Evangelicals find their Political Ally in President Ronald Reagan

[madfloridian]

Run time: 09:15 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=947hNW9z2JY   Posted on YouTube: October 10, 2008 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: May 02, 2009 By DU Member: madfloridian Views on DU: 774

 
Where we are now because of the rise of this religious movement in politics is shown by this post at a great blog called The Progressive Puppy.

More Churchgoers Approve Torture

From CNN: "More than half of people who attend services at least once a week, 54%, said the use of torture against suspected terrorists is "often" or "sometimes" justified. Only 42% of people who "seldom or never" go to services agreed, according to the analysis released Wednesday by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. White evangelical Protestants were the religious group most likely to say torture is often or sometimes justified -- more than six in 10 supported it. People unaffiliated with any religious organization were least likely to back it. Only four in 10 of them did."

The poll also indicates that right-wing evangelical Christians approve of torture more than Episcopalians, Lutherans and Presbyterians.

I can't imagine anyone being surprised by these poll results since religious conservatives consistently outrank all other demographics in their support of the death penalty. ("Turn the other cheek whilst looking for a good place to jab thy lethal needle.")

Peter and Helen Evans write for the fundie-friendly Renew America: Why isn't war called torture too? We believe it is because war is not for pleasure and it's not for punishment.

Why, my goodness, our country has come so far as to have a Supreme Court justice who calls government the Minister of God.

Justice Scalia: Government is the minister of God with powers to "avenge" to "execute wrath"

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia 2002:
"Government...derives its moral authority from God. It is the minister of God with powers to "avenge" to "execute wrath" including even wrath by the sword."

First Things May 2002

There is a post at Theocracy Watch from several years ago that reveals that much of this religious right movement was actually in the Texas GOP Platform.

Look at the goals and think of all the Christianity contained therein. There is not much. Here are just a couple of sections.

The Family (pp 9-12)

p.9:Child Abuse - "The Party recognises that the family is a sovereign sphere of authority over which the state has no right to intervene unless the parent or guardian has committed criminal abuse." (Emphasis mine)

p.12 affirms the rights of parents.

p.9 Supports the Unborn Victims of Violence Act

p.10: Celebrating Traditional Marriage calls for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, and opposes the legalization of "sodomy" ie homosexuality.

p.11 - Right to Life includes suspending use of RU 486 and commends President Bush for "banning the government funding of human embryo stem cell harvesting."
pp.14 -17: Education

p.14: Supports school vouchers.

p.15: "We call for the abolition of the U.S. Department of Education and the prohibition of the transfer of any of its functions to any other federal agency."

When the Rev. Jerry Falwell was just creating the Moral Majority, he envisioned the future of this country:

"I hope to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we don't have public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them." (America Can Be Saved!, Sword of the Lord Publishers, Murfreesboro, Tenn. 1979, p. 52-53.)

p.15: Supports abstinence only sex education which is strongly supported by the Bush administration.

p.15:"The Party urges Congress to repeal government-sponsored programs that deal with early childhood development, and phase them out as soon as possible." (Programs like Headstart have been facing heavy cuts).

P.16: Multiculturism - "We favor strengthening our common American identity and loyalty over the ideology of multiculturism that emphasizes the differences between racial and ethnic groups."

p.17: "The Party supports the termination of bilingual education programs..."

p.17: supports teaching of intelligent design (a form of creationism) and teaching evolution as merely a theory rather than scientific fact.

p.17: prohibits reproductive health care services in high schools.

All I can think of is that the Moral Majority, religious right movement took us not forward, but backwards.

[madfloridian]

1. They became powerful in defining our culture in just a few decades.

And they still are trying.

[madfloridian]

2. Kick for those of us who do not support torture.

.

[puebloknot]

3. Like a cancer in remission, they are standing by to continue ...

... taking us backwards. What they can't do in the spotlight, they do in the shadows.

I wish I could believe that Obama will turn our Ship of State away from "faith-based" governance, but I think not.

And President Obama needs to take a stand on torture by at least not lending his influence to those who would "move on" without holding criminals to account. Rather like the man who beats his wife, and then in deep contrition brings her flowers and candy, the government of these United States seems to be attempting to "try again" with the rest of the world by brushing misdeeds under the rug and assuming that because we are strong, militarily, all our "friends" will welcome us back to the community of nations.

[HillbillyBob]

4. I grew up around evilgelicals Im sick unto death of them

NT