Pastor uses soldier's funeral as forum for Iraq invasion

[juslikagrzly]

I am outraged by the following front page account of the funeral for a soldier killed in Iraq. While I am extremely hesitant to write a LTTE for fear of intruding upon the family's grief, I am speechless (but not surprised) that a pastor would use a funeral to shill for this administration. Almost the entire article is given over to quotes from the pastor on the great success of the Iraq invasion. I understand the need to find reason for senseless death, but IMHO this is beyond the pale.

What are your thoughts DUers? Would you write a LTTE or let it go?

I am removing ID info out of respect for the soldier and his family

<snip>

"Thirty-five hundred schools have been renovated and reopened throughout the country of Iraq; 4.3 million Iraqi kids are now attending primary schools, and almost 96 percent of Iraqi children under the age of 5 have received polio vaccinations, the first time that has happened."

The pastor said Iraq's higher education system consists of about 20 universities, 46 colleges and four research centers, and "they are getting back to normal; people are going back to school."

He said more than 1,100 building projects are under way in Iraq, including public medical clinics and hospitals and five police academies. Nearly 50 countries have re-established embassies in Iraq.

<snip>

XXXXX, the pastor said, "was part of the unit that stormed into Baghdad (and) was there, I am told, when the statue (of Saddam Hussein) came down. He was there when Saddam Hussein's lavish palaces were turned into U.S. Army headquarters."

<snip>

Similar vein in rest of article, subscription required :( http://www.tulsaworld.com/NewsStory.asp?ID=050308_Ne_A1_Soldi12704

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I think it shows how desperate they are to make sense of the senseless

But yeah, it does seem over the top to me too.

Would Jesus love a liberal? You bet!
http://timeforachange.bluelemur.com/

[bryant69]

2. There it is

People want to believe that that soldier died for something, instead of being thrown away to no purpose.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[oneighty]

3. A Bush/God cheer leader

Lay down your bible and your flag preacher-man, pick up a weapon sally forth and go do God's dirty work.

Damned fool.

180

[Mika]

4. Saddam Hussein's lavish palaces are now the US's lavish palaces

Different leader, worse crap.

---

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. Would you believe that I heard something similar at the funeral

of one of my elderly relatives, whose son is a former Air Force chaplain?

In his eulogy (for a woman who was senile for the past few years and therefore is unlikely to have had any opinion either way on the Iraq invasion), he talked about how millions of Iraqis had been liberated from tyranny and were in the process of building a democracy.

It really came out of nowhere and was a propos of nothing, and while I knew that the family was rightwing, due to having lived within the military structure since before WWII, I was astonished that the son was unable to keep rightwing politics even out of his mother's funeral.

[WilliamPitt]

6. Easy now

I understand completely why he said these things. The family of this soldier was sitting in the front row, inconsolable, wondering why their child had to die. The pastor did his best to make them feel as though his death was not in vain.

Galling, to be sure. But I'm not sure I'm the man to look a weeping mother in the eye and tell her that her son died for nothing, no matter what I may believe. I'd be surprised if you or most here would have the courage to do that.

Let this be. Grieving is personal.

[AlCzervik]

8. i agree.

[juslikagrzly]

11. Agree Will,

as I mentioned in my OP. My husband is a minister and the grieving family should always come first. However, it is absolutely common for pastors like this to use their pulpit to spout political crap. My husband was actually inspired to write a book after taking some of our church youth to a funeral for a fellow classmate killed in a car wreck. The entire funeral was a diatribe directed at the kids that they better "be right with Jesus" or they too would go to hell if killed tomorrow. Scared our youth shitless!

This is such a sticky situation and my main concern is that these so-called pastors believe it is well within their purview to use a family's grief to advance their fundamentalist agenda. My other concern is that the paper has this on the front page which gives the pastor's statements credibility and status.

Of course, it is entirely possible that the family was wholely approving of the eulogy.

The whole thing is sickening. That the boy had to die, that many are left heartbroken all over our country, and that so-called Christians use this ill-gotten "war" to push their so-called values.

It leaves us all between a rock and a hard place but you're right. I'm not the woman to look his mother in the eye and tell her he died in vain.

[DulceDecorum]

12. 'Grant us the victory, O Lord our God!'

O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle -- be Thou near them! With them -- in spirit -- we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe.
O Lord our God,
Help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells;
Help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead;
Help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain;
Help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire;
Help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief;
Help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst,
Sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter,
Broken in spirit,
Worn with travail,
Imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it –
For our sakes who adore Thee, Lord,
Blast their hopes,
Blight their lives,
Protract their bitter pilgrimage,
Make heavy their steps,
Water their way with their tears,
Stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet!
We ask it, in the spirit of love,
Of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts.

Amen."


"To Dan Beard, who dropped in to see him, Clemens read the 'War Prayer,' stating that he had read it to his daughter Jean, and others, who had told him he must not print it, for it would be regarded as sacrilege.
'Still, you are going to publish it, are you not?'
Clemens, pacing up and down the room in his dressing-gown and slippers, shook his head.
'No,' he said, 'I have told the whole truth in that, and only dead mean can tell the truth in this world. It can be published after I am dead.'"

Albert Bigelow Paine, Mark Twain, A Biography (Harper & Brothers, 1912).
http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rhart/anti-war/warprayer.html

[juslikagrzly]

14. WOW, that's just powerful and heartbreaking......

much wisdom in that man.

[DulceDecorum]

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http://www.bushvideo.com/

Here is a collection of articles that talk about
George W. Bush, Faith In the White House
http://www.bushvideo.com/what_people_are_saying.htm

[juslikagrzly]

16. Excuse me while I go

:puke: I need another shower after looking at that......ewwwwww

these people are delusional - "non-political program"

[JHB]

7. Y'know what, how about asking for some proof.

Thirty-five hundred schools have been renovated and reopened throughout the country of Iraq

Great! Let's see photos of them. ALL of them, not just one or two showcase places.

almost 96 percent of Iraqi children under the age of 5 have received polio vaccinations

Great! Let's see the invoices for a few million doses, get statements from some of the people involved. Again, not just from a picked handful -- hundreds or thousands would have been involved.

He said more than 1,100 building projects are under way in Iraq, including public medical clinics and hospitals and five police academies

Great! Then let's fan out some photographers and take pictures of 1100 active construction sites! OK, some projects may still just be in the planning stages, but it's been two years already, so hundreds should be underway and lots already done. let's see'em!

[Viking12]

9. "getting back to normal" after a brutal invasion

:wtf:

The universities were open and operating fine B4 the shrub's jingo adventure. Maybe if we hadn't invaded and bombed them we wouldn't have had to rebuild schools, hospitals, and universities.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

10. The pastor says things

are getting back to normal. Even wehn Saddam was in charge, people weren't blowing things up and killing each other, no matter what their personal politics were.
But since we've removed Saddam, violence is an almost daily part of life there. How is that normal?
If you write a letter, focus on the claims made by this person. Can they be substantiated? How is life in Iraq any better now that this GI gave his life?

[UdoKier]

13. I think you should feel free to write an LTTE

After all, the "pastor" has already got the ball rolling. Besides, there is nothingg sacred about the editorial page. I think it's appropriate for the guy to express his opinion how and when he likes. A man of the cloth supporting mass murder and theft off a sovereign nation's resources, however... he's a lousy pastor.

[BikeWriter]

17. Iraq can't rebuild its economy without reliable power

Iraq can't rebuild its economy without reliable power but American officials say despite their best efforts, the supply is still less than half of the estimated demand.
http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=3034600