Anything philosophy, theology, or geek.
Undergraduate student currently looking for the right four-year university in which to pursue a degree in Philosophy.
I work for the United Methodist Church, and consulting the UMC Book of Discipline, I have to say it expresses almost exactly how I feel about the issue of capital punishment:
“We believe the death penalty denies the power of Christ to redeem, restore, and transform all human beings. The United Methodist Church is deeply concerned about crime throughout the world and the value of any life taken by a murder or homicide. We believe all human life is sacred and created by God and therefore, we must see all human life as significant and valuable. When governments implement the death penalty (capital punishment), then the life of the convicted person is devalued and all possibility of change in that person's life ends. We believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and that the possibility of reconciliation with Christ comes through repentance. This gift of reconciliation is offered to all individuals without exception and gives all life new dignity and sacredness. For this reason, we oppose the death penalty (capital punishment) and urge its elimination from all criminal codes.” From The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church – 2008, pg. 125-26.
Texas Governor Rick Perry (Texas' favorite executioner!), it is reported, is a part of a shady religious group called the New Apostolic Reformation. It is reported that this group claims to be acting on God's behalf to dominate the world through political and economic force. This may be sensationalism on Rachel Maddow's part, however after seeing which "evangelical" leaders Perry keeps close, I'm not so sure I doubt it.
The new prophets and apostles believe Christians--certain Christians--are destined to not just take "dominion" over government, but stealthily climb to the commanding heights of what they term the "Seven Mountains" of society, including the media and the arts and entertainment world. They believe they're intended to lord over it all. As a first step, they're leading an "army of God" to commandeer civilian government.
Talk about Rick Perry's prayer event that many see as his attempt to launch his run for presidency (which was endorsed by nuts like John Hagee, Bryan Fischer, Mike Bickle, and C. Peter Wagner; watch the video at the link for a very strange compilation of clips featuring these guys) has given the world a lot to say about Christians in America. (In my opinion, I can't listen to a guy like C. Peter Wagner without regarding him as a nut-job false-prophet. Judgmental on my part? Probably. But I am tired of Harold Camping-level hysteria produced by the right-wing's very skewed interpretation of the Scriptures.)
This is a bizarre idea. But it is something which, to be frank, isn't that far off from what many U.S. Christians seem to want. Groups like Focus on the Family spend their time lobbying and putting pressure on those in power to bend legislation to their will. It sometimes seems like the Church in America has been high-jacked by the Republican Party, which has been leveraging a supposed direct line to God in order to push voters to follow their politics.
Here is a video of a recent (dishonest) move which blew up in the face of Focus on the Family.
This brings to mind a video from a recent prayer meeting led by Michele Bachmann (obviously another Republican president hopeful) praying that God would forgive America for health care reform. Oh, brother:
Isn't it funny that everyone finds the Christian religion when they want power? Bachmann is a shining example of somebody who knows all the right(-wing) things to say to seem sincere.
True Christianity is a blatant rejection of Empire in all of its forms. One cannot honestly read Christ's Sermon on the Mount, for instance, without reaching this conclusion. This does not necessarily mean that Christians should remove themselves from politics. However, Jesus-worshippers need to start recognizing that the kingdom of God transcends politics (or any earthly establishment, for that matter). If I were to follow the Jesus of the Republican Party, I would get the feeling that he loves big business, hates homosexuals, and doesn't really care about much else.
This is what happens when Christians don't look at the Scriptures in an honest way and blindly follow their leaders down a two-issue road.
Signs that we're missing the point are the rampant consumerism in the Church and the very small contributions made by Christians to help the subjugated and the poor.
When one begins to behold the supremacy and sovereignty of Jesus Christ, they lose their desire to take power over others. They no longer want to enforce their own will on other people's lives. God's kingdom truly is upside-down.
For a few essential books on this topic, I suggest looking to the following:
To get a good grasp on the contemporary concept of empire, look no further than Michael Hardt & Antonio Negri's (very tough but very rewarding) Empire.
Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, apparently decided to share his opinion of President Barack Obama last Sunday (Easter Sunday). Through this, he expressed concern regarding Obama's birth-certificate.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said this of the situation: "I think it's unfortunate that a religious leader would choose Easter Sunday to make preposterous charges". I agree with the White House here, as all it really feels like is an unfortunate rallying of support for the GOP. I personally don't care about the birth-certificate turmoil, but if a highly visible evangelical leader wants to express concern regarding this issue, they ought to find the right time and place for these things.
Graham also questioned Obama's legitimacy as a Christian, saying "...he has told me that he is a Christian. But the debate comes, what is a Christian? For him, going to church means he's a Christian. For me, the definition of a Christian is whether we have given our life to Christ and are following him in faith and we have trusted him as our lord and savior."
Franklin Graham said this on August 19, 2010 about the President: "Now it's obvious that the president has renounced the prophet Mohammed and he has renounced Islam and he has accepted Jesus Christ. That's what he says he has done, I cannot say that he hasn't. So I just have to believe that the president is what he has said." While I feel that the Gospel is too often used as a political tool by politicians, I'm not sure why Graham feels he needs to pander to anybody in politics, but it definitely seems like that's what he does. Jesus followers ought to focus more on the things of God than earthly politics which are all too petty in the perspective of the kingdom of Heaven.
Philosopher and Pastor John Piippo has a great post here concerning Obama's faith.
