Faith Abuse: When God Becomes A Campaign Ploy

[Ruffhowse]

http://www.ariannaonline.com/columns/column.php?id=740

by Arianna Huffington

This is my last column before Election Day. With less than a week to go, I plan on doing everything in my power to defeat George W. Bush (need a ride to the polls?). Then I'm going to get down on my knees and pray to a higher power.

As someone for whom faith is incredibly important, and who regularly prays for all the people and things that matter to me, I'm hopeful that God is as appalled as I am with the way His name is constantly being taken in vain on the Bush campaign trail, and with how the president is abusing his faith to justify to himself and to the world his disastrous policies.

Lord knows there's a very long list of things to be angry with Bush about, but this one has moved to the top of my personal hit parade because, as Catholic theologians teach us, "The corruption of the best is the worst." And George W. is truly corrupting faith and dragging it into the political gutter. In two fundamental ways:

<snip>

This zealot's mindset is what allows President Bush to take in the death and destruction in Iraq and see them as "freedom on the march." And it's also what allows Abu Zarqawi and his followers to coldly put a bullet in the back of the head of four-dozen unarmed Iraqi Army recruits because they are "apostates."

"Either you're with us or you're against us" plainly cuts both ways.

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I love how she makes the connection between Bush and Abu Zarqawi. They have much more in common than Bush would like to think. Fanatics.

[pamela]

1. I like that .

I've been looking for some type of flyer for distribution in church parking lots this Sunday. That article might be effective.

[greekspeak]

2. 21st Century American Protestant Fundevangelical Religion

Take some Calvinistic self loathing, mix in some hell fire and brimstone, a healthy dose of Protestant Work Ethic, a few other little quirks, and you have a George W. * Religion Casserole. A LOT of Americans love that particular casserole. Fundevangelical religion is a religion of exclusion. Disdain for education, for homosexuals, many minorities, progressivism, sex, etc. No better than New Testament Brand Pharisees.

[DemBones DemBones]

3. Zealots are always dangerous people.

:kick:

[Paradise]

4. thanks. n/t