I am at a loss to understand conservative Christians! I actually can understand why they hold the views they have, but I do not understand their wanting to legislate their views to be FORCED on others! They generally say they want smaller government, but making laws based on their religious views grows the scope of government. They generally say they feel the United States of America is becoming a welfare state, but doesn’t Jesus teach to HELP the poor? They are saying to repeal Obamacare, but doesn’t Jesus also teach to help the sick? They argue with science that climate change science is wrong, but didn’t Jesus teach to be stewards of creation? Wasn’t it Jesus that said, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”~ John 15:12? See… even a nonreligious person can USE the Bible to attack and accuse Christians!
They do understand how this hypocrisy affects their “witness”? Oh… I long ago decided they are obviously not worried about their “witness”!! I actually separate Christians into two groups: True Christians who live Christ-like lives and Biblicans who pick and choose parts of the Bible that support their contempt for others without ever seeing how it applies to them. How do I know how to categorize? I see what they do and not what they say they do. Better yet… I see the results of what they do for others (or don’t do).
As a matter of fact, I have felt the impact of Biblicans – I am gay! They do love one another in a literal sense; as in they love each other as long they believe like they do. I did learn a couple months ago that they love their Chick-fil-a sandwiches more than showing me any respect and/or concern. One friend posted on facebook how she loved her gay friends but she followed her testimony of love with how she supported Chick-fil-a’s contributions to fight gay rights. She did not see her contradiction or her hypocrisy. How can she LOVE me but fight to deny my having equal rights? I lost friends over damn chicken sandwiches because I just could not deal with the hypocrisy any more!
The whole Chick-fil-a thing was like a Klieg light that shone bright and removed many shadows. I had friends that did not understand how their professing their love for chicken was hurtful to me. Now I see them professing their love for Mitt Romney. How Christians do not embrace the principles of the Democrats also confuses me. The Republicans want to lower taxes for the rich, repeal Obamcare, state proudly their disdain and apathy for people on welfare instead of empathy – ALL things that are contrary to what Christ taught! I know it all comes down to one issue: ABORTION! This is the cry of the conservative movement that speaks to them.
Which happens more often: a child goes to bed hungry, a family loses power or even their house, an elderly person sits lonely all day, a person skips going to the doctor because the have no health insurance or money for medicine, OR a woman has an abortion? The problem with most of these issues… they could do something to help, but it is only the abortion issue they focus on because it is more far removed from their reality, their day-to-day life. Until their little teenager gets pregnant, then even if they keep the baby… they like they have options to consider.
The other issues may actually require them to do something, to sacrifice a little, or heaven forbid – simply pay a LITTLE more in taxes. Since they do not do it… it does fall on the government. The blind eye turned toward the poor, elderly, sick or disabled is very similar to the disregard and disrespect they show the gay community. They can unite in their hatred for gays and women that have a tough decision to make; that either way will have great impact for the rest of her life. But because of their beliefs, based on the Bible but nothing ever mention by Jesus Himself – they have to make laws for everyone to believe like they do.
The reason they have to legislate Christianity is because they can not sell the idea of being Christian by how they live their lives! Hate is ugly and more and more people are seeing it just for what it is – HATE. I may be gay – but at least I am honest about it. Many ministers and priests have gay scandals and even pedophilia now are common occurrences. We all can benefit from a deep look inside and ask ourselves if there is more we can do for mankind whether it is in Christ’s name or just because as a civilized society we do what is right! I leave anyone that has read this far with a reminder of what Jesus actually does say, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”~ John 15:12 Guess what? He did what He said to do! He lived it!! This is good advice even for a non religious jerk like me!
Thomas Johnston 
Thomas — another good post!!!!!! Below are some of my thoughts on this election — and on the inhuman and inhumane fundamentalists. I hope those of good will toward others — decent people whether Christians, Jews or atheists — will surprise us tomorrow and even in Miss. vote overwhelmingly for Pres. Obama and save us from the woes that will come with Romney-Ryan (aka “Mitt the Twit” and “Mr. Rape is just another form of conception” Ryan who will let women die unnecessarily in childbirth for just one example. Two local Miss. papers chose NOT to print a shorter version of this letter unless they turn up in tomorrow’s papers..
My dad was one of those kind real Christians you refer to and had a string of degrees (2+ in theology) and he definitely did not like the meanness of the fundamentlists. He would have voted for Pres. Obama tomorrow. Anyway, below is my letter.
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SAVE US FROM THE THEOCRATS, ROMNEY AND RYAN
Please join me in voting for Pres. Obama to save us from the dangerous and inhuman fundamentalist Christian extremists, Romney-Ryan. Religious freedom is a founding principal of our country and that means, in part, my freedom from your religion, yours from mine. The right to even birth control is in danger if the Republican ticket wins.
Romney-Ryan plan on taking away birth control from ALL of us. This is un-American and inhumane. You are supposed to have the right in the U.S. to decide how many, if any, children you will have. Don’t let Romney-Ryan take that away! In the past, without benefit of birth control, many women had 20 children or more, often dying in childbirth after whatever number was one too many for her body. Losing ancestors that way in that day and age was unavoidable before birth control and abortion became available. In the 21st century, to tell a couple they have to have more children than they can afford or want and to allow women to die because they aren’t allowed even birth control is unconscionable, heartless, and only those clinging to outdated religions they want to illegally foist on us would try such a thing. Unfortunately, this is part of the Romney-Ryan plan. And decades ago, famed writer Upton Sinclair warned us that this day would come when some would try to take away our birth control according to their medieval church’s laws.
Beyond this, if this is not enough, Romney‘s only economic experience is as a corporate raider, whose Bain Capital raids have cost many Americans their jobs and stolen their pensions (he says he loves to fire people), and is now gunning for Medicare, social security, and will take away your new health benefits, even your ability to get insurance at all if you have pre-existing medical conditions. Romney does not care if you are poor, ill, dying without health care and cannot feed the many additional mouths that will come without birth control. Romney’s worn-out, Republican trickle-down, deregulation-filled economic policy with its tax cuts for the rich is what crashed the economy in the first place.
Let’s not vote for the people who got us into the economic crisis in the first place and are now additionally trying to take away what no one else ever has – even the very basic American right to birth control.