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I Crack Me Up

by tgirsch

January 24th, 2007

For some reason, I just today got a June 2005 trackback of this post. I forgot I wrote that. That’s funny, I don’t care who you are. :)

Categories: Church & State, Humor, Politics, Satire |

5 Comments

  1. Brian January 27th, 2007

    Interesting but disappointing reading. If you had actually paid attention to what was being said, you would have left out several of those passages and still made your point. Instead you put in passages and then twisted what was being said to suit your needs.

  2. tgirsch January 27th, 2007

    Brian:

    I’d be curious to know which specific verses you thought I was misusing.

  3. Brian January 27th, 2007

    Prayer:

    Christ’s reference is to people praying with pride and for show. This is often not the case but you seemed to intimate that it was always the case when prayer is public. I do agree with your basic premise but the exaggeration is a bit much.

    Oaths:

    Oaths are only present in court because the secular society wants it, not because the religious people want it. And it’s only there because no one believes anyone at their word. I have been forced in court to swear on the Bible even though I objected and stated that my word is my word and can be trusted. This is not a religious right issue. I don’t know much about the pledge of allegiance so I can’t comment on it.

    Personal Wealth:

    This is about the focus, not the actual amount. I know several people who are very rich but spend the majority of their time working to improve others’ lives. Being wealthy is not criticized in this passage. Focusing on getting rich at the cost of doing what is right in God’s eyes is what is being criticized. (That being said, other than James Dobson, I would tend to agree with your list)

    The knockout punch regarding a rich man getting into heaven:

    Very rarely will a person seek out God when things are going well. That is why it is harder for a rich man. If I am not mistaken, the comment was made by Christ after a rich man decided not to follow because he was unwilling to give up what he had. A poor person would not face the same decision.

    Taxes:

    Christ didn’t say anything about the tax levels. Just that if a tax is there, it should be paid. Tax evasion would be wrong but lowering taxes would not.

    Capital punishment:

    You missed what was being done here. This was a trap for Christ to see if he would pick and choose what was right or wrong. He was not commenting on capital punishment itself.

  4. tgirsch January 28th, 2007

    Brian:

    In most of these cases, I’m going to have to disagree with you. I can’t say too much about where you are, but here in the states, a lot of the public prayer that goes on is very much for show. Not many people will admit it, but trying to get a prayer before, say, a city council meeting or a football game, is an even mix of “holier than thou” with a way to separate “us” from “them.” So in that context, it works. That, to me, is precisely what Christ was preaching against.

    On personal wealth, I think you’re basically on the mark — he doesn’t say it’s impossible, after all, just very nearly so. Again, though, you have to understand that Republican politics (associated with the “right” here in the US) are very much about the protection of personal wealth. Often this is one of the most important issues for them. And I’m afraid I don’t share your sunny view of Dr. Dobson. Although I suspect his lust is more for power and influence than it is for wealth. (He has a disproportionate share of both.)

    Which brings us to taxation. What I think you miss is that many on the right here in the US view taxes as somewhere between “a necessary evil,” to be reduced or eliminated whenever possible, and outright theft. I didn’t intend to imply that taxes are always good; I was merely trying to counter the idea (prevalent here) that they’re always evil. Maybe I stretched a bit, but Christ didn’t seem to have a problem with them. Given his views on personal wealth, I wouldn’t expect him to.

    Finally, on capital punishment, I think you’re taking WAY too narrow a reading of John 8. Are we really to suppose that “Jesus was sharp/witty” is the only lesson we’re to take from that scripture? I don’t think so. Had he only wanted to avoid the “trap” being set for him, the answer there was easy: the commandment translates correctly as “Thou shalt not do murder.” Meanwhile, execution is not only condoned but demanded all throughout what we now call the Old Testament. Jesus surely would have known this. He could have simply pointed this out, had he wanted to avoid the trap. Instead, he responded in a way that showed forgiveness and mercy, and was consistent with his “judge not” lessons in Matt 7. Although scripture is inconsistent on Jesus’ view of the old Law, and in some places he claims to support it, most of his ministry is spent bucking the old law in favor of a kinder, gentler, less vindictive version.

    As a side note, some Biblical scholars believe the John 8 story to be a fabrication. The earliest manuscripts of John don’t contain that story, and the first ones that do show up several hundred years later.

    Thanks for your comments.

  5. Dan M. January 30th, 2007

    Here’s another point that I always see missed by “right-wingers”: Even if their bible really did support their policies *drum roll* so what? Their religion isn’t the basis of US law, and it would be anethema to US culture if it was.

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