BlueRage welcomes guest blogger Shannon Dove who adapted this blog entry from an excellent, provocative essay from Dennis Diehl. The question is, "Can a Christian be a good American?" The original, for those who didn't go read it, was "If a good Muslim can't be a Good American, Neither can a Good Christian." Read on:
Theologically- NO Because his allegiance is to God, the Sun God of Egypt. This is why God is Most High (At Noon), Jesus can be seen as an archetype Son of the Sun God and the Gospels are the account of a one year trip of the Sun Jesus through the signs of the Zodiac, and I ain't kiddn! The origin all gods in the human psyche is the SUN and all that it does for humans. This is why in the Old Testament it says in Malachi that the "sun will rise with healing in his wings," which is statement about the messiah to come. In Revelation, Jesus is also called the "son of the morning star," which of course is the SUN, or the Planet Venus depending. Long story.
Religiously- NO Because "there is no other name under heaven, (Jesus) by which a man can be saved. There is one true Christian Church and whoever believes on the name of the Lord..Jesus Christ, shall be saved, while others are condemned. Christians do NOT accept any other religious beliefs as valid to theirs, so no difference here.
Scripturally NO because his allegiance is to the Ten Pillars of Christianity, which they tend to modify according to the need, and the Bible, which is neither always historically accurate nor inerrant, no matter what they say! There is nothing in America that says you have to be a Bible believing Christian to be a true American. It is freedom of religion here...all religions. If Fundamentalists have their way, we might all want to amend the Bill of Rights to say "freedom FROM religion."
Geographically No because his mental allegiance is to Jerusalem, Israel and the Holy Land at least twice a week, about which they talk all the time as if they have ever been there, know the real history of, or think they would be welcome. Millions of Christian Americans have a soft spot for Rome too
Socially NO because his allegiance to Christianity forbids him to make friends with "the world" (love not the world, neither the things that are in the world, whoever loves the world, the love of the father is not in him.") Paul cursed the Jews in the New Testament, and hoped they'd cut their private parts if they wanted to be circumcised. Martin Luther , a Christian, taught they should be killed like pigs. Lots of places in NT tell the church to have no relationships outside the church. including not being "unequally yoked with unbelievers."
Politically No because he must submit to the ministry, ( "obey those that have the rule over you, {ministers}, for they watch out for your souls"). Many Fundamentalist Christians teach and hope for the annihilation of everyone outside of Israel. Christians often attribute anything against them as of the Great Satan Christian fundamentalists call Roman Catholicism, the Great Whore, so don't sweat someone calling America or Washington the Great Satan. Paul cursed anyone who did not believe his true gospel and called the people of Crete, liars. Jesus is said to have said the Pharisees were "of your Father the Devil." Name calling invoking the name of Satan to define the enemy is a fundamentalist art form. It's what you do when you are afraid of the unknown.
Domestically no because a fundamentalist Christian is instructed to marry only one which is his property, but cannot talk in church and can only ask her husband bible questions at home. A christian believes if you "beat (spank)a child with a rod, it won't kill him." Fundamentalist Christian women are to keep silence in the church, obey their husbands as unto the Lord, and call him "Lord" as did Sarah (all in NT). They are to give him sex as a part of her duty and submit. The Koran and the Bible sprang from the same culture, which few Fundamentalist Christians realize or think about. In many respects the Taliban are to the Koran what the Fundamentalist Christians are to the Bible. PS...Lots of Christian men abuse their wives with the word.
Intellectually no, because he can't accept that the American Constitution was NOT predicated on founding fundamentalist, Old Covenant believing Fathers. I would not use the word "intellectual" with Christians either, as critical thinking or the examining of evidence that runs contrary to their established belief system is not encouraged. This was called the Dark Ages in the European past.
Philosophically no because Christianity, Jesus and the Bible do not allow freedom of religion if you take the Old and New Testaments as the only way to be or literally enforceable in our culture today. Some Christians look to the commands of "God" in the Old Testament, to kill unbelievers, just as much as they think Islamics do in reading the Koran. Fundamentalist would only tolerate Christian values, which can be atrocious at times, and morality, which can be appalling. True Democracy and Biblical Christianity cannot co exist either. Someone would insist on someone else losing their rights to free thought. "My Kingdom is not of this world, if my kingdom was of this world, then would my servants fight," said Jesus in Matthew. No military solutions were encouraged by Jesus unless there was only one sword per 12 disciples allowed. Turn the other cheek, Love your enemies, don't slay them. Christian Fundamentalism is a good example of the mess you get when you mix Old Testament politics with New Testament sentiments, thinking it takes both to make up a proper Christian text. It's old wine in new wine skins.
Every Christian Fundamentalist government is either dictatorial or autocratic too. This statement shows the ignorance of whoever made it up. The Christian Kings of Europe didn't do to badly in the dictatorial or autocratic department, and might we mention the Popes?
Spiritually no because the God and Jesus of the Book of Revelation drowns the world in blood, plagues, signs, trumpets, vials and slaughter. The Christian Jesus is loving but no one does what he really says as it really is too hard. The Christian God the father is absent mostly, but is angry, jealous, and is patterned after the war gods of paganism every bit as much. I suggest a good read of Karen Armstrong's. History of God. The Fundamentalist Christian God is 'loving" only to the degree you obey and fall in line. If not, you are toast just as with any other "god" The Jesus of the Gospels is NOT the same being in the book of Revelation. Jesus comes back with a Rod of Iron to threaten and beat the poop out of those that don't obey and love God #1 the father and God # 2 himself...we won't get into God #3. Monotheism is basically divisive by nature, even if the one God is three, co-this and co-that.
Therefore after much study and deliberation, perhaps we should all be very suspicious of ALL, and I Mean ALLLLLLLL Christians in this country. They obviously can't be both good Christians and Good Americans. Call it what you will, it's still the truth.
2 comments:
This was originally from a guy named Dennis Diehl, who wrote it as a tongue-in-cheek response to criticism of Muslim Americans. The fact is that being an American does NOT mean valuing American nationalism above all else. There are certain expected behaviors of tolerance and adherence to the Constitution, but people of any religion can be "good Americans".
Yes, I got in late on this thread. I understand that Shannon was responding to the original thread by substituting "Christian" for "Muslim."
My original reading of it recognized it's satirical nature, but got my attention because, like good satire, it touched on some truth. Some of these points sound eerily like what we hear from our fundamentalist Christian neighbors. The danger of course is when these folks begin to win legislative victories for their religious agenda.
The bottom line on this for me is the dangerous mix of religion and politics. It can only render bad results for ALL of us.
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