The sharpest instrument that people have to hurt others isn’t metal but their tongue. Words can be very painful if we allow them to hurt us. I haven’t said much but lately with Sen. Frist’s misguided comments along with those of other board members I just had to put my .02 into the pot. (Big surprise there right?) I consider myself a fundamentalist Christian. Yes, that is right. A few years ago I was aligned with the “right wing” in this country. I was a regular contributor to the 700 club, a thither to my church, I did volunteer overseas work, the whole nine (9) yards. Due to personal circumstances in my life God and I are not on speaking terms. Does that change the facts the He is the creator of the Universe and I’m not? No. Because I refuse to believe in Him and his rules does that make them any less real? No. I CHOOSE to exile myself for purely personal reasons that I will not go into in an open public format. Suffice it to say that all those who call themselves “Christians” are NOT followers of Christ. In a similar vein if you sit inside your garage at home that does not mean you are a car! Just because I person sits inside a church does not make that person holy, etc. I hope you get the picture. True Christians in this country, not the Tammy Faye Bakers or Jimmy Swaggerts, have been the butt of ridicule and scorn for a long time. They are put down and lampooned by the leftist news media because of a few individuals’ actions and/or comments. Pat Robertson is scorned when he makes a personal ridiculous comment but it is never reported about the good that the 700 Club does in this country and throughout the world. The thousands, not hundreds, but thousands of lives that have been changed by the volunteer doctors that do FREE cleft palate surgeries. Catholic charities house many homeless people and provide millions of meals each year. Nuns around the world care for sick and dying people. They run orphanages in Africa for children whose parents have died of AIDS. There are hundreds of Mother Teresa’s in the world and probably in THIS country. Do they get credit for what they do? No. I believe that abortion is murder, the taking of an innocent life. Nevertheless it is the law of the land and I would not deny a woman that opportunity should she decide to choose it. But I believe it is wrong. I would love to see Roe v. Wade overturned. Do I sit outside abortion clinics and hurl blood on people, no! But you will still lump ME with the right wing Christian fanatics because you have not taken the time to learn about that which you do not understand. In America there are ways to get bills passed and the people in office found a way to “slide” one in. They are using guile and dishonest tactics and pandering to their potential voters. Does that really surprise anyone? Did you vote in the last election? If you did, did your representative vote in your best interest or not? If you didn’t vote then shut you trap! You’re lumping of people who you disagree with into categories and labeling them as fanatics is common but wrong. Disagree with the person not a group of people. What you have done is another small step in the direction of the fanaticism that occurs every day in Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries and should NEVER happen in America. As far as YOUR religious beliefs they are yours. I will never attack them. I would like to point out to you how misguided you are and that an atheist is simply ignoring the scientific evidence surrounding them. However you are free to choose. In fact that is the basis of Christianity.
Hello I'm sure RKuczeck will defend himself at some point but I think that most people are missing the point he is trying to get across. As far as I can see he is not attacking christians, the christian faith or the beliefs of christians. His comments are addressed to those who hijack christian morality and use it to justify their actions, when in fact their motives are not genuinely based on a christian ethic. Let's be friends ! Cheers Reachy
response fgk42 - I am not an atheist - I am a Taoist - but I have no problem with either Christians or atheists or moslems or any religion or philosophy - I mentioned in an earlier post that I had done volunteer work with christian charities - this has been with some very evangelical/conservative groups and churches - I have no problem with conservative christians - I consider true christians to be very good people - I do have a problem when people present a religion as an excuse/justification to repress the rights and freedoms of others - I have a problem with anyone who wants to repress the freedoms and rights of others - no matter what disguise they use to justify their repression - if anyone felt I was attacking their christian beliefs - that was not intended - I was commenting on people who use a false christianity as an excuse for promoting repression, and that is, I think, a pretty powerful lobby in this country today - that is why I used the term pseudo-christian - and I do believe that description fits much of the heavily politicized 'religious' right as typified by Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, et al - and I think it is obvious that the anti-gambling legislation was politically motivated to solidify the support of the 'religious' right for the upcoming elections - notice I used quotes around 'religious' - I am not talking about people who practice their religion in their lives - but about organized movements that misuse religion to promote extreme and repressive political/social positions - I truely believe that you are entitled to your personal/religious beliefs and lifestyle choices - as long as you do not harm others - I do not believe anyone has the right to restrict my choices or actions as to my personal or religious beliefs or lifestyle choices -
