I just read this piece by Frank Schaeffer, a former member of the religious right. I suppose I feel compelled to comment because rarely do I read something that makes me feel just sad (though saying as much may tick off Robot Devil). From what I can tell Mr. Schaeffer is fairly well known in liberal circles, but I've just learned of him.
Mr. Schaeffer was raised within the ranks of evangelical Christian religious right society and, in fact, helped build it. Subsequently, he became disenchanted by the movement and is now a member of what he calls "rule-obeying democratic liberalism."
Now, there are points that Mr. Schaeffer makes that I cannot disagree with. Evangelicals do indeed strongly desire to have a Christian based government. They do have what seems to be a heightened awareness/fear of "Satan" and believe that anything that strays away from a fundamentallist system is the product of his dominion/infestation of individuals and nations. They don't like homosexuality. And, home or private schooling is a pretty BFD.
But, Mr. Schaeffer's word choice paints a picture of a tyrannical father hunkering his poor wife and children in an underground bomb shelter forcing them to read their Bibles 24-7, then strapping them to racks and cracking whips on their shoulders a la Lavar Burton in Roots to beat the gay out of everybody. A society where people go around hating everybody and desiring to lynch any black man that dares to even look at a white person. A world where freedom of thought is not only frowned upon, but met with severe, and possibly deadly, consequences.
Mr. Schaeffer even decides that because of these people's lifestyle they've forfeited their right to be Americans. He implies that they're committing some sort of crime through choosing to live as they do, even insinuating that allowing them to practice their constitutionally protected, fundamental right to travel freely through the nation should be halted.
It is this, the bile he's spewing by calling these people Anti-American, child abusing, hatemongering, racists, that I find so disheartening. It is the amazing contempt he seems to hold for evangelical Christians. If you read his words, you can feel his utter disgust for what he perceives to be the religious right.
Why do I have room to speak on this issue? Because, like Mr. Shaeffer, I was also raised in an evangelical Christian environment. And though there may be tiny segments within it's makeup that fit his description; his article is pure garbage, a smear piece. Simple as that.
Admittedly, I was not educated at home or at a private institution, (too many kids not enough money--though my oldest brother did spend some very early elementary years at a private Christian academy), but growing up it was often debated, considered, and occurring all around me. A close friend of mine, for instance, only attended a single year in public school - 6th grade. Beyond that, he and his siblings were either home schooled or attended private Christian academies.
Right now, that particular friend, and the countless number of people I know who were brought up similarly, aren't going around trying to destroy civil rights for minorities , sabotage gays, or dismantle the country. My family isn't going around telling people that Obama isn't our president because he's black.
For a little insight of what it's like growing up in that environment, I'll relate to you how big a part of life religion is for evangelicals. Though they always said, it's a faith not a religion.
I remember going to church every Sunday morning, Youth Groups at church on Wednesday nights, and Home Group meetings on Tuesdays. Prayers at every dinner. During church services the pastor would preach with such emotion, often screaming and shouting and everything you've seen in movies. He would condemn the government for acting against the wishes of God. Condemn President Clinton directly. sometimes. Rant about the killing of babies through abortion. People would respond with their own shouts. People around me "spoke in tongues" and ran around with banners and tambourines. Singing during praise and worship was a highly infused affair full of dancing and singing loudly, passionately, sometimes lasting two hours or more. We even said the pledge of allegiance at the beginning of services. In short, we were "holy rollers."
But we weren't hating on minorities and talking about revolution. We weren't beating up gays. We would talk about a cultural or a religious revolution, but that's hardly a new idea (i.e. 60's). Then there's the fact that half my church was made up of black people, Asian people, Indian people, etc... Oh, and how about the first church we attended when we moved to Houston - all black, save for us. And I loved it. So, pardon me if I get a little touchy when someone with a broad stroke paints the religious right as a bunch of bigoted fascists.
And to respond to Mr. Schaeffer unfairly accusing Evangelicals of child abuse. What-the-F-ever. Child abuse is a serious accusation. Having spent four years working directly with children, I've had the unfortunate opportunity to see what it does first hand. Again, I'm sure it occurred within some Christine homes, but to say such a blanket statement as his is infuriating. It can happen in any home it has nothing to do with religion. And it's not a part of being an Evangelical.
I recall often discussing the concept of "spare the rod, ruin the child" as it's said in the Bible growing up, both at home and at church, but never once was I beaten. I was whooped, so to speak, "spanked" if you will. On my ass, and sometimes on my thighs when mom or dad would miss with the belt or spoon or hand. One time I was even slapped across the face by my mother after I said something quite disrespectful. But, I wasn't beat, I was disciplined. I was never punished for something I didn't deserve.
And this is pretty much how things work on the religious right, in our churches and homes. I feel fairly comfortable talking about this in such a broad fashion because of how the religious right operates, it's like a family, and you can see what's going on. So, when I say how discipline works, it's because when we got spanked, be it friends or family, we all talked about it - about how it sucked. Church is a big deal. We have our ways, but they aren't what Mr. Shaeffer is claiming.
Then there is Mr. Shaeffer's absurd notion of "rule-obeying democratic liberalism". That unlike conservatives, liberals are open minded and peaceful. How conservatives will simply change the rules if they're loosing, and if that doesn't work, they'll resort to pulling a "lead pipe" from there back pocket.
Shut up you blithering ass.
Did he not get the memo on how the law was amended in Massachusetts during the 2006 presidential election so that then Republican Governor Romney could not appoint a senator to take Democratic Senator Kerry place as the law on the books said he could? THEN, how the state is moving to amend the law AGAIN, so that the present governor can appoint a replacement because Senator Kennedy died. Yeah, the dems don't change rules at all...
How about the black panthers not letting people vote in the past election as can be seen on Youtube. That guy who bit off a conservative protester's finger (I'm not defending the protester's rude behavior, but biting off a finger isn't a good reaction). Acorn registering the entire Dallas Cowboys football team in Nevada. Protesters comparing Bush to Hitler and advocating his assassination. The pro-life supporter who was shot and killed a few weeks back. Pelosi ignoring the millions of dollars worth of fraud perpetrated by Rangle. Yeah, conservatives are just insane and terrible people. Liberals are calm and approach things with restraint and reason.
I don't support idiots shouting racists things at Obama. I don't support crazy Nirthers. I don't believe that Obama is the anti-Christ, if he is, well that would suck. But, please, don't paint us all as demons and the left as spotless angles of "rule-obeying democratic liberalism." Mr. Shaeffer's ugly rant is hateful and his treatment of the religious right is despicable. He calls us dupes. His experience seems to seethe from an apparently terrible reliationship he had with his father and upbringing and it's made him a very angry man. If this is true, then he's like a lot of libs I know - malcontent children who will snicker at his snide little article and revel secretly in his hatred.
Mr. Shaeffer is an idiot.
Mr. Schaeffer was raised within the ranks of evangelical Christian religious right society and, in fact, helped build it. Subsequently, he became disenchanted by the movement and is now a member of what he calls "rule-obeying democratic liberalism."
Now, there are points that Mr. Schaeffer makes that I cannot disagree with. Evangelicals do indeed strongly desire to have a Christian based government. They do have what seems to be a heightened awareness/fear of "Satan" and believe that anything that strays away from a fundamentallist system is the product of his dominion/infestation of individuals and nations. They don't like homosexuality. And, home or private schooling is a pretty BFD.
But, Mr. Schaeffer's word choice paints a picture of a tyrannical father hunkering his poor wife and children in an underground bomb shelter forcing them to read their Bibles 24-7, then strapping them to racks and cracking whips on their shoulders a la Lavar Burton in Roots to beat the gay out of everybody. A society where people go around hating everybody and desiring to lynch any black man that dares to even look at a white person. A world where freedom of thought is not only frowned upon, but met with severe, and possibly deadly, consequences.
Mr. Schaeffer even decides that because of these people's lifestyle they've forfeited their right to be Americans. He implies that they're committing some sort of crime through choosing to live as they do, even insinuating that allowing them to practice their constitutionally protected, fundamental right to travel freely through the nation should be halted.
It is this, the bile he's spewing by calling these people Anti-American, child abusing, hatemongering, racists, that I find so disheartening. It is the amazing contempt he seems to hold for evangelical Christians. If you read his words, you can feel his utter disgust for what he perceives to be the religious right.
Why do I have room to speak on this issue? Because, like Mr. Shaeffer, I was also raised in an evangelical Christian environment. And though there may be tiny segments within it's makeup that fit his description; his article is pure garbage, a smear piece. Simple as that.
Admittedly, I was not educated at home or at a private institution, (too many kids not enough money--though my oldest brother did spend some very early elementary years at a private Christian academy), but growing up it was often debated, considered, and occurring all around me. A close friend of mine, for instance, only attended a single year in public school - 6th grade. Beyond that, he and his siblings were either home schooled or attended private Christian academies.
Right now, that particular friend, and the countless number of people I know who were brought up similarly, aren't going around trying to destroy civil rights for minorities , sabotage gays, or dismantle the country. My family isn't going around telling people that Obama isn't our president because he's black.
For a little insight of what it's like growing up in that environment, I'll relate to you how big a part of life religion is for evangelicals. Though they always said, it's a faith not a religion.
I remember going to church every Sunday morning, Youth Groups at church on Wednesday nights, and Home Group meetings on Tuesdays. Prayers at every dinner. During church services the pastor would preach with such emotion, often screaming and shouting and everything you've seen in movies. He would condemn the government for acting against the wishes of God. Condemn President Clinton directly. sometimes. Rant about the killing of babies through abortion. People would respond with their own shouts. People around me "spoke in tongues" and ran around with banners and tambourines. Singing during praise and worship was a highly infused affair full of dancing and singing loudly, passionately, sometimes lasting two hours or more. We even said the pledge of allegiance at the beginning of services. In short, we were "holy rollers."
But we weren't hating on minorities and talking about revolution. We weren't beating up gays. We would talk about a cultural or a religious revolution, but that's hardly a new idea (i.e. 60's). Then there's the fact that half my church was made up of black people, Asian people, Indian people, etc... Oh, and how about the first church we attended when we moved to Houston - all black, save for us. And I loved it. So, pardon me if I get a little touchy when someone with a broad stroke paints the religious right as a bunch of bigoted fascists.
And to respond to Mr. Schaeffer unfairly accusing Evangelicals of child abuse. What-the-F-ever. Child abuse is a serious accusation. Having spent four years working directly with children, I've had the unfortunate opportunity to see what it does first hand. Again, I'm sure it occurred within some Christine homes, but to say such a blanket statement as his is infuriating. It can happen in any home it has nothing to do with religion. And it's not a part of being an Evangelical.
I recall often discussing the concept of "spare the rod, ruin the child" as it's said in the Bible growing up, both at home and at church, but never once was I beaten. I was whooped, so to speak, "spanked" if you will. On my ass, and sometimes on my thighs when mom or dad would miss with the belt or spoon or hand. One time I was even slapped across the face by my mother after I said something quite disrespectful. But, I wasn't beat, I was disciplined. I was never punished for something I didn't deserve.
And this is pretty much how things work on the religious right, in our churches and homes. I feel fairly comfortable talking about this in such a broad fashion because of how the religious right operates, it's like a family, and you can see what's going on. So, when I say how discipline works, it's because when we got spanked, be it friends or family, we all talked about it - about how it sucked. Church is a big deal. We have our ways, but they aren't what Mr. Shaeffer is claiming.
Then there is Mr. Shaeffer's absurd notion of "rule-obeying democratic liberalism". That unlike conservatives, liberals are open minded and peaceful. How conservatives will simply change the rules if they're loosing, and if that doesn't work, they'll resort to pulling a "lead pipe" from there back pocket.
Shut up you blithering ass.
Did he not get the memo on how the law was amended in Massachusetts during the 2006 presidential election so that then Republican Governor Romney could not appoint a senator to take Democratic Senator Kerry place as the law on the books said he could? THEN, how the state is moving to amend the law AGAIN, so that the present governor can appoint a replacement because Senator Kennedy died. Yeah, the dems don't change rules at all...
How about the black panthers not letting people vote in the past election as can be seen on Youtube. That guy who bit off a conservative protester's finger (I'm not defending the protester's rude behavior, but biting off a finger isn't a good reaction). Acorn registering the entire Dallas Cowboys football team in Nevada. Protesters comparing Bush to Hitler and advocating his assassination. The pro-life supporter who was shot and killed a few weeks back. Pelosi ignoring the millions of dollars worth of fraud perpetrated by Rangle. Yeah, conservatives are just insane and terrible people. Liberals are calm and approach things with restraint and reason.
I don't support idiots shouting racists things at Obama. I don't support crazy Nirthers. I don't believe that Obama is the anti-Christ, if he is, well that would suck. But, please, don't paint us all as demons and the left as spotless angles of "rule-obeying democratic liberalism." Mr. Shaeffer's ugly rant is hateful and his treatment of the religious right is despicable. He calls us dupes. His experience seems to seethe from an apparently terrible reliationship he had with his father and upbringing and it's made him a very angry man. If this is true, then he's like a lot of libs I know - malcontent children who will snicker at his snide little article and revel secretly in his hatred.
Mr. Shaeffer is an idiot.
No comments:
Post a Comment