Pat Robertson’s remarks
I’m sure you’ve all heard Pat Robertson’s remarks during an episode of the 700 Club, advocating that the U.S. assassinate President Chavez of Venezuela.
It is obvious that these remarks go against Christian doctrine and others have jumped on this contradiction. See Reverand Hagler’s interesting article.
But we all know that America’s leaders of the Christian right have never shied away from advocating violence and other sins against their political foes, but what makes Chavez a threat to their view of Christianity? I think this opens up an interesting avenue for discourse on this board.
Why does the liberal political climate of an oil rich country in South America have any place in the preaching of American Christians? More generally, why are the leaders of the Christian right concerning themselves with foreign affairs to the point of making make such wicked demands of the US government? What connection is there between the right’s view of American security and Christianity in America?
My answer is there is none, but the Christian right wants Theocracy for the United States. That is the only reason they can possible feel as though they have to stick their dirty noses into such issues which are outside the scope of religious teaching in a country with separation between the church and state.
Do you see it differently?
I think the Christian right thinks that EVERYONE wants a theocracy in the United States. They’re so consumed with they’re private doctrine they’ve convinced themselves the nation as a whole thinks like them.
Recently Charles Colson repeated Peter Berger’s comment that if India is the most religious country in the world, and Sweden the least religious, then America is a nation of Indians ruled by Swedes.
These people truly think that the US is a 100% Christian nation being repressed by its government.
I guess they ignore the whole Bush only won by 3 million votes stat’.
I just wanted to quickly add that Robertson’s comment is very similiar to Jerry Falwell’s now infamous CNN quote, “We should kill them all in the name of Jesus Christ.”
This is the point where we all add our favorite Falwell quote, right? OK, here’s mine:
“AIDS is not just God’s punishment for homosexuals; it is God’s punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals.”
Oh, this is a classic as well:
“Homosexuality is Satan’s diabolical attack upon the family that will not only have a corrupting influence upon our next generation, but it will also bring down the wrath of God upon America.”
What a rummy…
My jaw dropped when I heard this outburst this week. Then, I remembered who perped this absolute anti-Christian sentiment and I just thought, “Yeah, that’s par for the course.” The problem is that the Bush administration just sat back and didn’t say a bit, pretty much just discounting his effect on the populace of “red” America. But they know damned well that Pat Robertson does wield a great amount of power amongst the un-Christian right. Pat Robertson does have a certain amount of power moving the current administration in directions his wind blows. The Bush administration in the past has reacted in outrage to words spread by various members of Islamist terrorist groups against the U.S., but when the U.S. equivalent of such terrorists blabs equally insane and provocative language they sit and do absolutely nothing. This is the problem. In my eyes, Pat Robertson is also a terrorist for taking the words of Christ and mutating them into fundamentalist threats and diatribes of hate.
Another response (a rare anger tinged response) by Jim Wallis can be found here: http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=sojomail.display&issue=050825#3