we lapse, or sin, we know better and have repenting to do and amends to make. Yes, Chrsitians are blind sometimes, by the beam in their eyes --and they are known to yield to temptation same as unbelievers --but we believe there is a standard, the Word of God, to challenge us and to remind us of the right path. We know we must not justify our own sins.

But here follows the most dangerous conclusion for Christians stated by Mudrake himself:

"If Bruce Lawrence's expression is widely held, then indeed American democracy cannot abide such a sub-group in this nation.

ANd what do you propose, Mudrake, that you true democracy lovers should do to the religious right??? if you cannot abide them? Kill them? Imprison them? deport them? What is your solution for this intolerable sub-group?

The point of democracy was that majority would rule --while minority rights would have leeway.

You prove what I've always suspected with this article/book quotation -- that you and your democrat party are MOSTLY concerned about the Religious Right and their stands on gay rights and abortion --PERIOD. End of your concern. As long as we think public policy should restrain evil as defined in the Bible, we are the evil. And yet, this view that gov't should restrain evil has made America the best of nations--an exceptional nation.

The tactic of the left, to win public support, is to accuse the Religious Right of lacking compassion for the poor. Of being mere self-interested Capitalists. This is just a lie, to obstruct the fact that your real concern is our promotion of traditional moral values.

I assume this is your writing here, Mudrake:

"Cornerstone #3 sets Fundamental Christians into direct conflict with our democracy. This sentence [Lawrences' interp of a religious right attitude] is especially egregious: "Why should the irresponsible, the lazy, and the unpatriotic be rewarded by those same public institutions?" Why? Because it is a democracy."

A democracy is obligated to reward the lazy? Hmmmmm. I don't think we are obligated --except by the rule of compassion.

Out of Christian compassion, we believe in taking care of all the dysfunctional people, seems to me, whether they are just unfortunate, handicapped by their generations of dysfunctional upbringing, or by physical disability--or even if they are just lazy (which is a difficult judgment to make --it's only when you work one on one to help a lazy person keep a job that you realize that there ARE SOME lazy people.) And we really don't believe in letting anybody starve in our country --no matter what caused their hunger.

And these disadvantaged people can all vote too --so what's your gripe about democracy here, as it pertains to the Religious Right? I don't get your conclusion.

But I hear your message --we of the Christian Right must not be tolerated.




"God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance and have eternal life."--the Bible

LIBERAL BLOG HIGHLIGHTS BRUCE LAWRENCE ON FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIANS

Author Bruce Lawrence, Defenders of God: The Fundamentalist Revolt Against the Modern Age, defines fundamentalism as " the affirmation of religious authority as holistic and absolute, admitting of neither criticism nor reduction; it is expressed through the collective demand that specific creedal and ethical dictates derived from scripture be publicly recognized and legally enforced ."

If Bruce Lawrence's expression is widely held, then indeed American democracy cannot abide such a sub-group in this nation.

1.religious idealism as basis for personal and communal identity;

True enough, I guess. We try to live by our beliefs and ideals which instruct us to be forgiving, loving, compassionate, unselfish, law-abiding, kind, honest,courageous, etc. We try to do this individually and corporately as families and churches. We believe in being good neighbors. That's not to say that all of us live up to our ideals all the time--but we know we should --and most of us try.

2. fundamentalists understand truth to be revealed and unified;

Revealed, yes. Unified? what does that mean. We certainly don't all agree on Biblical interp, roles of women --thus, many denominations and independent churches.

3. it is intentionally scandalous -- outsiders cannot understand it;

Scandalous??? what does THAT mean?
I think outsiders can understand it, they just don't share our beliefs.

4. fundamentalists envision themselves as part of a cosmic struggle;

I guess so. the battle between good and evil, people of faith and people who despise bht Bible-believing (so-called fundamentalist) Christians, don't believe in God, don't believe the claims about Christ. There is a battle between those who believe in religious liberty and those who want to shut up the Christians, seeing them as dangerous--when the real danger is the Left's desire to squelch the religious freedom and free speech rights of Christians.

5. they seize on historical moments and reinterpret them in light of this cosmic struggle;

Sort of. Some of us do. Some of us see natural disasters, enemy attacks, as possibly judgments from God --calling us to our knees.
The Bible implies this to be so --but also says the rain falls on the just and the unjust. We don't always know God's purposes in the evil He allows --when it is HIS random or purposeful allowance in a fallen world or when it is OUR doing. For sure, man's inhumanity to man is man's doing. But America's defeat at the hands of an enemy could result from our inner moral deterioration and failure to believe in God, hostility toward Christ and His followers. Hedonists fall asleep at the wheel, oblivious to the harm of immorality in a nation.

6. they demonize their opposition and are reactionary;

I think the demonization is worse on the left, frankly. We just define immorality Biblically and say so; you want us stopped, muzzled, eliminated because you claim we are dangerous. You sure aren't doing anything to bring us to your side intellectually with all the ad hominem attacks.

7. fundamentalists are selective in what parts of their tradition and heritage they stress;

Really? Some churches are hung up on the role of women, and there are Calvinists vs. Arminians in scriptural perspective --but we all know we should be busy about the Father's Business of proclaiming Christ to the world and doing compassionate deeds to "the least of these." Some are pentecostal; some are not; some are holiness churches; some emphasize more man's depravity and think he can't live a holy life even with God's help.

So what?

8. they are led by males;

Yes, but women have been very influential --through their children, and the teaching of children, missionary work, and their helpmeet roles and wise counsel and assistance to male leaders, including their husbands.
They have been influential in Bible study leadership --even Beth Moore's studies are admired and followed by men. Some TV women preachers have had effective ministries. They certainly are less run by men than the Catholic church.

9. they envy modernist cultural hegemony and try to overturn the distribution of power.

Huh? Maybe you mean they try to prevent the culture from going to Sodom, Gommorah and Hell in a handbasket? by resisting porn as "free speech," by resisting infanticide by abortion as women's right, by resisting the muzzling of the church by new laws preventing Biblical preaching and teaching if it "offends" someone, by resisting the change in marriage definition, undermining the strength of the traditional nuclear family.

I don't call our leftist critics "a clear and present danger" to the US, as UptheFlag and Mr. Rake call us, though left wing ideals ARE corrosive to decency in our culture --but when you start calling someone "dangerous," isn't the next step the denial of freedom to such a group? After all, we put dangerous people in jail or on a short leash --as they put Christians in jail in Korea and China and Muslim nations for speaking freely of Jesus Christ.

There is evil in the world --and danger --but it is not coming from the Christians.

"God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance and have eternal life."--the Bible