My Take: Sarah Palin's Bogus Persecution Complex (From A Regular CNN "Belief Blog" Contributor)

[Turborama]

Editor's Note: Stephen Prothero, a Boston University religion scholar and author of "God is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World," is a regular CNN Belief Blog contributor.

By Stephen Prothero, Special to CNN

Just when you thought American political rhetoric couldn't get any more toxic, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin is taking us to a new low, casting herself on her Facebook page not just as a victim of the liberal media elite but as a victim of "blood libel."

For those who do not know - and I can only pray that Palin is among them - "blood libel” refers to the anti-semitic myth that Jews were in the business of murdering Christians (often children) and then ritually drinking their blood - a myth that led over the years to the death of tens of thousands of innocent Jews.

So it should not be surprising that Jewish leaders (Alan Dershowitz notwithstanding) are uniting to denounce Palin's foolish and inflammatory remarks. The http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/12/my-take-sarah-palins-bogus-persecution-complex/adl.org/PresRele/Mise_00/5962_00.htm">Anti-Defamation League’s response was measured—timid, even—defending Palin against accusations that she was somehow to blame for the tragedy yet wishing that she “had not invoked the phrase ‘blood-libel’” because that term is “so fraught with pain in Jewish history.”

The dovish Jewish group J-Street did more than wish, however. Its president, Jeremy Ben-Ami, assuming that she was innocent of the history of the term, http://www.jstreet.org/blog/?p=1374">called for her to retract her statement and apologize:

We hope Governor Palin will recognize, when it is brought to her attention,that the term “blood libel” brings back painful echoes of a very dark time in our communal history when Jews were falsely accused of committing heinous deeds. When Governor Palin learns that many Jews are pained by and take offense at the use of the term, we are sure that she will choose to retract her comment, apologize and make a less inflammatory choice of words.

Full piece with more embedded links: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/12/my-take-sarah-palins-bogus-persecution-complex/

[Ruby the Liberal]

1. She is a Domionist. See: Rick Joyner, Dominionsm, or Joels Army (among others) for details.

Speaking as a Christian, they are all loons and 2/3 of their bible must be missing to believe this tripe.

"Jesus is coming back when the 'church' clears the way"?

Not my Jesus and not in my bible.

[Turborama]

2. She's an End-Timing-Rapturist, too.

I went into great detail about it here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x453718

[Ruby the Liberal]

4. Domionists aren't rapturists - they are opposite

Dominion = conqure the world so Christ can return.

Rapture = Christ will take out the saved before 7 years of hell on earth.

You will find many, many variations and nuances between the two main ones, but SP is the former.

[Turborama]

6. If you go to the OP I linked to you will read a quote from her former pastor

“storm clouds are gathering”. He told The Times: “Scripture specifically mentions oil instability as a sign of the Rapture. We’re seeing more and more oil wars. The contractions of the fulfilment of prophecies are getting tighter and tighter.”

I didn't know the differences between Domionists and rapturists, thanks for the explanation.

Also, the Bruce Wilson interview gives some good insight into what kind of "Rapture" they are into. They're basically "Third Wavers" not hanging around waiting for it, they are doing everything they can to make it happen as soon as possible.

Video by Bruce Wilson and lots of links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xges7mFi6iY

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. I think more than just the three of us are now getting it

she is not an idiot, she is down right dangerous.

[Ruby the Liberal]

5. Nadin, she is a lunatic. An ahmadinejadid certified lunatic.

[Frustratedlady]

7. Her Jews for Palin group heartily supports her, according to a guest

on Ratigan's show tonight.

Her following is like a cult that will have to be deprogrammed. I've never seen anything like it and hope we never run into another one in our lifetime.

[rbixby]

9. I just looked at the Jews for Palin website

Scary stuff!

http://jewsforsarah.com/">Jews for Sarah

[Tripod]

8. Thanks for the post. K&R