BuzzFlash Reader Contribution

CONTRIBUTOR ARCHIVES  

A Reader's Views On Religion In America

"The problem our nation is facing is not that we are becoming a theocracy; the problem is that the idea of God has been hijacked and held hostage by neoconservatives who are raping the concept of God by twisting it to suit their needs."

A BUZZFLASH READER CONTRIBUTION
by Justin Watson

For decades now, there has been incessant shrieking from the far right that America is turning into a nation of heathens. Even now, with an evangelical stranglehold on our government, the right wing is still not sated. Of all Western nations, America is undoubtedly the leader in church attendance and prominence of the ‘faithful;’ given these undisputed facts, I ask you this: how are we, as a nation, intolerant of religion?

If anything, our nation is being driven towards a virtual Christian Republic, one which is deviating from what I consider to be true Christian teachings. I personally am unable to speak for all Christians, especially given the fact that I recently gave up my Christian label. I did, however, spend twenty-one years living as a Christian and learning the teachings of Christianity, so I do believe I still have some ground on which I can stand in this debate.

The Christianity to which I was exposed was one of love and compassion. The Bible portrays Jesus as a man-God who spent his time healing the sick and standing up for the poor and oppressed. Never once did I come across the quote where Jesus said we should adopt a supply-side economic structure, ostracize those with whom we disagree, or bomb abortion clinics. While Jesus was in fact quite the revolutionary for his time, I don’t think he ever went to such extremes.

The Jesus I remember was by no means docile. He got ticked off and single-handedly drove the money lenders from the temple. There is even a recorded instance when he turned water into wine. What I really admire about Jesus, though, was his kinder, gentler side. This is what I remember about Jesus: “Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying: ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’.” (Matthew 5; 1-10, Holy Bible, New International Version)

These ten verses, the Beatitudes, are considered the cornerstone of Jesus’ teachings and are the introduction to his most famous sermon. Now, comparing these words to today’s right-wing platform, I am somewhat confused regarding how they interpret Jesus’ teachings. I understand that I am only looking at ten verses from the Bible; I am not looking at the part about judging not, rich men getting into heaven, or turning the other cheek. Where is the right’s justification for preemptive warfare? Where is the part where Jesus says: “Do unto others before they do unto you?” I remember a part about doing unto others, but I think it had slightly different implications, some even call them golden. If I recall correctly, Jesus was also a bit of a stickler about taking care of the poor, sick, and oppressed.

Why, then, would the ‘religious right’ work to undercut social security, affirmative action, and social welfare programs? Instead of saying, “where are the benefits for the working white man,” why don’t they say “how can I help someone who is worse off than I am?”

Our President, the ‘Compassionate Conservative,’ is currently working to gut Social Security and our Public Education system. What could be more Godly than taking money from children and the elderly? Apparently, since the writing of the Bible (Jewish or Christian), God has decided that charity is far too passé for his creation. If you are poor, repent. If you are unable to work, repent. If you cannot afford to provide healthcare for your family, repent. Poor people are only poor because they don’t want to work to make themselves better.

This all (quite conveniently) works out in the best interests of the politicians who espouse these ideas. Most of them are millionaires, most of the millionaires were born into wealthy families (so they didn’t have far to go), and they get the vast majority of the ‘relief’ that these tax cuts provide. The rest of us are given an additional hundred dollars we can use to maybe pay down the balance on that Visa we used to buy our kid’s medicine last week.

We do have a real problem in our nation today, and I’m not sure either side of the aisle has a good grasp on what it is. Contrary to what one may infer from looking at our political climate, we are not necessarily drifting too far towards a Christian nation. Unfortunately, we are becoming quite ‘Godless,’ but not as the Evangelicals would have us believe. By ‘Godless’ I do not mean forgetting the existence of God. I do not think that God should have any place in a secular government, especially a government which answers to so many different groups, each of which has a different idea of God.

What we are losing is what ‘God’ is supposed to represent. Regardless of which faith you embrace, the God of that faith is almost universally a benevolent entity. Most faiths teach us to love one another, take care of the less fortunate, and live in such a way that we do honor to our God or our community. Why, then, can we not begin to apply these standards to our society in such a way that we do not infringe on anyone’s beliefs or private lives? I challenge anyone to find a faith (outside of Satanism) that teaches its followers to live life to serve only the self and not the community. (I apologize, for I have digressed.)

The problem our nation is facing is not that we are becoming a theocracy; the problem is that the idea of God has been hijacked and held hostage by neoconservatives who are raping the concept of God by twisting it to suit their needs. The true tragedy is that nobody seems to recognize what is really happening.

God has been hidden from us; we are allowing a small group of people to dictate what faith teaches, and we are losing sight of the values that faith should impart upon us: social justice, kindness, generosity, charity, and (most importantly) love.

Justin Watson
Auburn, WA

A BUZZFLASH READER CONTRIBUTION