Religious Right With the Tinfoil Hats
Since Katrina there has been several Christian evangelists that want to blame God for Katrina. I guess the correct way to explain it is that they blame Americans for bad behavior thus God sent us Katrina. Usually the refrain has to do with abortion, but they tend to blame any actions by Americans that they deem unreligious as reasons that God attacks us (I'm sorry, punishes us). I consider these people crazy enough to be wearing tinfoil hats as modern fashion.
The problem with this "read the mind of God" theorizing about disasters, is that they alone seem to know what disasters are God punishments and for what reason God has been motivated to enact punishment.
I've always had questions regarding this reading of God's mind. For instance, how many Americans must be having abortions to enrage God? Is there some sort of percentage, say 15% before God blows his/her top and sends us a hurricane? Or is the number to be absolute zero, which would be something America has never acheived through its entire history? Thus by the tinfoil hat religious right leaders theory, God should have been sending earthquakes, hurricanes and tornados at Americans virtually relentlessly without a days rest (even on Sundays).
And why do these Christian leaders decide that the gay lifestyle or abortion happen to be what God is mad about? Did not Jesus preach non-violence, praise those who worked against war "blessed are the peacemakers?" Have these Christian leaders with the tinfoil hats considered that maybe the fact that America is in two wars, (one of which we started with a pack full of lies) have anything to do with God's wrath? The Iraq War has been a disaster, maybe God decided that it is an unwinnable war because we started it? It does seem to make sense as America is suppose to have the most powerful military in the world, we are the Goliaths against the Davids in the Iraq War.
Ah, but I don't suspect these tinfoil hat Christian leaders really believe in Jesus, afterall what is a commonality among them? They make money off their words of "wisdom." Jesus said two people make a church, he didn't suggest then becoming media superstars taking in huge amounts of cash to become the rich preaching to the poor. I've always thought Jesus was suppose to be our example to follow. Did Jesus charge scalpers prices to listen to him? No, he didn't take a Roman nickle. Maybe it's these false prophets of medialand that brings God's wrath on Americans?
Then again maybe there is another possible reason for God sending us Katrina. Is it possible Americans have been praising false idols? The evangelical TV/radio voices are such true believers in George Bush that nothing that he does is wrong. In their eyes, Bush is some sort of perfect human. I swear if Bush were to slice the throat of another human and drink the spurting blood live on TV these tinfoil hat evangelists would say Bush was correct in doing so. They'd find some reason to justify that action and/or point the finger of blame somewhere else. They'd probably blame the media (not pointing out that THEY are part of the media) as they usually like to do. Most of these nutcakes trust Bush when he said "I believe God wants me to be president."
These nutty assertions by the crackpot evangelical right is good enough reason for me to be quite the opposite when I think about Bush. Call me a contrarian or a secularist or just an average American, but I don't see Bush from their viewpoint. I see a president that is warlike. I see a president that isn't afraid to lie to Americans to get or do what he wants. I see a president that relied on these crackpots to get elected. But then again unlike the tinfoil hat Christian leaders I don't spend much time assuring everyone that I know what God is thinking. I don't attribute natural earth events to the wrath of God (I thought that went out of style in the Old Testiment anyway). I don't make millions telling others how to live. And I guess I just don't read Jesus like they do.
Although I'm no perfectionist about the Golden Rule, it does seem like one of Jesus' best lessons. So, I don't advocate war on Muslims like the tinfoil hat evangelicals. War has always seemed like a clear violation of the Golden Rule to me. We were not attacked by Iraq, so why is it OK to war on them? I don't like it when I'm lied to, so I do my best to be honest. Unlike our president who started a war based on lies told to me and my fellow Americans. Sorry, the tinfoil hat wearing religious right leaders don't sway my ideals of Jesus, never will.
The problem with this "read the mind of God" theorizing about disasters, is that they alone seem to know what disasters are God punishments and for what reason God has been motivated to enact punishment.
I've always had questions regarding this reading of God's mind. For instance, how many Americans must be having abortions to enrage God? Is there some sort of percentage, say 15% before God blows his/her top and sends us a hurricane? Or is the number to be absolute zero, which would be something America has never acheived through its entire history? Thus by the tinfoil hat religious right leaders theory, God should have been sending earthquakes, hurricanes and tornados at Americans virtually relentlessly without a days rest (even on Sundays).
And why do these Christian leaders decide that the gay lifestyle or abortion happen to be what God is mad about? Did not Jesus preach non-violence, praise those who worked against war "blessed are the peacemakers?" Have these Christian leaders with the tinfoil hats considered that maybe the fact that America is in two wars, (one of which we started with a pack full of lies) have anything to do with God's wrath? The Iraq War has been a disaster, maybe God decided that it is an unwinnable war because we started it? It does seem to make sense as America is suppose to have the most powerful military in the world, we are the Goliaths against the Davids in the Iraq War.
Ah, but I don't suspect these tinfoil hat Christian leaders really believe in Jesus, afterall what is a commonality among them? They make money off their words of "wisdom." Jesus said two people make a church, he didn't suggest then becoming media superstars taking in huge amounts of cash to become the rich preaching to the poor. I've always thought Jesus was suppose to be our example to follow. Did Jesus charge scalpers prices to listen to him? No, he didn't take a Roman nickle. Maybe it's these false prophets of medialand that brings God's wrath on Americans?
Then again maybe there is another possible reason for God sending us Katrina. Is it possible Americans have been praising false idols? The evangelical TV/radio voices are such true believers in George Bush that nothing that he does is wrong. In their eyes, Bush is some sort of perfect human. I swear if Bush were to slice the throat of another human and drink the spurting blood live on TV these tinfoil hat evangelists would say Bush was correct in doing so. They'd find some reason to justify that action and/or point the finger of blame somewhere else. They'd probably blame the media (not pointing out that THEY are part of the media) as they usually like to do. Most of these nutcakes trust Bush when he said "I believe God wants me to be president."
These nutty assertions by the crackpot evangelical right is good enough reason for me to be quite the opposite when I think about Bush. Call me a contrarian or a secularist or just an average American, but I don't see Bush from their viewpoint. I see a president that is warlike. I see a president that isn't afraid to lie to Americans to get or do what he wants. I see a president that relied on these crackpots to get elected. But then again unlike the tinfoil hat Christian leaders I don't spend much time assuring everyone that I know what God is thinking. I don't attribute natural earth events to the wrath of God (I thought that went out of style in the Old Testiment anyway). I don't make millions telling others how to live. And I guess I just don't read Jesus like they do.
Although I'm no perfectionist about the Golden Rule, it does seem like one of Jesus' best lessons. So, I don't advocate war on Muslims like the tinfoil hat evangelicals. War has always seemed like a clear violation of the Golden Rule to me. We were not attacked by Iraq, so why is it OK to war on them? I don't like it when I'm lied to, so I do my best to be honest. Unlike our president who started a war based on lies told to me and my fellow Americans. Sorry, the tinfoil hat wearing religious right leaders don't sway my ideals of Jesus, never will.
posted by jon at 3:51 AM
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