imo, the Democrats have to play the God card at some point . . .

[OneBlueSky]

the Repugs have managed to coopt Jesus and, through a thorough bastardization of Christianity, convince a substantial hunk of middle America that they represent Christian values . . . unfortunately, a lot of these folks can't see through the horseshit (fed to them daily on tv and in their newspapers) and recognize just how far from being good Christians BushCo and their associates actually are . . . because nobody's telling them! . . .

that may be changing, at least a little . . . the DU front page carries an excellent article by Christian Dewar entitle Who Would Jesus Torture? The Religion of George W. Bush that debunks a lot of Bush's pseudo-Christianity . . .
http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/04/07/17_wwjt.html

Michael Moore recently commented on Bush's claim that he gets his marching orders from God by saying (and I'm paraphrasing) "God didn't tell Bush to invade Iraq; that's the devil's job" . . . and Bill Moyers has a superb article in Sojourners entitled Democracy in the Balance which asks the questions How do we nurture the healing side of religion over the killing side? How do we protect the soul of democracy against bad theology in service of an imperial state? . . . here's a brief passage:

"OVER THE PAST few years, as the poor got poorer, the health care crisis worsened, wealth and media became more and more concentrated, and our political system was bought out from under us, prophetic Christianity lost its voice. The Religious Right drowned everyone else out.

"And they hijacked Jesus. The very Jesus who stood in Nazareth and proclaimed, 'The Lord has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor.' The very Jesus who told 5,000 hungry people that all of you will be fed, not just some of you. The very Jesus who challenged the religious orthodoxy of the day by feeding the hungry on the Sabbath, who offered kindness to the prostitute and hospitality to the outcast, who raised the status of women and treated even the tax collector like a child of God. The very Jesus who drove the money changers from the temple. This Jesus has been hijacked and turned into a guardian of privilege instead of a champion of the dispossessed. Hijacked, he was made over into a militarist, hedonist, and lobbyist, sent prowling the halls of Congress in Guccis, seeking tax breaks and loopholes for the powerful, costly new weapon systems that don't work, and punitive public policies.

"Let's get Jesus back. The Jesus who inspired a Methodist ship-caulker named Edward Rogers to crusade across New England for an eight-hour work day. Let's get back the Jesus who caused Frances William to rise up against the sweatshop. The Jesus who called a young priest named John Ryan to champion child labor laws, unemployment insurance, a minimum wage, and decent housing for the poor - 10 years before the New Deal. The Jesus in whose name Dorothy Day challenged the church to march alongside auto workers in Michigan, fishermen and textile workers in Massachusetts, brewery workers in New York, and marble cutters in Vermont. The Jesus who led Martin Luther King to Memphis to join sanitation workers in their struggle for a decent wage.

"That Jesus has been scourged by his own followers, dragged through the streets by pious crowds, and crucified on a cross of privilege. Mel Gibson missed that. He missed the resurrection - the spiritual awakening that followed the death of Jesus. He missed Pentecost.

"Our times cry out for a new politics of justice. This is no partisan issue. It doesn't matter if you're a liberal or a conservative, Jesus is both and neither. It doesn't matter if you're a Democrat or Republican, Jesus is both and neither. We need a faith that takes on the corruption of both parties. We need a faith that challenges complacency of all power. If you're a Democrat, shake them up. If you're a Republican, shame them. Jesus drove the money changers from the temple. We must drive them from the temples of democracy. Let's get Jesus back."

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&i...
(definitely worth your time and attention . . .)

as promising as they may seem, articles like these (which have extremely limited readership) are simply not sufficient to counter the BushCo Godwagon . . . with the conventions almost upon us, you can bet your Kerry button that the Repugs are going to play the God card often and hard . . . through constant repitition, and by linking religion to the flag, they'll try to reinforce the notion that THEY are the party of true believers and can therefore be trusted to "do the right thing" . . . if the Democrats sit back and let them get away with this, we'll have no one to blame but ourselves if things turn sour on Election Day . . .

we cannot, and we must not, continue to allow the right wing to present themselves as the true and only representatives of religious believers without reacting . . . and strongly! . . . I have suggested that Bill Moyers be invited to speak at the Democratic convention to present the points raised in his article . . . Americans must be told, in a very high profile venue, just how un-Christian Bush and his cronies actually are, and why . . . not to do so would imply a tacit acceptance of their claims, which we all know are absolute bullshit . . . it's time we told the rest of the world, and in no uncertain terms . . .

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. I believe that a lot of good-hearted but ignorant people are fooled

by the false prophets. They hear "Bible" and "God" and automatically assume that the person saying the words has their best interests at heart.

They get into a total information environment, where the preachers exploit their anxiety about a chaotic world by telling them that the only truth is contained in officially approved media and from officially approved spokespersons. They literally become afraid to consult alternative sources of information, afraid that they will be tempted to "stray."

The talking points are pounded into their heads through the "Christian" and corporate media, while the activities of liberal Christians are covered so poorly that no one who isn't actually associated with a liberal church ever finds out about them.

[Kanary]

2. I noticed many years ago that the "mainline" churches were abdicating

their responsibilities to *REALLY* preach the true gospel.

Out of fear of alienating their donation pool? Imagine that......

Preaching the real gospel message *IS* subversive....... always was. It takes preachers with spine.

Kanary

[TaleWgnDg]

3. OneBlueSky . . . that url . . .

the infamous 404 screen . . . check it out, please

[OneBlueSky]

7. hmm . . . don't know what happened . . . let me try again . . .

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0408&article=040810

this should work . . .

[unkachuck]

4. Yah.....

Isn't there something in the Bible about the Mark of The Beast, Anti-Christ, 666 etc......can't we come up with a 'Leftwing' religious expert or group to add up BushCo's phone numbers and addresses to tally 666 or something?.....then call news conference and say 'See what we've found?', 'just read the Bible'.....

[maggrwaggr]

5. "by their fruits ye shall know them"

all you gotta do is check out George Bush's fruits.

Here's one:



and here's another

[Skittles]

6. I am f***ing sick of phony "Christians"

I am surrounded by them here in Texas. Lying, stealing, murder by Bush Inc is just A-OK with them.

[OneBlueSky]

8. sorry about that link to the Moyers article . . . here's a good one . . .

don't know what happened, but this one works . . .

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0408&article=040810

[jpgray]

9. Jesus has nearly nothing to do with organized Christianity

And folks intend to keep it that way. Like our mutual avatar says, if he came to preach today, our society would lay him in his grave just as was done before. Give your goods to the poor? Kill that socialist.

[Zorra]

10. This is what Bu$h has personally ordered done in the name of Jesus,

Jesus definitely does not approve.

Jesus said to His disciples:
"You shall love the Lord your God
with your whole heart,
with your whole soul,
and with your whole mind.
This is the greatest and first commandment.

The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

On these two commandments the whole law is based, and the prophets as
well (Matt. 22:37-40). If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, he is a
liar. One who has no love for his brother whom he sees cannot love God
whom he does not see.

Anyone that supports Bu$h and claims to be a follower of Jesus is certifiable.

[OneBlueSky]

11. a Sabbath kick . . . if you haven't yet, please take time to read . . .

the Bill Moyers article . . . what he says MUST be said out loud in a forum where everyone is paying attention . . . a forum like the Democratic convention . . . if we don't challenge them on their claim that God is on their side, we're conceding that they're right . . . and that's something we cannot afford to do . . .

Democracy in the Balance
http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0408&article=040810