An American Lion - An American Lion

Entries in Faith (20)

Saturday

Aug142010

This Man Stands for Nothing

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Always the goat, never the comeback kid

President Barack Obama told CNN Saturday that in defending the right of Muslims to build a community center and mosque near ground zero in a speech Friday night, he was "not commenting on the wisdom" of the project but trying to uphold the broader principle that the government should treat "everyone equal, regardless" of religion.

"In this country, we treat everybody equally and in accordance with the law, regardless of race, regardless of religion," Obama said after giving a speech on the Gulf Coast oil disaster in Panama City, Florida.

While speaking at a White House dinner celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Obama threw his support behind a controversial proposal to build an Islamic center and mosque near New York's ground zero, saying Friday that "Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country."

The president's remarks drew praise from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who announced his support for the Islamic center last week. Bloomberg compared Obama's speech to a letter former President George Washington wrote in support of a Jewish congregation in Newport, Rhode Island. Still, critics of the proposed Islamic center -- including Rep. Peter King (R-New York) -- quickly denounced Obama's remarks.

"President Obama is wrong," King said in a statement. "It is insensitive and uncaring for the Muslim community to build a mosque in the shadow of Ground Zero. Unfortunately, the President caved into political correctness."

Flip flop, flip flop. No, I didn't inhale. Read my lips, no new taxes. Blah, blah, blah.

I wish I could make myself clear on this issue--if you refuse to allow "them" to build a mosque near the site of ground zero, liberals will take that to mean that any church can thus be zoned or legislated out of existence. Think of a thousand Baptist churches turned into tot lots and Whole Foods stores. Think of Saddleback Church forced to pay taxes on Southern California's taxation schedule for commercial property. Think of the Catholic Church where you met Rita Rottencrotch and received your first rap on the knuckles. Think of the Methodist church of your grandmotherly dreams. Think of those crazy Lutherans and their botulism-smeared pot luck. Imagine them all subservient to Wiccans and Scientologists, armed with legal papers and bulldozers.

This is really very simple--in America, we have freedom of religion. You can't stop someone putting up a mosque; you can walk around outside of it banging pots and pans and voice your displeasure. You can dress up like Richard the Lionheart and pretend you're there to teach the Saracens their lesson in religious discourse but you can't bring your broadsword from Medieval Times, the restaurant. The cops will take it away from you. I suggest bringing the shield, wearing comfortable underwear with a lot of baby powder, and bringing an umbrella. An umbrella is a gentleman's substitute for a good sword in any discussion.

In other words, yes. You can be upset about it. I get that. But your American history is pretty clear on this front.

You'd think that the President would be savvy enough to take a stand on something and not collapse into hysterics because Congressman Peter King disagreed with him. Frankly, I like Representative King, but I did not know he could issue a reasonable statement of disagreement on a public matter and cause the President of the United States to wilt like a hothouse flower.

Say "boo" and, somewhere, a liberal will cringe with fear and shit themselves, apparently.

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Saturday

Aug142010

A Miracle in Lurgan

Saturday, August 14, 2010

An excerpt from the Lurgan Model Primary School newsletter, dated June 2010The miracle? That these children weren't more severely injured.

The tragedy? Yet another no-warning bomb goes off in Northern Ireland, this time adjacent to a playground.

While we are focused on other parts of the world, some things never change. More and more, I'm seeing items about violence in Northern Ireland and I still can't figure out why:

A no-warning bomb went off in a bin at North Street in the town as police investigated reports that a device had been left at the Model Primary school.

The bomb blew a hole in a metal fence and the children - two aged 12 and one aged two - were injured by debris, suffering cuts and shock.

The bomb went off at a junction where police would have been expected to put up a cordon around the school.

A number of homes had been evacuated in Brownlow Terrace due to the suspect object at the school. That alert is continuing.

Another security alert in Kilmaine Street, centred on a builder's yard, has ended without anything untoward being found, although the area remains sealed off.

The BBC is not really a "go to" resource for this sort of thing, but Lurgan Model Primary school is just your basic elementary school. That's right--it even has a nursery. And someone decided to make their political point about a conflict older than any living human being and they put a bomb near it so that they could injure the police who would come in and cordon off the area. Unbelievable.

Lurgan Model Primary has this about it that I think is interesting:

The majority of the children on the roll live in the surrounding area. We have one of each class Nursery and Year 1 to Year 7 and stay within department guidelines for class sizes.

Lurgan Model is co-educational, non denominational and accept pupils irrespective of race or religion. The children range in age from 3 to 11 years. Presently we have children from the Eastern European Community.

Apparently, no one has gotten that message. The school caters to students of Eastern European heritage who find themselves living in Northern Ireland. All of Europe is like this--people from all walks of life end up living in different countries, trying to find a way to have a life. And now you have the age-old Troubles cropping up and what I want to know is--what does any of that have to do with a school with a nursery in it?

I suspect someone is about to receive a visit from some no-knock authorities. How could anyone protect the animals that did this?

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Sunday

Aug082010

Just Read Your American History

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Benjamin Franklin was not the third President of the United StatesI have not touched upon the issue of mosques at Ground Zero or mosques in general because I find it to be a stupid issue. An issue so stupid as to not be believed.

You can put a mosque anywhere you want. This is America. A mosque is a kind of church. I'm sure it has good purposes, evil purposes--even the purpose of hiding snipers and bombs and whatever else. The Germans made good use of churches in Europe. Every war film I've ever seen has a German falling out of a church steeple with his sniper rifle tumbling from his cold, dead hands.

Read your American history:

In 1739 arrived among us from Ireland the Reverend Mr. Whitefield, who had made himself remarkable there as an itinerant preacher. He was at first permitted to preach in some of our churches; but the clergy, taking a dislike to him, soon refus'd him their pulpits, and he was oblig'd to preach in the fields. The multitudes of all sects and denominations that attended his sermons were enormous, and it was matter of speculation to me, who was one of the number, to observe the extraordinary influence of his oratory on his hearers, and bow much they admir'd and respected him, notwithstanding his common abuse of them, by assuring them that they were naturally half beasts and half devils.

It was wonderful to see the change soon made in the manners of our inhabitants. From being thoughtless or indifferent about religion, it seem'd as if all the world were growing religious, so that one could not walk thro' the town in an evening without hearing psalms sung in different families of every street.

And it being found inconvenient to assemble in the open air, subject to its inclemencies, the building of a house to meet in was no sooner propos'd, and persons appointed to receive contributions, but sufficient sums were soon receiv'd to procure the ground and erect the building, which was one hundred feet long and seventy broad, about the size of Westminster Hall; and the work was carried on with such spirit as to be finished in a much shorter time than could have been expected.

Both house and ground were vested in trustees, expressly for the use of any preacher of any religious persuasion who might desire to say something to the people at Philadelphia; the design in building not being to accommodate any particular sect, but the inhabitants in general; so that even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach Mohammedanism to us, he would find a pulpit at his service.

The nation that was thus founded? It was founded so that people of all religions could come here and be free to believe whatever they wish to believe. Is it that difficult to understand? We are not at war with Islam; we are at war with that .001% of people using Islam as the "justification" for their extreme politically-oriented violence. Telling people where they can put a church is something liberals would do, if you want to put it into perspective. All religion and all churches are evil to liberals. If we allow this ban or restriction to be placed on mosques, it will lead to the zoning out of Methodist churches and whatnot. Conservatives don't give a damn where you put your church.

Quod Erat Demonstrandum.

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Friday

Jul302010

It Is Always God's Fault When You Can't Hang With Religion

Friday, July 30, 2010

Count Chocula kicks some serious ass, sirThe headlines are breathlessly precious and full of portent: Anne Rice has left Christianity:

Legendary author Anne Rice has announced that she’s quitting Christianity.

The “Interview with a Vampire” author, who wrote a book about her spirituality titled "Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession" in 2008, said Wednesday that she refuses to be “anti-gay,” “anti-feminist," “anti-science” and “anti-Democrat.”

Rice wrote, “For those who care, and I understand if you don't: Today I quit being a Christian ... It's simply impossible for me to ‘belong’ to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten years, I've tried. I've failed. I'm an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else.”

Rice then added another post explaining her decision on Thursday:

“My faith in Christ is central to my life. My conversion from a pessimistic atheist lost in a world I didn't understand, to an optimistic believer in a universe created and sustained by a loving God is crucial to me," Rice wrote. "But following Christ does not mean following His followers. Christ is infinitely more important than Christianity and always will be, no matter what Christianity is, has been or might become.”

Marketing ploy or the sad realization of a person that God has thwarted their ambitions? Well, God and I have always gotten along swell. I think she's doing a great job.

There's a little bait and switch here, however. She's turning her back on the faith but she still puts Jesus up on a pedestal. That's bad news for her legion of vampire fans (Count Chocula is the only vampire that ever made sense to me). Did it occur to her that there could be a Christian faith without Jesus? Or that there could be a Jesus and no Christianity but a sort of "feel-good" religion that eschewed war? Not the Quakers. No, that would make too much sense for someone who is against violence to simply become a Quaker. They don't sell too many books, I guess.

If the marketing people tell her she should hook up with Scientology or the Wiccans, let's hope this all gets sorted out before the paperback edition comes out.

What if Jesus was a vampire? One who liked to wear ascots and drive a Jaguar?

Yeah.

Got you there.

Peace out, homeys.

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Tuesday

Jul202010

Let's Try to Avoid Taking the Bait This Time

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Should we start a third war and fight our enemies on the ground in Yemen? Why not?

A U.S.-born, al Qaeda-linked cleric warned the American people that President Barack Obama will mire U.S. forces in Yemen just as Afghanistan, in a message appearing Monday on militant websites.

The 13-minute audio message, in English, comes just days after the U.S. Treasury department put Anwar al-Awlaki on its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

"If George W. Bush is remembered as being the president who got America stuck in Afghanistan and Iraq, it's looking like Obama wants to be remembered as the president who got America stuck in Yemen," he said.

Let's hope that someone is smart enough to avoid taking the bait when it comes to starting a war in Yemen. If past performance is any guide, we should expect the hard sell on invading Yemen to begin once the 2010 elections are over.

I refuse to take a back seat to anyone when it comes to patriotism, but something about our overall "strategy" of dealing with al-Awlaki and his ilk strikes me as counterproductive. His American citizen status provokes outrage when the government is suspected of issuing a "shoot to kill" order against him. And yet, he's openly attacking the United States from behind the veil of being a "cleric" and from the vantage point of religious enlightenment. Certain acts warrant a reply in kind, but that doesn't necessarily mean a hellfire missile from the underside of a circling drone. Somewhere in all of this is a comprehensive strategy that marginalizes fundamentalism and protects America. I don't think we are anywhere close to finding that path. Is anyone looking for it? Or would that take too much effort?

I don't have much time for a cleric, or a priest, or a rabbi, or any religious leader that preaches war.

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Saturday

Jun262010

The Grasshopper Plague Comes For Food, Not Vengeance

Saturday, June 26, 2010

When God comes for me, I know she's going to be in a foul mood.

I say that with all due respect; God has it in for me because I've had such a charmed life. I keep surviving things that should kill me. I keep making money. I keep having opportunities to have sex with beautiful women. I keep finding my keys. I keep on keeping on, in other words, and my luck will run out. God will come for me. I will be forced to run down the road, screaming and waving my arms in my night shirt, probably looking a little something like Ebenezer Scrooge or, if I'm lucky, a little like Kelsey Grammer (doesn't he look wonderful these days? A hell of a lot better than Ted Danson, am I right?).

I always try to explain to people that God has to be a woman, and she has to look like Angelina Jolie. Something desperately evil but saucy, something scarred and wondrous. Something with big fake boobs and a stunned husband stumbling alongside. God's husband is a layabout. Probably the fellow who came up with the idea for the butt pack and the Segway. Since women love me, and since I've had a charmed life, then God has to be a woman. It's that simple.

In the olden days, locusts would descend upon the sinners and the faithful alike and people would call it a harbinger of doom or the wrath of a vengeful God. Really, it's just a case of a lot of insects being hatched in proximity to a large supply of food. The swarm cannot think. The swarm has no vengeance in its way of doing things. They are just bugs, and they're hungry. If you live on land covered in things they want to eat, then it sucks to be you.

It doesn't suck to be me. It will when God comes after me, that crazy bitch.

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Wednesday

Jun232010

Yes, You Can Always Talk People into Changing Their Religion

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Screenshot, including non-clickable Ad, Powerline, 6 23 2010I thought that the screenshot, captured above, really found a unique way to say it all. On the one hand, you have someone wringing their hands about proselytizing, and on the other hand, you have commerce in action, baby. Read your little story about being terrified of religion and all that--and then go hook yourself up with a scantily clad woman of Arabic lineage who can soothe your urges and stroke your mighty outrage. I love advertising, and this was sheer brilliance in one of the most happy of collisions of fear and lust.

Here, you have John at Powerline talking about how you can't go pester people in Michigan because you want them to stop being Muslims and start being Christians. I agree that it's a stupid law. It's legislating against stupidity, and that never works. But, the problem here is this notion that Christianity is so wonderful and loving and enlightened that all you have to do is give someone the 411 about it and they'll switch their lifelong devotion to the religion of their upbringing or choice to Christianity. That worked with the peasants and it worked with the little people who lived under the shadow of the Sun God, but can it work in Michigan?

I don't know. You should be free to go try, I guess. Don't be surprised when the shaky hold some fundamentalists have on their religion turns into a full-on monkey pile when they being to howl about your heresy.

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Wednesday

May122010

Religion and Music go Hand in Hand

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

This has always been a significant issue for Christian denominations as well:

It is meant to be a beautiful, melodic and spiritual start to the day.

But the morning calls to prayer by some of Istanbul's muezzins and imams have had locals plugging their ears rather than reaching for their prayer books.

The problem is such that following a flood of complaints by locals, special classes for the tuneless culprits have been set up.

Imam Mehmet Tas, one of the school's first pupils, said he was already feeling the benefits.

"I have so much more self-confidence now in my abilities to do all five calls to prayer in their correct tempos," he said.

Nothing drives away the faithful like someone singing out of tune. If your religious leader is incapable of singing the sweet music that your faith is built upon, you'll run screaming to the people who use rock music or polkas to draw in the faithful. In my faith, the Episcopal faith, singing in church is really important. Now, just because I don't have examples of this doesn't mean I don't go to church. The fact that I don't go to church means...oh, you know the drill.

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Monday

May032010

Whatever Happened to the Reformation?

Monday, May 3, 2010

What Would Cardinal Wolsey Do?When you read something like this, you have to wonder if it will cause the hotheaded youths of Europe to form home regiments and flock to the standards:

Three Church of England bishops traveled to Rome last week for talks with Vatican officials about joining the Catholic Church, according to two of the bishops involved.

bishops told The Associated Press they went to the Vatican to find out more about Pope Benedict XVI's decision to invite disaffected Anglicans to join the Catholic Church - a sensitive issue which has roiled relations between the two denominations and threatens to overshadow the pontiff's visit to London later this year.

The Vatican's spokesman said he had no information about the meeting.

Rev. Keith Newton, the bishop of Richborough, said the trip consisted of "nothing more than exploratory talks" and denied a report in The Sunday Telegraph that he and his colleagues had secretly promised the Vatican they were ready to defect to Rome.

"No decisions have been made," he said.

If you don't like female priests or homosexual clergy, the Catholic church wants you! But you have to forget we had a reformation, okay? Given how little anyone pays attention to such things, how hard could it be for the Catholic Church to win over a few Anglican clergymen?

If you can get past all of the sex, nudity, and violence, and somehow not fall asleep when Natalie Dormer is not on the screen, you can learn a lot about the Reformation by watching The Tudors.

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Monday

Dec142009

Break Out Your Hoseas and your Hallelujahs

Monday, December 14, 2009

Someone finally does something nice for the President, and Mel Gibson, and Tiger Woods:

The greatest golfer in the world has fallen from the grace of humans, but not from the grace of God who still loves him dearly. About 100 members of the Miracle Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church, located at 100 South Rock Glen Road, Baltimore, Maryland and the Pray at the Pump Movement (PAPM) will drive this point home on this Wednesday evening, December 16 from 7:30 to 9:00 PM as they hold an Emergency Chirstmas Prayer Vigil for this true sports icon. These members want him to know that even though the entire world seems against him, that they care about him as he desperately tries to hold his family together in accordance with God’s word. Those gathered say that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God and urge the critical public to show compassion for Tiger as well as other celebrities who fall from grace. Dr. Errol Stoddart, who is pastor of the progressive congregation and an avid golf fan, will preach about the need for the public to wrap their arms around Tiger during this moment of disgrace. He points to a number of individuals in the Bible such as Abraham, David and Solomon who became victims of worldly lust, but whom God forgave. If God can forgive us, we should be able to forgive others. Stoddart hopes to use his years of marriage counseling to deal with this horrific situation.

The Pray at the Pump Movement will circulate a Book of Hope and Deliverance for those present to sign. The good wishes will be sent directly to the Tiger Woods Foundation and hopefully Tiger will read them. The group is working on an online petition of support for the golf star. PAPM has constantly emphasized that the public should show compassion for stars who are nothing more than human beings that the public has placed on lofty pedestals. They organized vigils of hope when Michael Jackson, the King Of Pop died. Twyman stated that people almost totally forgot that he gave more money to charity than any other star including Oprah. Tiger’s Foundation has been a pivotal force in helping and inspiring children in low income neighborhoods. Twyman suggest that Woods use the time off with his family to contemplate how he can better use the wealth that God has blessed him with to help Americans who are losing their homes and jobs at an alarming rate. PAPM calls upon the country to pray for these celebrities who have lost their way such as Michael Vick; Governors Sanford and Spitzer; DC’s Marion Barry; Hollywood star Mel Gibson: Senator Craig and a host of other political and entertainment celebrities. PAPM thinks that the higher a person goes, the more they must depend upon God for their stability. With his economic policies failing and unemployment at staggering high levels, Twyman is calling on Obama to turn more to God and prayer and less to the wisdom of his human council of economic advisers. The group is lobbying to urge Obama to hold an ecumenical prayer vigil/Summit for this battered economy at The White House similar to the recent jobs summit. “Obama is just a man, like Tiger Woods, that God has richly blessed, says Twyman. At some point, both must come to the realization that God and not man is Supreme. It was God that arranged events so that Obama could win the Nobel Peace Prize after being in office for only 11 days. We saw the power of prayer as the gas prices started coming down when we organized pray circles at gas pumps all over the country. Both Tiger and Obama who is also vulnerable to womanizing will only be able to succeed as they focus on prayer and fasting just like the prophets of old did when things got rough. Our prayers are with Tiger during this hour of trial.”

Somewhere in there is a complete and total misunderstanding of what religion is supposed to be about, but who cares? It’s a great blog post! It writes itself! I don’t even have to be here.

Twyman made news over a year ago with his “Prayer at the Pump” movement:

On the first day of the movement, April 23, the national average price of a gallon of unleaded was $3.53, according to AAA. As of yesterday, it was $3.96.

But Twyman said true faith does not demand instant gratification, and he plans to keep his pump-side prayers going “until God tells us to stop.”

“This whole thing is a wake-up call from God to Americans, because we idolize men so much,” said Twyman, 59, a public relations consultant and Seventh-day Adventist who believes that high gas prices are a sign of the apocalypse drawing nigh. “I think through this crisis, God is trying to call us back to depend on Him more.”

For the past several weeks, Twyman has assembled a group at a soup kitchen in the Petworth neighborhood of Northwest Washington where he volunteers. They have driven to a gas station, locked hands, said a prayer, purchased gas and sung the civil rights anthem “We Shall Overcome,” with an added verse: “We’ll have lower gas prices.”

Reactions, and results, have been mixed.

After he gave an interview to a Tampa radio station, the station received calls from listeners saying the price at their pumps had dropped. (According to AAA’s Fuel Price Finder, regular gas at Tampa area stations averaged $3.89 a gallon yesterday, up from $3.59 a month ago).

Hey, whatever trips your trigger.

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