Remember when the popular image of "Jesus" belonged to the Left?

[Sparkly]

Remember the "Jesus movement" that came with peace signs, love beads, and ideas like "make love, not war?"

Remember George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord," and "Jesus is Just All Right With Me," and "Godspell," and "Jesus Christ Superstar?"

Was it just a fashion? Are the people who once marched for peace, advocated love, and believed in a gentle Jesus the same people who are now using His name to push a political agenda of intolerance, hatred and cruelty? Or is it just a completely different breed of human?

The popular cultural idea of Jesus then seemed so different than it is now. It's all so crazy, it's hard to figure it all out. :crazy:

[htuttle]

1. "Long Haired Friends of Jesus in a Volkswagon Microbus"

What ever happened to the Jesus freaks? They didn't all cut their hair and turn into fundies, did they?

[paparush]

22. I think that's "Eleven Long Haired Friends of Jesus.."

in a chartreuse micra bus"

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/c/c.w.-mccall/26575.html

I actually had the CW McCall "Convoy" on 45. One of my very first records.

[Bouncy Ball]

2. I LOVE that Doobie Brothers song

"Jesus is Just Alright With Me." Wasn't that the Doobie Brothers?

My very liberal stepfather used to LOVE that song.

[neuvocat]

3. Yes, that was the Doobies.

[TahitiNut]

4. I don't remember it as being PARTISAN.

People forget that much of the history of the anti-war movement was protesting AGAINST a Democratic administration -- and certainly a Democratic Congress. Yes, it was a movement of the "left" -- but it wasn't a Partisan Jesus. It was the principle, not the party!

Why do we forget this? Why is it so easy for folks to forget Nixon's "Southern Strategy" when the flotsam like Zell Miller is still around?

Doesn't the term "anti-establishment" ring a bell? (It wasn't "anti-conservative," or "anti-Republican.")

[Sparkly]

7. True, but I think the concepts involved are sharply partisan today.

And I wonder what happened to the ideas of Jesus that the "popular culture," if you will, embraced and celebrated then -- of love and peace.

I think the image of Jesus of the popular imagination today is different from the ideas caught up in the Jesus movement of the 70s. Not necessarily partisan then -- fair enough.

[TahitiNut]

16. You've heard the sneer "bleeding heart liberal"?

Well, that comes from the bleeding heart of Jesus.

[enigmatic]

5. Different people.

The "Jesus Freaks" of the 70's took their cue from MLK and Gandhi; today's "Jesus Freaks" take their cue from Jack Chick and Chan Channing.

[DanCa]

18. More like Charley Manson and GWB

Both claimed to hear God talk to them no?

[BringEmOn]

6. Jesus didn't change. His name has been hijacked by the right

Although, they (the right) deny Him, now. Rarely quoting His words, rather, quoting from the Old Testament or New Testament sans Gospels and ignoring His teachings.

They profess that they know God; but in works they deny , being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Titus 1: 16

[Sparkly]

8. I agree completely. nt

[FreedomAngel82]

15. Totally agree

I definietly agree with you. From my own looks at the 70's peace movement and everything it's so different with how the right uses Jesus today. The right uses Jesus to teach that you're supposed to hate gay's and abortion rights and kick out democrats, or people who voted democratic, in their church instead of peace and love.

[wicket]

9. I love Jesus

I'm not going to let them take that away from me.

[DanCa]

19. Wicket I agree

They can have the building they wont have my faith.

[KittyWampus]

10. Lots Of Those People Were Just Looking To Get Laid!

:)

that's not just sarcasm, it's true.

Beads and fringe were fashionable.

Perhaps the Fundies will make hair shirts all the rage next year.

[Stinky The Clown]

11. There's always been 'two' Jesuses

The peace and love Jesus and the fire and brimstone Jesus.

One is the true Jesus and one is, in my view, a misguided human concotion of Jesus.

The peace and love guy is pretty much in line with the gospels.

The fire and brimstone guy, near as I can tell, never existed. He's a human Jesus stew ...... the name from the New Testament mixed with a heady brew of the Old Testament's thunder and damnation.

I'll take an order of the peace and love guy .... to go, please

[Imperialism Inc.]

12. No, I don't remember that, but I do remember when politics

wasn't ALL JESUS ALL THE TIME!!!!

[gumby]

13. The Alien Lizard race now in control of the world

has consumed Jesus just like they consume every thing else on the planet.

A voracious consumption is their creed. It doesn't make any difference -- natural resources, pedophilia, children for medical experiments and the death of hundreds of thousands for their own ends.

Jesus is just a tool for them to be consumed and used as they consume all life. Amen.

[PATRICK]

14. MLK, John XXIII

and religion in general that thought and worked for political action was in personality and substance and historical coincidence completely different than the ugly religious establishment lockstep with anti-Communism, similarly rooted in trying to free the captive nations. When the Russians invaded the Czechs though it revealed itself as an anti-establishment movement, not ideological communism.

When the peasants revolted under the banners of Luther's revolt against the Church, Luther joined the princes. When the peasants revolted against the privileged Catholic Church in the French Revolution, atheism became fashionable as never before(they were pretty well educated by the wars of religion top get off that merry-go-round).

People understand the teachings of Jesus when they need to and the contrast with the oppressors is insultingly clear. Our RW is fat and concerned in NOT hearing the teachings of Christ in behalf of fringe fantasies and adoration of Mammon and the World.

Nothing has changed despite the shifting stage and the actors furiously donning new hats other than a**holes are eternal and contemporary resentment writes the new words of wrath. And not all wrath is about driving out the moneychangers or condemning hypocrites. Today it is the wrath of Pilate, the collaborating ministers and the phony, law-loading Pharisees. Those days are usually short, dark and bloody.

[retnavyliberal]

17. At the risk of making a generalization

the "Jesus Freaks" of the 60's were agnostic as a rule. They (I would say "we" but I was a bit too young and only had trickle down hippieness from my older brother and sisters) molded a spiritualism that reflected their beliefs. Jesus = Peace and Love.

I think the issues we are having today are due to Religion not spiritualism. Extremists from the right are trying to impose the beliefs of their religions on people and we are feeling the results. Religion, as we all know, has always been a topic that makes hackles raise and fur fly.

I will risk the flames of DU by saying that I have seen some examples of the Extremists on the left reacting to this in a way that I find equally disturbing as the Fundies on the right. We could afford to take some lessons from the Micro bus Jesus and start acting more like the "Party of Tolerance"

[MsTryska]

20. Ya know = jesus Christ Superstar is my preferred

movie depiction of JC?



Churchy-types always look at me funny when i say i prefer Jesus Christ Superstar to Passion Christ.



But imo - JC SS is the closest to the New Testament that I've seen. (personality wise)


They need to play that on TV again. it's about time it got some airtime again.

[hector459]

21. Yes, but now the "true" image of Jesus belongs to the left.

eom