Faith Based
I'm a liberal Democrat and I'm a Christian. Why does this make me an albatross to Republican Christians and my non-religious friends alike? I guess it's evidence of how prevalent the Christian right is in our society. Everyone assumes that all Christians:
- are pro-life
- hate gay people
- dislike birth control (or sex in general)
I'm a Christian because of my upbringing. However, God has many names. I'm not particularly dogmatic in my faith. I was raised Catholic. In college, I strayed away from religion completely. This will sound very trite, but through yoga and a few, very moving personal experiences, my spirit began seeking something. The Lawyer and I landed in an Episcopal church in Fort Worth. (I have a friend who likes to say you cannot walk into an Episcopal church without shaking hands with a doctor or a lawyer... which has been very true in my experience.)
My liberal political beliefs are solidified because I am a Christian. Jesus said love one another. Jesus said blessed are the poor. Jesus said render to God what is God's and Ceasar what is Ceasar's. Jesus Christ was the liberal of his time. He took a religion that was sheltered in law, restriction and rules and showed the people that faith was for all. He ministered to lepers, prostitutes, the poor, sick, blind and healthy alike.
I often wonder WTFWJD (What the fuck would Jesus do) about the state of things today. Our current policies abandon the poor, shrink the middle class and balloon the rich. Bush's mixing of faith-based programs and religious rhetoric to boost support for his policies reaks of tax collectors in the temple and mixing God and Ceasar. Using a war to create political capital and paydirt for contracting companies while ignoring atrocities in the Sudan is deplorable to me.
It's because of Christ I choose to be a liberal. I believe contraception and abortion are personal choices - and God is with women who make choices on both sides of these political fences. Being heteorsexual is not a prereq for going to heaven.
I'm curious how literal interpreters of the Bible choose what to interpret literally and what to discard: i.e.- homosexuality is totally wrong, but the death penalty is justified despite what Jesus said about turning the other cheek. The Bible condones slavery, yet most Christians would say today that slavery is morally unacceptable.
Yet, I've come to accept the literal bible freaks for what they are. For some, in order to stay on a path, they need absolute rigidity, black and white scenarios. Some are not comfortable in shades of gray. It's like me and sugar- I can either have none of it or crave all of it, so I opt for none. There are some areas of life where faith, Bible and politics bleed gray. Instead of thumping againt the gray with rigid Bible versus, I choose to embrace it and think Jesus walked there himself.
I'm sure I'll get back to faith and politics one of these days, but this post is dedicate to Mary. (my friend, not the Holy Mother.)
- are pro-life
- hate gay people
- dislike birth control (or sex in general)
I'm a Christian because of my upbringing. However, God has many names. I'm not particularly dogmatic in my faith. I was raised Catholic. In college, I strayed away from religion completely. This will sound very trite, but through yoga and a few, very moving personal experiences, my spirit began seeking something. The Lawyer and I landed in an Episcopal church in Fort Worth. (I have a friend who likes to say you cannot walk into an Episcopal church without shaking hands with a doctor or a lawyer... which has been very true in my experience.)
My liberal political beliefs are solidified because I am a Christian. Jesus said love one another. Jesus said blessed are the poor. Jesus said render to God what is God's and Ceasar what is Ceasar's. Jesus Christ was the liberal of his time. He took a religion that was sheltered in law, restriction and rules and showed the people that faith was for all. He ministered to lepers, prostitutes, the poor, sick, blind and healthy alike.
I often wonder WTFWJD (What the fuck would Jesus do) about the state of things today. Our current policies abandon the poor, shrink the middle class and balloon the rich. Bush's mixing of faith-based programs and religious rhetoric to boost support for his policies reaks of tax collectors in the temple and mixing God and Ceasar. Using a war to create political capital and paydirt for contracting companies while ignoring atrocities in the Sudan is deplorable to me.
It's because of Christ I choose to be a liberal. I believe contraception and abortion are personal choices - and God is with women who make choices on both sides of these political fences. Being heteorsexual is not a prereq for going to heaven.
I'm curious how literal interpreters of the Bible choose what to interpret literally and what to discard: i.e.- homosexuality is totally wrong, but the death penalty is justified despite what Jesus said about turning the other cheek. The Bible condones slavery, yet most Christians would say today that slavery is morally unacceptable.
Yet, I've come to accept the literal bible freaks for what they are. For some, in order to stay on a path, they need absolute rigidity, black and white scenarios. Some are not comfortable in shades of gray. It's like me and sugar- I can either have none of it or crave all of it, so I opt for none. There are some areas of life where faith, Bible and politics bleed gray. Instead of thumping againt the gray with rigid Bible versus, I choose to embrace it and think Jesus walked there himself.
I'm sure I'll get back to faith and politics one of these days, but this post is dedicate to Mary. (my friend, not the Holy Mother.)
posted by Miss Melissa at 5:05 PM
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