Dealing With The Christian Right
As every politically aware person knows, the Christian Right, embodied by such groups as The Christian Coalition, has gained an alarming amount of power within the Republican Party. But do progressives understand what these individuals believe about the world, let alone how to deal with this growing movement? Recently someone brought to my attention an excellent Dissident Voice article describing the ranks of Christian fundamentalists populating America's heartland.
The author recounts the difficulty of being a liberal deep in the bastion of Christian conservativsm, and he highlights the alarming cultural and political divide in the U.S. This theme seems to be a persisten tone as of late, as Alternet features an article on Thomas Frank's new book What's The Matter With Kansas. Both of these articles are truly a wake-up call for a left that is completely out of touch with conservatives Christians. It is absolutely imperative that we study this movement and develop ways to combat its adherents dangerously cult-like thinking. In addition, faith communities with progressive values must work together to start a dialogue about religion and politics, demonstrating that the Right do not have a monopoly on values.
The author recounts the difficulty of being a liberal deep in the bastion of Christian conservativsm, and he highlights the alarming cultural and political divide in the U.S. This theme seems to be a persisten tone as of late, as Alternet features an article on Thomas Frank's new book What's The Matter With Kansas. Both of these articles are truly a wake-up call for a left that is completely out of touch with conservatives Christians. It is absolutely imperative that we study this movement and develop ways to combat its adherents dangerously cult-like thinking. In addition, faith communities with progressive values must work together to start a dialogue about religion and politics, demonstrating that the Right do not have a monopoly on values.
posted by Ben at 7:08 PM
3 Comments:
here is a neat little chart that sums up some of dubya's non Christ-like actions with what Jesus Christ taught.
http://religiousleft.bmgbiz.net/bushandjesus.html
As a very Left leaning Christian that spent some quality time in Alabama I can speak candidly on this topic. Christianity in the Religious Right is nothing more than a culture of fear. Everything they preach is what not to do. Don't have an abortion, don't entertain any thoughts of being a homosexual/lesbian, don't do drugs, don't get drunk, don't cheat on your spouse (remind Jerry Falwell of that one a few times), don't do it if it feels good, and don't vote democrat. And if you do any of the above mentioned things you're going to hell. Sadly, the only way this thinking can change is through a change in the Christian community, not through any type of political movement. While that might be a disheartening notion for a non-Christian like yourself, remember Liberal Christians like myself can change the mind of thousands of (baby) Right Wing Christians. So don't lose hope, I'm holding it down for what's good in the world and my good friend Jesus.
(p.s. I have a paper I wrote on this very topic that you might want to read, next time you're in the illadelph I'll let you take a look at it)
take care while protesting,
Aaron
Thanks for your interesting comments, Aaron. You certainly have more first-hand experience with this topic than I do. I found your comment about Christians being the only ones who can change this situation interesting. I suppose I agree with you, but I guess I never thought of it that way.
As you know, I am not a particularly religious person, but that doesn't mean I'm not spiritual. I just object to most of the current mainstream organized religions in this country. So does this mean that religious folks should completely discount what I say just because I do not go to church? I am a moral person and good human being, and I think it is very possible to live a righteous life without being religious, per se. It's unfortunate that you have to go to a church or other place or worship regularly for religious people to take you seriously, but it's understandable. To me spirituality can take a multitude of forms, and we shouldn't just limit ourselves to what is popular.
But I am glad that there are progressive Christians out there like you. Maybe you can talk some sense into some of the Christians on the far right. My Mom and sister are both progressive Christians as well, and I have been telling them a lot lately about how important it is to show that people of faith are out there working against George Bush and the radical Christian Right.
You might want to check out an interesting site called faithfulamerica.org, which is a new initiative for progressive religious folks.
Take care,
Ben
The author of this blog is caught up in the Liberal anti-God crap. You really need to get help finding God. As for Mr. Anonymous, you are a left leaning Christian? Is that like a furry fish? You guys are good for a laugh. Except I can't laugh, your propaganda is a harm to our troops and your lust to take America away from it's roots and demoralize it is reprehensible.
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