Pat Robertson is a Christian? Really?
Pat Robertson, the "Christian" televangelist of 700 Club fame, spent this past sunday on the ABC Sunday moring show This Week. He told George Stephanopolis that he believed the threat to America from "Liberal" judges was "probably more serious than a few bearded terrorists who fly into buildings." When an incredoulous Stephanopolis probed further asking if he really believed that "Liberal" judges were "the most serious threat America has faced in nearly 400 years of history, more serious than al Qaeda, more serious than Nazi Germany and Japan, more serious than the Civil War?", Robertson responded "George, I really believe that." Apperently when Robertson asks himself that immortal question "What Would Jesus Do?", the answer he gets is "hate, hate, hate." Of course this is the same sanctimonious wind bag who proclaimed on September 12, 2001 that "liberals, feminists, and homosexuals" were responsible for 9/11. Of course, that little gem was delivered on the 700 Club and was intended only for the faithful. When word of the comments reached the mainstream press, he retreted from them as fast as a fat little man could (apprently gluttony is no longer a deadly sin). These most recent comments were intended for mass consumption, which really tells you the state of the union. Or, at the very least, just where Robertson and his ilk feel they stand now as opposed to 2001.
Don't get me wrong, I am now, as ever, a staunch defender of the First Ammendment. Robertson has the right to say and think whatever he wishes. I'm just constanty dismayed that no one from the Chrtistian side of the aisle ever seems to repudiate what he says. I hope, and am fairly confident, that Robertson does not speak for most Christians. But when no Christian leaders step forward to denouce this garbage, it has the effect of making Robertson a spokeperson for the entire religion. Silence can be as bad as active agreement. Witness the "March of the Living" being held today from Auchswitz to Birkenau in Poland. 20,000 survivors and reltives of those who perished in the Holocaust are a powerful reminder that everyone must speak out against hatred and intolerance. Voltaire once claimed that he might disagree with another man but would defend to his own death the right of another to speak his mind. Voltaire was right, but the First Amendment gives you only the right to speak your mind. It does not guarantee an audience or sheild you from the consequences of your words. We must all turn a deaf ear to hatred and make sure that those who expouse it are exposed for the human garbage they really are.
Don't get me wrong, I am now, as ever, a staunch defender of the First Ammendment. Robertson has the right to say and think whatever he wishes. I'm just constanty dismayed that no one from the Chrtistian side of the aisle ever seems to repudiate what he says. I hope, and am fairly confident, that Robertson does not speak for most Christians. But when no Christian leaders step forward to denouce this garbage, it has the effect of making Robertson a spokeperson for the entire religion. Silence can be as bad as active agreement. Witness the "March of the Living" being held today from Auchswitz to Birkenau in Poland. 20,000 survivors and reltives of those who perished in the Holocaust are a powerful reminder that everyone must speak out against hatred and intolerance. Voltaire once claimed that he might disagree with another man but would defend to his own death the right of another to speak his mind. Voltaire was right, but the First Amendment gives you only the right to speak your mind. It does not guarantee an audience or sheild you from the consequences of your words. We must all turn a deaf ear to hatred and make sure that those who expouse it are exposed for the human garbage they really are.
7 Comments:
At 6:51 PM, ROMA said…
I'll take the bait.
I think the left in general has been relatively silent. I think the leaders of the Democratic Party are afraid of offending the right and being smeared relentlessly by the right wing political spin machine.
As for Christians speaking out, not to many have the media at their beckon call like the fundamentalist do right now, but with that being said I do believe that ministers speak out against his type of hate speech every Sunday; at least I know mine does. It is scary that Robertson can say the things he does and good people accepts his prejudice and malice as the “word of God”. I think you get the real truth of the Christianity more than he does.
My minister gets criticized daily for his stance on homosexuality, Christ, and the Bible. I do not think that Pat Robertson and his followers take the new covenant seriously at all. They continue to live in Old Testament thinking. Every major religion has the same message. Love your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and LOVE you neighbor as you love yourself.
Unfortunately fundamentalist Christians see the word neighbor as fellow believer and follower, not as every person on this earth.
At 7:54 PM, ahsirt said…
ROMA - you're pretty good at this "bait and hook" game...have you played before??? lol
It is very disconcerting to see Robertson displayed as the poster child for Christianity. I, like you Axis, hope and believe that the majority of Christians do not feel like him. I talked with an ethics professor at school about the comments made after 9/11. He was shocked and appalled. He also agreed that other Christians have the responsibility for standing up and saying, "No - this is not what we believe." (I believe I forwarded your email to him). By that evening Dr. Penn-Hollar had forwarded an email to the entire school in regards to the comments. He also stated that as a Christian he was totally appalled by those comments...as well as the assumption that everyone of middle eastern decent was being classified as a terrorist. I admired his stance - and his courage to share that with the entire campus. He received several supportive messages in return. It was refreshing to know that the "moral majority" is NOT the majority.
Axis, you are very correct when you state that silence is as bad as active agreement. Actually, I think silence is worse. Your mentioning of the March of Life made me think of one of my most favorite poems. It was composed during the Hollocaust era.
First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they cam for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me."
~Pastor Martin Niemoller
At 5:39 AM, Axis of Evil said…
ROMA,
I guess the real question is - Why is it only Robertson and his ilk that can get national air time to espouse their religious views? The silence is deafening from the other side of church aisle.
As for your minister, he in my mind is a bright spot in a field of darkness. My wife reads his sermons quite often. If she was not tied so closely by family to her childhood church, I'm sure she would join you every Sunday. As you know, organzied religion is not my cup of tea. But I must say that I greatly respect your minsiter and have liked all that I have read from him. Unfotunately, I cannot say the same for most others that I have had any personal contact with. Too often, I have found that they either tacitly agree with the rhetoric, albeit not as vehemently, or they lack the courage or even interest to counteract this degredation of their own faith. After 9/11, I approached the minister at my wife's church about the Robertson comments and asked her to speak out against this hatred. I suppose the impetus is upon me to do the same again.
At 6:11 PM, ROMA said…
The other side is awakening, but it is a slow process. I think they are finally realizing how detrimental people like Robertson are to the real values of Christianity. The April 23rd Washington Post had 2 articles speaking of the same thing you speak. Paul Gaston says "The burden falls especially heavily on the mainstream Christians who are slowly awakening to the gravity of the challenge facing them. Too long tolerant of their brethren, too much given to forgiveness rather than to confrontation, they need to mount a spirited, nationwide response to what constitutes a dangerous distortion of Christian truths and a frightening threat to the republic they love."
Colbert King's article Hijacking Christianity says "The Christian right counts on the religiously timid to keep their mouths shut. So why not exploit religion for their own ends?
And that's just it. Americans of every faith-- and those lacking one-- ought to vigorously resist attempts by power hungry zealots to impose their religious views on the nation. That means standing up to them at every turn. ... They (the Christian Right) are not now and never will be the final arbiters of Christian beliefs and values. Thay warrant as much deference as religious leaders as do members of the Ku Klux Klan who also marched under the cross."
Our associate pastor brought the articles to my attention. I had to give a recount of my spiritual journey during lent and she remembered some of the things I had said and thought these 2 individuals were calling for some of the things that I had said.
This also applies to Democrats not letting anything the Republicans say going unchecked. I think the Democrats need to differentiate themselves from the Republicans on the war. We need to be demanding a timetable for withdrawal of our troops. Iraq is headed for a civil war no matter how long we are there. As long as we go along with the "We will be there as long as it takes" mentality what are we offering the American people?
A little off the subject there but the lines between the Christian Right and Left and the Republicans and the Democrats are running parallel right now. I agree that both groups on the left need to open their mouth and start to scream FOWL!
At 8:28 PM, Axis of Evil said…
Any chance there is a URL for the articles or another way to see them. They sound like a good read.
At 9:30 PM, ROMA said…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10688-2005Apr22.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10687-2005Apr22.html
At 10:30 PM, Axis of Evil said…
Thanks for the URLs. These are both good pieces. I think the sad reality is that hate and confrontation sell better than love, peace, and toleration. These same right wing idealogues rail against the violence so prevalent in Hollywood, yet use the same paradigm - us as good against them as evil - to swell their membership. Just look around our immediate areas. Which churches have the largest attendence? If no one was buying, these modern day snake oil salesmen would go out of business. At the end of the day, I'm more concerned about the appetitie for this mentality than the Bigots and Charlatans that peddle it. Of course, maybe if the liberal wing of Christianity were more vocal, they too could could swell their membership with the ranks of the disaffected who would like to believe but are turned off by the self righteousness, judgement, and hatred that is fast becoming the face of Christianity.
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