Leaving Jesus Christ out of politics imperils America

[Pah]

Leaving Jesus Christ out of politics imperils America
David Dickerson
extracted from a letter to the editor at Springfield Missouri's News Leader
http://springfield.news-leader.com/opinions/today/1205-LeavingJes-242488.html

Of course, the reluctance of politicians to openly address the issue of equal rights might not have reflected their innermost feelings. Rather, it is reasonable to believe that politicians, including Lincoln, desired liberty for all but were hindered in their efforts by what the constituent was willing to accept. In any event, the combination of an apathetic political structure coupled with an unresponsive constituency did little to help emancipate the Negro, or to stave off Civil War that resulted in the loss of over 600,000 lives.

I am convinced we have a situation in the United States today that mirrors several of the circumstances we saw affecting the late 1850s. Specifically, there is little evidence of our political leaders publicly acknowledging Jesus Christ as the rightful Lord of our country.

We go from reluctance to address a secular issue of slavery to a sectarian concern?????

Are we not operating on shaky ground if the name of Jesus Christ is seldom, if ever, mentioned by those responsible for governing America?

What shaky ground?

Why is the name of Jesus and, more importantly, the calling upon his authority consistently missing from the rhetoric of political leaders? Could it be because politicians might think it would somehow jeopardize their political well being? Possibly, the failure to openly acknowledge Jesus Christ is closely tied to keeping "church and state" separated. Or, has the citizenry become so complacent in respect to his name that politicians are merely following suit?

It would definetly effect my impression of a politician to acknowledge politically some higher authority than the US Constitution. His or her character would be in severe question for disregarding the oath of office to protect the Constitution.

Whatever the reasons are for minimizing the role of Jesus in a country founded on the principles of Christianity, let's not forget we were inclined once to minimize the freedom of the black race and ultimately ended up paying a terrible price. What are the ramifications if the nation continues to minimize the rightful place of Jesus? The toll once paid for a Civil War might pale in comparison.

We hear that old saw again about our founding - it was no more true when first said as it is today. I wonder if the delibrate repetition could be called dishonest?

Again, no specification of the terrible price that failure to place Christ first would bring and no understanding of the benefit to deny Christ a place in Constitutional law.

And this is tied to the Civil War????

Bob

 

[retrorich]

Pah: Your responses reflect my own thinking.

 

[Lintu]

What about the fact that Christian religious texts were used to justify slavery?

 

[Sunstone]

What about the fact that Christian religious texts were used to justify slavery?

Hush, Lintu! Let's keep that our dirty little secret, shall we?

 

[jewscout]

What about the fact that Christian religious texts were used to justify slavery?

Or how about antisemitism?

 

[HelpMe]

texts can be made to say anything out of context.

Or how about antisemitism?

how about the torah's generally anti-gentile(includes christian) nature?

 

[Quoth The Raven]

What about the fact that Christian religious texts were used to justify slavery?

Well, there's your Civil War link.

Does that mean the South was a good, Christian group of states? Doesn't that mean that God was on their side and they should have won the war in a day and 1/2 with 2 casualties, one of which was a man who got a splinter from a poorly maintained rifle butt and the other one a man who drank too much at the after party and fell over a chair?

 

[Valjean]

Inject Christianity into an issue and strife and carnage are likely to ensue.

Not a judgement, just a historical observation.

 

[painted wolf]

one could say to inject any absolutist religion will trigger carnage and strife.
Thus we are urged to keep our religion and our politics seperate in our lives.

wa:do

 

[Valjean]

Often a difficult task, wolf. Especially in those societies where religion and politics are synonymous.

 

[Scuba Pete]

Ohhh strife and carnage! What show are we watching?

The quickest way to LOSE my vote is to appeal to any religious group.

 

[Dadball]

John 18:36Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

This is straight from the top. The Kingdom of God is not the good ole USA. Jesus says give unto Caesar what is Caesar's.

With that said, I try to follow Jesus' teachings, and I can not discard my faith for polical purposes. It is who I am. Just as other's belief system is a part of them. Anything less would not be honest.

 

[Scuba Pete]

It is my not so humble opinion, that way too many Christians get sidetracked by politics and evolution and lose sight of loving their neighbor. Get the focus back on being a servant!

 

[anders]

For close to 200 years, Sweden has managed to stay outside any wars. (And the last war was rather a skirmish, with our neighbour Norway.) I think that a contributing factor to the long period of peace is that religion never had any deep influence on people or government.

 

[desi]

For close to 200 years, Sweden has managed to stay outside any wars. (And the last war was rather a skirmish, with our neighbour Norway.) I think that a contributing factor to the long period of peace is that religion never had any deep influence on people or government.

Stay out of wars? Don't forget the Swiss were laundering Nazi gold taken from Jewish concentration camp victims' teeth fillings. The Swiss chose a side, and it was the wrong one. Their hands aren't clean.

 

[Pah]

Stay out of wars? Don't forget the Swiss were laundering Nazi gold taken from Jewish concentration camp victims' teeth fillings. The Swiss chose a side, and it was the wrong one. Their hands aren't clean.

Switzerland is off topic from Sweden.

pah

 

[Scuba Pete]

It's SOOOOO easy to confuse the two, eh?

 

[Lonely Traveller]

Fundamentally the reason why Jesus is not held up in the ways some people suggest he could be is simply that no political leader in office today could himself live up to those ideals, and secondly because of centuries of "re definition" supporting the underlying philosophy of Christ would create a division in the electorate.

If they were to support the ideals of Christ, and Heaven their own deficiencies in policy would become a target for deeper philosophical scrutiny that would no doubt highlight a certain degree of hypocrisy.

For instance if they said something along the lines of "you must live on earth as you intend to heaven" then most of the environmental, economic and foreign affairs policies would become redundent. If the public is to live up to the standard of their chosen leader its easier to elect someone with low standards and convince yourself that they are high. This is how George W. Bush was able to be elected a second term and incidently why most of the world cant stand Americans. We elected a world leader that the rest of the world sees as the single biggest threat to the future of mankind, firstly through pursuing economic policy that maximises economic growth, consumption of the environment and greenhouse emissions and secondly through giving himself the mandate to attack any country he sees fit in the name of the American good and all he has to say is that there were terrorists. The reality is that the world is right..he probably is the dumbest world leader in living memory and on a global scale his passion for conquest is the greatest since Hitler and, like Hitler, he has attempted to draw the lines on religious grounds.

Coming back to the starting point the question is whether a man like George W has been good for the world or whether he has made it worse. Jesus arguably made the world better..George W has arguably made it worse..thats why Jesus doesnt come into the argument very often.

 

[Quoth The Raven]

Stay out of wars? Don't forget the Swiss were laundering Nazi gold taken from Jewish concentration camp victims' teeth fillings. The Swiss chose a side, and it was the wrong one. Their hands aren't clean.

The Swiss, the Swedish...never seen in the same place at the same time:areyoucra

 

[desi]

Switzerland is off topic from Sweden.

pah

Didn't Germany take over Sweden and conscript the men? Thought I heard something about Swedish SS badmouthing German SS for being 'afraid of the cold'.