Whether Left or Right, beware those who try to kit-bash the history of the Jewish and Christian faith into a cable news talking point:
I'm sure the second list isn't trying to be serious (thought a case could be made). It's making a point. Those on the Left, who once roasted the 'Religious Right' for trying to mold Christianity into the political Right, are worse when they do the same with the political Left. Because they add hypocrisy.
Not that we shouldn't take the Scriptural record and apply it to our times today. But mostly in the sense of saying 'if God asks something of me, will I say yes?'. Or 'do I believe God is at work in my life?'. Or, 'do I believe the events of the Bible are true and that Christ is the savior of the world?'. Or, 'am I following the expectations that God has of me as proclaimed through the prophets and the apostles?'. And on and on. Not, 'If I ignore this Himalayan pile of verses and historical fact, I can make Jesus into a socio-political puppet!'.
Again, we certainly can try to understand modern events in biblical terms, but never should the conclusion align point by point with an editorial from a political campaign. My sons - as usual my guides in navigating the mindset of young Americans today - once said we are the generation that finally proves an education is not enough. Unlike days or yore, when people tried to follow the truth where it led, we begin with the assumption that we are the truth and work backwards. This approach to the Faith shows that the faithful are not immune to this development. I see little in our present age to suggest that assumption is working.
(Tom New Poster)
ReplyDeleteHappy St. Stephen's Day.
As Aristotle is quoted as saying: a man either conforms his actions to his beliefs or adjusts his beliefs to justify his actions. In a pragmatic political culture like ours, the second is a powerful standing temptation. For the modern Left that means (first) absolute intolerance towards criticism of their sexual proclivities and (secondly) the annihilation of political opposition to their quasi-Marxist goals for America. The Right does not seem to have such monomaniacal fixations on a single idea. We could say "liberty" but individual conservatives dispute what that would mean in practice.
Exactly. People on all sides of the political spectrum will sometimes try to enlist Scripture as a prop for their views. The problem with Christians on the Left, however, is that they never do anything else. If you took away their Scripture-twisting political agenda, they would have no Christianity at all. ---- G. Poulin
DeleteAnd once again, the sheer mendacity of the Left when they accuse the Right of being obsessed with 'pelvic issues.' I've not seen a movement so devoid of core principles, but it does make it difficult to deal with.
DeleteNobody is more responsible for the genocide in Gaza than Joe Biden, whom Rebecca voted for in 2020 and will vote for again in 2024.
ReplyDeleteI honestly can't even begin to describe how much contempt I have for that woman. Repulsive excuse for a human being.
In fairness, I wouldn't lay it as his feet, inasmuch as I would say he's part of the larger problem. After all, how long did it take for them to make it about 'Irreal creates humanitarian crisis due to genocide' narrative, even as Hamas has made it clear it will do more of the same as soon as it can? When we saw pundits and editorials on the Left explaining when celebrating the genocidal slaughter of Jews isn't necessarily a deal breaker, that should be the wake up call, if the physical altering of minors' bodies didn't do the trick.
DeleteWe're not going to agree on this. I think that many people on the right are more concerned about a hypothetical genocide of Israeli Jews than they are about Israel's heavy-handed response towards Palestinian civilians, many of whom are Christians. Obviously, what happened on October 7 was inexcusable (and a direct consequence of the Netanyahu government's incompetence and/or malfeasance). Unfortunately, Israel's current response is bound to metastasize Palestinian extremism in both Gaza and the West Bank.
DeleteFirst, it's not a hypothetical genocide when we just witnessed the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. But the huge problem is the big elephant in the room that we in the West won't mention. In the years I spent with our Antiochine Orthodox brethren, I learned a couple things. First, they don't suffer from “Holocaust Guilt”. That's because in the long, crazy history of the Middle East, it hasn't always been as simple as 'Oppressed Jewish minority/Oppressive Christian majority.' That includes now, in modern Israel, where Christians are a minority group and often feel it. Not that they deny antisemitism in the Church’s history or don’t lament things like the Holocaust. It just isn't as simple as the template we employ in the West.
DeleteWith that said, they are also honest about the problems with Israel and the surrounding Muslim world. That's because there are those in the Arabi/Muslim world who will not rest until Israel is gone. And that includes Palestinians in Gaza. Many are not 'human shields' against their will, but are so gleefully, in the hope that the end of the day will include a non-existent Israel. That's because apart from the modern Leftwing narrative that only white, European and American Christians can be racist, most realize such attitudes are alive and well in other parts of the world - including Israel, and including the surrounding Arab population. That's the problem here.
Hamas knows the score, and knows we will come down on those fighting for a just cause more than those doing evil. It knows the general attitude about Israel as oppressive state; as extension of the Western Imperialist tradition. It knows it can attack Israel, and then sit back and no matter what Israel does, watch the world frame it as Israel the oppressor creating a humanitarian crisis. And it knows it can do it again and the same will happen. Oh, this time it took a few days longer than normal, given the horrific massacre that kicked it off. It took about three days for the narrative to kick in. But Hamas also knows now that even when facing the worst slaughter of Jews since Nazi Germany, the world will happily look the other way where attacking Israel and being attacked by Israel is concerned.
To paraphrase Monty Python: 'Intercourse the World'.
ReplyDeleteHamas delenda est.