Christian conservatives say Dean redefining Easter by leaving out word "Jesus"

[madfloridian]

This is just so unreal to me. Here is the DNC statement, brief, encompassing, as are the statements for Jewish and Muslim holidays.

DNC and Easter wishes

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean released the following statement commemorating the Easter holiday this Sunday:

“Easter Sunday is a joyful celebration. The holiday represents peace, redemption and renewal, a theme which brings hope to people of all faiths. During this time Christians are called to remember who they are as people of faith, and that even the greatest of evils will not have the last word. It is also a time to reflect upon and be in solidarity with those who are persecuted and suffering among us. We should also use this time to honor those who continue to make incredible sacrifices for us, including our brave men and women in the armed forces serving overseas during this holiday. I would like to wish all those celebrating around the world this Sunday, a joyous Easter.”

I was amazed at the ones who took offense over this. I had seen several articles berating Howard Dean for not understanding the holiday, for not using the word Jesus...then I saw this Carpetbagger report pulling it together and sizing up the weirdness of it.

Odd flap about DNC Easter wishes

First up from the God Machine this week is an odd flap about Howard Dean and the Democratic National Committee extending Easter wishes to Christians, which ended up bothering a variety of conservative evangelicals.

(he quotes the DNC statement above)

..."Sounds fairly straightforward and innocuous, right? Well, it depends on the audience. Richard Cizik, Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Association of Evangelicals, was offended. “This press release, absent any reference to Jesus, without whom the Easter resurrection story is meaningless, is apparently a sad reflection of a ‘lowest common denominator’ religious outreach of the Democratic party,” Cizik said. “Wake up and smell the Easter lillies! This kind of outreach will not pass the smell test of any evangelical.”

Nathan L. Gonzales, a conservative political writer, called the DNC’s well-wishes “astonishing,” adding, “Dean and the DNC simply missed the target this Easter. The press release was astonishing because its sole purpose was to acknowledge a religious holiday, yet it was painfully-worded to avoid being religious.”

Picky, picky. What better way for Christian conservative activists to honor the most holy of Christian holidays than to complain about Howard Dean’s well-wishes. No word from O’Reilly on whether Dean’s gesture is part of the broader War on Easter.

But there's more. He is called on by the AFA to apologize to Christians for making Easter "nondescript."

Howard Dean accused of 'redefining' meaning of Easter

Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean is taking flak from some evangelical Christians for issuing an Easter statement that did not mention Jesus Christ or His resurrection. Dean is being criticized for a DNC press release that described Easter Sunday as a "holiday represents peace, redemption and renewal, a theme which brings hope to people of all faiths."

American Family Association chairman Don Wildmon has called on Dean and the DNC to apologize to Christians for "taking Easter and making it into a nondescript, universal, nonexclusive religious celebration for all religions." But Pastor Rob Schenck of the National Clergy Council says Dean's definition of Easter is not shocking because the Democratic leader has long been the "quintessential secularist."

Schenck says he is surprised, however, that someone within the DNC did not realize the statement was "no way to try to connect with evangelicals." Dean's statement "does betray that, at its heart, the Democratic leadership is in fact secularist by philosophy and worldview," the pastor notes.

Just when you thought it was safe to go outside.

[porphyrian]

1. Christians redefine Easter by leaving out its pagan origins and characteristics they co-opted.

Why do Christians feel the need to be flagrant hypocrites so often?

[Captain_Nemo]

3. Yes, the Goddess Oestre

her symbols were the rabbitt and the egg.

[porphyrian]

41. Don't forget sugar.

All kidding aside, though, Easter really is a co-opted pagan ritual. Many of the major Christian holidays are, by design rather than accident.

[Captain_Nemo]

52. Yes, they couldn't convince the goddess worshippers to switch

so they bopped them on their heads (like little bunny Foo Foo.).

[Clark2008]

6. You should change that to read, "fundamentalists" instead of

Christians.

I'm Christian and I think the blending of both the religious aspects - the cross, rebirth and salvation - along with the pagan rituals of similar meanings - rebirth, new life and starting over - are a nice mix.

:hi:

[porphyrian]

38. I was just following the form of the original post.

I'm aware that generalizations are inherently false for a percentage of the population generalized.

[Forkboy]

35. I love it when I go to post something and the very first reply already nails it.

:)

[porphyrian]

42. I'm unreliably quick.

;)

[Blashyrkh]

60. My first thoughts too. And lost on most people.

[Retrograde]

81. Sorry, but you're betraying an Anglo-centric bias

Pedantry break:

The word "Easter" is derived from the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre, that's true, but that connection doesn't exist in the rest of Christian Europe. In many other European languages the word for the holy day is ultimately derived from Pesach - Passover - because Jesus was according to tradition crucified and resurrected during Passover, which is also why the Christian and Jewish holidays are so closely aligned. Over time, people in different parts of Europe embellished the Pascal holiday with their own local customs: growing up many decades ago in a neighborhood of 1st and 2nd generation Polish immigrants Easter lambs were much more common than bunnies, which were a strictly "American" thing.

You may now resume your regular Christian bashing.

[porphyrian]

83. Yes, you are sorry.

You didn't invalidate my point, you simply strengthened the argument that it was a co-opted holiday.

You may now resume your self-righteous outrage.

[Leopolds Ghost]

90. Co-opted from who? The Jews? Jesus was a Jew

And he was crucified during Passover after making a point to celebrate his last meal on Passover.

[Reverend_Smitty]

2. good to see that they are focusing on issues that really matter

:sarcasm:

[NormanYorkstein]

22. good to see that we are focusing on issues that really matter

:sarcasm:

[JackRiddler]

4. Mithras... Dionysus... Osiris...

and a bushelful of other pre-Christian gods were among those who died for YOUR SINS and were resurrected to bring you the GOOD NEWS (minus the penis, in poor Osiris's case). After two millennia it's time the literal Christianists got their hairy paws off humanity's ancient religious traditions and holidays.

[jobycom]

5. That Richard Cizik dude must be important, judging by his title.

Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Association of Evangelicals? Can you imagine being his executive assistant? "Hi, I'm Jobycom, Executive Assistant to the Vice President of Government Affairs for the National (gasp for air) Association of Evangelicals."

Just how many departments and titles does the Ass. of Evangelicals have? I'd guess the number of titles and members is equal, but maybe they bring their wives to meetings, so it could be half.

[BOSSHOG]

7. I suggest they show their displeasure by

having themselves nailed to crosses. How come all crucifixion recreators have themselves tied to crosses? Was Jesus tied to a cross? Or are they just fake christians?

Oh yeah, like I'm gonna apologize to the constitution hating bastards who are proud of their ignorance. Please don wildmon, hold your breath.

[Igel]

28. In some countries they *do*

have themselves nailed to the cross.

If I'm going to be treated to people pretending to be Christ, I'd rather they be tied, thank you.

[Daedelus76]

8. You have to admit, it is a generic holiday greeting

But who really cares... is that the same as being offensive? for all we know, Howard Dean isn't exactly the most religious person himself. Probably better to keep the Easter greeting short and simple, and not step on anybody's toes.

Of course, for many people, it is just about renewal. A new pair of fancy clothes, showing off to the neighbors, gossipping, eating buffets, you name it. Jeez, I never saw so many people going to church as on Easter. The roads were packed. And every one of them forgot the hams because the grocery stores were packed. I was looking forward to a quiet sunday ride, but noooo...

[jobycom]

14. Hams?

:rofl:

I see your point, but it was supposed to be unifying, not generic. Many, hopefully most, Christians would see it as attempt to spread the joy of their faith and their special holiday to all peoples without alienating or insulting others. But this narrow, minority group of Christians is offended that Dean didn't use the opportunity to proselytize, I guess. Which is odd, because their brand of Christianity drives people away and turns the entire faith into farce in many people's minds.

Meh, just rambling. Welcome to DU! :hi:

[WorseBeforeBetter]

15. As it should be. He's head of the DNC...

not a man of the cloth. And someone who has clearly stated that he doesn't wear religion on his sleeve, a concept foreign to many poor, persecuted Christians. The wingnuts have Dean in their sights, so he'd be attacked whether he mentioned Jesus or not. I didn't check the RNC site to see if they featured a pic of Jesus nailed to the cross (or on a trailer hitch?), but it wouldn't surprise me. I much prefer Dean's "generic" and inclusive approach.

[Cha]

46. They thought they were criticizing

Reverend Dean cause he Tells It Like It IS!! :P

[madfloridian]

17. For all we know, he might be more religious than any of them.

And he just chooses not to talk about it.

Forgot the hams? :D

[Cha]

48. I don't trust anyone who

wears Jesus/God on their sleeve and worships bush and his misbegotten War On Iraq.

Something wrong with that picture. And I think it's quoted in the Bible under..paraphrasing.."Some will use my name falsely"..probably to profit for themselves.

[Daedelus76]

54. perhaps you are thinking?

"Not everyone who says to me "Lord, Lord", shall be saved. But only he who does the will of my Father in heaven".

Forgot the verse, but it's in the Gospels.

[Cha]

58. Thanks, but no it's not that one

..it says something like.."there are those who will use my name falsely"

I googled it and came up with this being the closest..

"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn-bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them." Matthew 7:15-20"

I think the underlined would encompass just about all of the "prophets"(profits) going around praising bush and asking for dollars.

[Daedelus76]

59. I have an aunt...

... that goes to a mega-church out in Oklahoma, just like the stuff you are talking about. Big time right-wing cult disguised as Christianity. She's into the patent medicines this church sells, and their MLM schemes, and all the other magical thinking. "Give money to our church, and you'll get it back- it's an investment". She believes George Bush is so great because he kills evil Muslims and is a "good Christian". What's sad is she buys into all this stuff, even though for a non-college-educated woman, she is intelligent and bright. She just has a big need to belief in alot of crap, I guess.

BTW, the pastor's name is Billy Joe Doherty. He was punched in the face at an altar call a couple years ago. The church and my aunt claims he was mentally deranged, and of course they are praying for his soul. The guy, OTOH, claims the church fed him alot of lies when he was down on his luck, and he just decided to return the favor. My dad was in US Air Force missiles with his brother is Missouri, and briefly new the guy, and he was as frothing at the mouth as he is now.

[Raksha]

62. The problem with that one, "Beware of false prophets..."

is that it's a big Rorschach test. I agree with you, but fundies quote it quite frequently also, about so-called "New Agers" or anyone they don't like.

[Critters2]

64. He's a member of the United Church of Christ

which strongly implies he's Christian. Same denomination as Barack Obama, btw. But apparently not Christian enough for some.

http://www.ucc.org/news/r020205.htm

[Manifestor_of_Light]

76. UCC is extremely liberal.

United Church of Christ, also called Congregationalists, were the Pilgrims. They invented the design of the New England meeting house, where there are pews on three sides so everyone can see each other. They also have large plain windows so you can see the beautiful trees outside. NO stained glass. NO pictures of Jesus on the wall.

They started Yale and Harvard. They were active in social activism and the abolitionist movement, like the Quakers and the Transcendentalists. They accept gays.

If you're any more liberal than the UCC, you're a Unitarian-Universalist, which is not explicitly Christian. Many U-U ministers get their training at Harvard.

NOT to be confused with the Southern fundie Church of Christ, which does NOT allow music in church. Guess they never read the part about "praise him with cymbal and harp" etc.

[Critters2]

84. Some were Congregationalists. Some, like my ancestors, were German liberals

a la Schleiermacher. Many of these were pacifist, and left Germany to avoid conscription during the Franco-Prussian War. Others, again like my ancestors, were on the losing side of the Prussian Revolution of 1848.

The UCC is a merger of the English/Congregationalist tradition and the German Reformed/liberal tradition.

But yes, we're about as liberal as you can get and still be Trinitarian Christian.

And proud of it.

[bklyncowgirl]

65. Jesus warned against conspicuous religiosity--go into your closet alone to pray

He was particularly hard on people who insisted on making a great deal of their attendance at the local synagogue on Sabbath but spent the rest of their week cheating the same neighbors they tried to impress.

Jesus would have hated the Christian Right.

[madfloridian]

77. I do so agree with your statement.

Jesus did not hesitate to call out hypocrites.

:hi:

[jobycom]

9. Here, let me write th message they really wanted Dean to give.

Easter is a time when we white Christian people rally around our Lord and Warrior King, Jesus Christ, and more importantly, around the truths that many of us assume are actually in the Holy Bible. On this day we reflect on how pathetic we find all non-Christians, and how non-White people by the exclusionary grace of Jesus's love can become almost as supreme as us. We ask all white American Christians to pray for God's coninued love and protection, and to give thanks to all the less desirable non-white people He has given us to fight our wars for us. We extend our warmest blessings and greetings to all of those in the world unfortunate enough to not be born white, American, Christian, conservative, and a member of our church. We close with the words of our Holy Scripture: Do what we tell you, or Jesus will kick your ass. Gospel of Ronald, 12:6.

[Goblinmonger]

11. GMTA

You went a little more snarky than I did. I'm disappointed in myself.

[jobycom]

13. GMTA?

Mediocre Minds Think Alike, too. But that doesn't apply to us! :hi:

[Goblinmonger]

18. Pretty funny

that we posted within a minute. I can just picture the movie version of that portion of our lives with a Brian DePalma split screen--each of us seated at our computers diligently composing our satirical jab at evangelicals. Of course, I'm kind of a nerd, too, so there you go.

[jobycom]

23. So, you're saying

our lives would be a film about a tragic futility in duplicate? :)

[Goblinmonger]

24. Now that's a buzz kill.

But maybe, yes. :P

[camero]

73. You forgot rich n/t

[Goblinmonger]

10. Here's what they would have been happy with.

"Jesus is lord and savior of all. This season is a time to remember that (evangelical) Christians are saved and the rest are going to burn and writhe in hell. The DNC would like to take the opportunity of this season to state our position of turning this country into a Christian theocracy. We will do all that we can to ensure that all citizens of the United States are god-fearing Christians and the rest are burned at the stake, hung, or run out of the country. For only in this manner can we please god and truely advance as a nation. Praise Jesus."

On second read, that's probably still a little tame for them.
I left lord, savior, and god uncapitalized just so that someone could point that out as being something that they would bust a blood vessel about. 5 points to the person that points it out.
Man they are asshats.

[jobycom]

12. Copycat!

:rofl: Well done!

[madfloridian]

16. Wow, I had no clue all these folks found that message offensive...google search.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&q=%22howard+dean%22+easter%2C+jesus&btnmeta%3Dsearch%3Dsearch=Search+the+Web

Even Andrew Sullivan attacks him, but does not link to the DNC statement...links to another blog which attacks him.

This just blows my mind. The pure nerve or hypocrisy, or whatever one would call it....Iraq is falling apart..Bush lies, Rove lies...everyone lies.

And they attack the DNC statement because it did not include the word Jesus.

:wow: :think:

[madfloridian]

43. One blog calls it a crusade.

http://postpolitical.com/ppblog/2007/04/11/howard-deans-crusade/

This stuff just boggles my mind.

[unpossibles]

19. can those morons not read?

I saw a reference to Christ in the third sentence.

[Warpy]

20. If it isn't all Jesus, all the time, it's persecution

to these zealots.

The truth is that all the good things about Easter, especially for the children, comes from old Pagan stuff and is now secularized.

Plus, it's not just Easter. Don't forget Passover.

Dean was right and they are wrong. Why we have to keep defending ourselves against all these sanctimonious shitheads is completely beyond me.

At least public opinion is slowly turning against them. Nobody likes to be bullied, especially by the holier than thou.

[Dervill Crow]

21. My dad always said, "Those people are just stupid."

This was back in the 1960s, and he didn't identify "those people" as Christians or fundamentalists because those terms weren't in popular usage--at least in my neighborhood. If anyone asked him if he was a Christian, he would have said yes, because he wasn't Jewish. But he had zero respect for churchgoers, and thought most of them were fools at best and hypocrites and liars at worst.

Imagine his horror when I got "born again" and became a Lutheran at 24. I wish my dad was here to see that it was just a phase.

I thought my dad was an uneducated bigot. Sometimes, though, his insights were correct. I remember so well the day he told me that the Vietnam war was necessary for the American economy, and I could not wrap my mind around the idea that anyone would be willing to trade human lives for money.

Maybe Dad wasn't so dumb, after all.

[madfloridian]

27. Sounds like your dad knew bigotry when he saw it.

I had an uncle who would say that about Vietnam, but the rest of the family would argue with him. He was the "liberal" in our family then. Now hubby and I are...

[aquart]

25. Now there's a war on Easter?

These poor martyrs really won't be happy until .............do they have slaughtered saints in their denomination? Isn't this really a war on Christians who are insufficiently gung ho? The rest of us don't even care a little bit about the resurrection. Okay, we're laughing behind your backs but that isn't the issue. This is about shaming Christians and redefining what's appropriate in a secular nation.

Ask the dominionist...because I damn well don't believe it's a conservative anything talking...if he'd be happier if we never mentioned Easter or Christmas at all? Since his feelings are so delicate.

[madfloridian]

26. I started to make that my subject line....does seem like a war.

Just like the war on Christmas that never was.

[EFerrari]

29. Can they be ANY MORE ridiculous?

lol

[Igel]

32. Yes.

Give them time.

[EFerrari]

34. These nutcases are single handedly resurrecting black comedy.

I owe them.

:rofl:

[sutz12]

30. Didn't the WH "Christmas Card" read "Happy Holidays?" nt

[madfloridian]

37. Good point.

:hi:

[sutz12]

39. IIRC, O'Lielly's did, too.

:rofl:

[Cha]

47. Yeah...Throw that back

in their collective sour puss.

[Igel]

31. Many of the people criticizing the message are

republicans, or at least conservatives.

They show precisely the same lack of good will to dems that many dems/liberals show to repubs. They take things out of context, assume 'good' is 'bad' because it's not 'perfect', and generally interpret things in the worst light possible.

Dean issued pablum. I dislike pablum on principle: it's insipid. But issuing a Xian-specific greeting that could, with a couple of search-and-replaces be rendered a perfectly fine Muslim or Jewish greeting is meaningless. Note that I don't keep Easter, but am Xian of the Passover-keeping variety, so this message is irrelevant to me.

[madfloridian]

33. Not pablum, common sense.

He issued a statement that did not get into depth on religion. That is not his job, to delve into religious beliefs.

It is the unreasonable demands on the right that I question, not the DNC statement.

But it should be generic, not specific. It was good that way.

[Dervill Crow]

36. Ostara and Beltane are more my thing . . .

But I did have my family over for Easter dinner and on Good Friday (what Friday isn't good?) :) when I left work I wished my co-workers a happy Easter. I didn't wish them a happy commemoration of Christ's ascension from his three days in hell after the crucifixion, because that just isn't my thing. I actually almost married into a Jewish family that celebrated all the Christian and Jewish holidays. They just enjoyed a good party. Not all religious holidays are religious holidays; in fact, probably most aren't to most people. I happen to like what Dean said much better than some Christian-specific press release pandering to the people who choose their candidates and views on ballot measures based on the Christian Voting Guide.

Not that I'm anti-Christian. I raised my kids in the church, as it were, and it's up to them to decide what to do with what they learned there.

[Warren DeMontague]

40. They're lucky I'm not the DNC Chair. I would have reminded them what those bunnies REALLY represent.

[lolly]

45. Good Heavens!

Quick! Somebody give those bunnies some Abstinence Education!



On edit--oops! Mispelled abstinence. Probably a Freudian slip . . .

[Hekate]

63. Awww, look kiddies, they're cuddling!

:rofl:

Hekate

[madfloridian]

82. Ha Ha, I just now saw your picture of the bunnies....

:D

[Cha]

44. Those evangelicals won't like

what I have to say about them, either.

What a bunch of hypercritical hypocrites. They don't worship Jesus they worship bushit. And don't try to tell me any differently, gonzales, cizik, and schenck.

[baldguy]

49. Evangelical Christians have redefined the Spring Equinox by leaving out egg-balancing.

They take all the meaning out of the holiday.

[More Than A Feeling]

50. What-a-shock, fundamentalists think its all about them. n/t

[bliss_eternal]

51. The war on Christmas now has a friend...!

The war on Easter...Yay! :bounce:

[Initech]

53. They gotta have something to do until next November!

[WinkyDink]

55. Do they know about Bush-Buddy Moon's campaign to "Take down the Cross"?

http://www.student.northpark.edu/pemente/nocross.htm

[madfloridian]

56. I would love to know every church involved with Moon.

"The churches involved now claim that the cross is "an image of bloodshed." Near the top of the Family Federation page is an address from Bishop Anthony Moses of the New Discipleship Church that the cross is "gruesome" and "no longer an appropriate symbol for Christians." Other churches which have gone along with this include:

Christian Light Missionary Baptist Church; New Prospect Family Praise and Worship Center; Trinity Missionary Baptist Church; Sadoc Christian Church; Calvary CME Church; Opportunity Baptist Church; Greater All Nations Pentecostal Church; Cosmopolitan Community Church; Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church; Lighthouse of Faith Family Church; and many others."

Fascinating. Put up a crown?? Who gets to wear that crown? Bush? Moon? Who?

[WinkyDink]

57. Yes, "Father" Moon will wear the crown. Indeed, he has already BEEN crowned.

http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2004/06/21/moon/index.html

"June 21, 2004 | You probably imagine your congressman hard at work in the Capitol debating legislation, making laws -- you know, governing. But your newspaper probably didn't tell you that one night in March, members of Congress hosted a crowning ritual for an ex-convict and multibillionaire who dressed up in maroon robes and declared himself the Second Coming."

[anitar1]

61. So shut up already. Many of us think you are boring.

Always trying to stuff your religion down our throats.

[and-justice-for-all]

66. Jesus..!!!

Its ESTRE, not Jesus you hoilday robbing infidels!

[bklyncowgirl]

67. If he had mentioned Jesus they would have accused him of pandering to Christians

There's no way to win so just do what's right. It was a nice message and an attempt to bring non-Christians into the spirit of Easter.

[Lilith Velkor]

68. Eh, we cynics knew they were gonna do this shit back in December

Republican partisans who mistake their politics for the Christian religion are so predictable...

[madfloridian]

69. Pathetic! They are sending it around as an email call to action. So sad.

Now they are becoming offensive.

http://capitol3conservatives.blogspot.com/2007/04/easter-message-censors-christ.html

"Easter message censors Christ

April 16, 2007

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire email list of family and friends.

Democrats' Easter message censors Christ, Resurrection
Fear offending non-Christians

First, the politcally correct crowd tried to take Christ out of Christmas. Now, the Democratic Party has taken Christ and the Resurrection out of Easter. "

On edit, that is one scary site. Here is their homepage...check out the little sprout pictures.

http://capitol3conservatives.blogspot.com/index.html

[KansDem]

70. JESUS CHRIST! ARE THEY WHINING AND BITCHING ABOUT EASTER NOW!!!

There...we just put "Jesus" back in Easter...:)

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

71. Let's all use "Jesus" in response to conservative...

Jesus, get your head out of your ass!

[camero]

72. Damn Calender

It left out the word Jesus on the Easter day mark. It's liberal evil I tell ya. :sarcasm:

[Kerrytravelers]

74. Oh, so Dean is no longer DNC chair but now the head od a church.

I missed that memo.




:eyes:

[GreenTea]

75. If these hypocritical lying fucks like Jerry Falwell are on the attack to get Dean...

It makes me love Dean and want to support him even more than I always have... Every time I hear the lying agenda-driven right-wing Robertson, Falwell, Dobson bullshit!

These sickening "Christian" republicans are just doing Bush and the RNC dirty work for them...

GET DEAN AT ALL COST BEFORE HE STEERS THE DEMOCRATS TO MORE VICTORIES IN 2008!

[Sapere aude]

78. Easter Sunday is the fist Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox

That sounds kind of Pagan to me. I prefer my pagan interpretation of the holiday not holyday.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

79. Fundies don't like to be reminded of those pagan holidays.

I told a rabid fundie that he better not have a Xmas tree because that was a pagan symbol. I also told him not to have Easter eggs and rabbits, because those were pagan symbols too!!

They can't handle the truth.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

80. Too bad they can't take that anger to the streets to feed the hungry.

All that stuff Jesus talked about, ya know?

[Warren DeMontague]

85. How about "Christian Conservatives" apologize to ME for being so full of shit?

Like I said before, they're lucky I'm not the DNC chair- I would have reminded them what those bunnies REALLY symbolize.

[madfloridian]

86. DNC spokesperson responds about Dean's "war on easter."

I have to be honest, I am finding all this more and more ridiculous. It is embarrassing to read this stuff they are spewing. This website even has an audio up.

I appreciate the DNC spokeswoman, but she really did sound a little like she was pandering. Listen to the audio.

I find this so silly when the world is falling apart.

DNC stands by Christ-less Easter statement

I think if you look back at Governor Dean's remarks previously, he's made a consistent effort to reach out to faith and religious community," Smith asserts. "Recently we just spoke to Eastern University, a conservative Christian university -- and in many of his public speeches he has talked about Jesus and the teachings of Jesus ...."

The DNC "has been launching a broad effort to reach out to people of diverse faiths" under Dean's leadership, adds Smith. "I think as part of our effort it's always important to hear feedback from the faith community -- and that's part of opening that dialogue," she suggests. "And of course, we're willing to take criticism and willing to engage in a direct dialogue as to how future statements should be crafted."

Mississippi Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Arthur Eaves says "the failure of the DNC to put Jesus at the center of the Easter statement was a mistake." And Democrats, he adds, "need to stop allowing fringe groups to cow us into a fear of openly proclaiming what we believe and where our beliefs come from."

According to Eaves, "the DNC needs to recognize that for most Democrats there are no sweeter words than 'He is Risen!'"

Leave the guy alone and let him be chairman. The DNC is not a religious institution.

[Kerrytravelers]

87. These idiots seem to think the RNC is a religious institute.

Little di they realize they are being used and laughed at by those who run the RNC.

[madfloridian]

88. Right Wing Watch calls them out on this...says they are accusing DNC of "war on Christians"

I love People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch. They are calling it like it is...they are saying the right wing extremists are accusing Dean and DNC of a war on Christians.

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/04/easter_press_re.html

"April 17, 2007
Easter Press Release Occasion to Invoke 'War on Christians'
In a brief press release, Democratic National Committee chair Howard Dean commemorated Easter by saying, “During this time Christians are called to remember who they are as people of faith, and that even the greatest of evils will not have the last word.” He also said that “peace, redemption and renewal” is a “theme which brings hope to people of all faiths.” The latter sentiment is driving some commentators to read all kinds of meaning into the press release – Richard Cizik of the National Association of Evangelicals claims that the lack of specific use of the name of Jesus is “a sad reflection of a 'lowest common denominator' religious outreach of the Democratic party” which “will not pass the smell test of any evangelical.”

More partisan activists on the Religious Right, however, go as far as accusing Dean of heresy-by-press-release by “redefining” Easter. He’s “taking Easter and making it into a nondescript, universal, nonexclusive religious celebration for all religions,” warns Don Wildmon of the American Family Association. According to Rob Schenck of the National Clergy Council, Dean’s press release proves that “the Democratic leadership is in fact secularist by philosophy and worldview” – and it’s part of a larger conspiracy against faith"

Who in the world is this guy, Rob Schenck, to be a judge of the religion of others.

"And we see it here in Washington, where I'm located," Schenck adds, "that there is a growing hostility towards religious faith in the public arena, and this is more indication of that." Dean has attempted to redefine the meaning of Easter, the Christian spokesman contends, by "dumbing it down to a universal, New Age spirituality."

..."However, since Howard Dean is not a theologian or a student of the Bible, Schenck says the politician is not in a position to redefine the meaning of Easter. In fact, after talking with Dean personally and observing him in many public settings, the National Clergy Council spokesman says he has seen nothing that would indicate the DNC chairman has any "overriding religious sensibilities."

Here is the website for the National Clergy Council of which Schenck is spokesperson. A list of the their member churches is here. Wonder how many agree in general that Howard Dean and the DNC are conducting a war on Christians. How many of them judge others and their religion that harshly.

http://www.nationalclergycouncil.org/mission.html

[NashVegas]

89. Fuck These Jackals

They are only trying to start shit and make Dean question himself.

[madfloridian]

91. More mindnunbing foolishness....

"..."Dean praises himself in being a loyal churchmen, though he has hopped denominations as a sport over the years. Now he lands in the theologically liberal United Church of Christ (Congregational) where one can be an atheist and find comfort. Consequently, his lack of biblical conviction in speaking for the Dems at Easter is characteristic of his unbelief and that of his denomination."

"Dean’s press release proves that “the Democratic leadership is in fact secularist by philosophy and worldview” – and it’s part of a larger conspiracy against faith"

They are accusing the DNC and Dean of a war on Easter, a war on faith, and other weird stuff.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1288

[ronnykmarshall]

92. And no mention of the Easter Bunny?

That Dean, we need to get rid of him!