pro israel?

My lovely mum posted this on her blog recently. For some context, Papaw and Mamaw were the pastor and pastor's wife of what was bascically the first ever christian church that my family was involved with, when I was 10,11, and 12 years old, '84 through '87.

Papaw told us an encouraging story when we visited him and Mamaw. He said that the church he fellowships with -- I think it was called Cornerstone Baptist Church -- began to fly not only the American flag and the Texas flag but also the Israeli flag. Since the Bible does speak a lot about Israel and the Jewish people being God's chosen nation/people -- they wanted to identify with/promote that Bibical idea. One day though someone burned their Israeli flag. This prompted all kinds of national and international media and the church was thus able to explain/expand on their position to an ever-widening circle of people. One person called and told them he would love to send them another Israeli flag, and yet another if the first one he sends gets burned.

According to the church's pastor, The Rev. Bobby Herrel, Cornerstone Baptist began flying the Israeli flag last July to support the Israeli people during its conflict with Lebanon

How best to communicate to my lovely mum that the international community was outraged, in that particular Israel/Lebanon conflict, by Israel's massive use of U.S. made cluster weapons, the use of which amounts to wide scale land mining of your enemies' land, leading to large numbers of civilian casulties, especially of children, long after the hot conflict is over? Yes, of course Hezbollah *also* failed to follow international law in that conflict. That's hardly any reason to come out as pro Israel during the conflict. most of the civilian casulties even during the hot conflict were Lebanese (~1000 dead Lebanese civilians, ~43 dead Israeli civlians. god this is a greusome math. how can a "christian church be in favor of any of this?) I'm guessing that the people in this church are ... relatively normal, compassionate, people. How could they take such a position? (such is the banality of evil) How does the muslim community in their town (Fort Worth, Texas) feel about them flying that Israeli flag, especially as it was in response to that particular lebanese/israeli conflict? It's hardly surprising the flag was burnt. I'm guessing that in Texas perhaps more than in some other parts of this country the Muslim community feels marginalized and put down in really cruel ways all the time.

I love you mum. Can you see this stuff? How to share it with you without automatically raising a wall? Maybe it's impossible. maybe I lack the social intelligence to accomplish it. alas.

how I want to be buried

EcoEternity Forest. (anti)H/T Chuck Colson.

I think this is a really kewl idea.

more reasons to be grateful

that I've escaped the christian right:

Dr. Dobson speaks out against Harry Potter (for the wrong reasons!)

I used to be ...

Among other things, a member of the Christian right. In fact, I used to think David Barton was about as awesome as ... say ... dulce de leche ice cream on a sunny afternoon on the beach in Miramar, Argentina. Sigh ....

So glad I got away from that. I could totally still be there, like .... like riding the "It's a small world after all" ride at disneyworld time after time after time after time after time ad infinutum and ad nauseum.

These comments engendered by this story

What are ...

The Catholic League has called the (now cancelled) display of a 6 foot tall, naked Jesus made entirely of chocolate an "attack on Christian sensibilities"

What exactly *are* "Christian sensibilities"? Did Jesus have them?

The "Great Moral Issues of Our Time"?

So there appears to be a bit of a foofoorah brewing on the internet around a recent letter written by James Dobson and his friends from the religious right to the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE)

In the letter, Dobson and co. criticized Rich Cizik, an NAE leader, for focusing on global warming as a moral issue. They said

"More importantly, we have observed that Cizik and others are using the global warming controversy to shift the emphasis away from the great moral issues of our time, notably the sanctity of human life, the integrity of marriage and the teaching of sexual abstinence and morality to our children."

Now Jim Wallis of Sojourners has challenged Mr. Dobson to a public debate on "What are the great moral issues of our time for evangelical christians?"
What do think? Are ...

1.The sanctity of human life
2.The integrity of marriage, and
3.The teaching of sexual abstinence and morality to our children

... the top three great moral issues of our time? Or could perhaps ...

4.16,000 children die of starvation every day
5.What the U.S. government has called "genocide" in Darfur
6.800,000 people, (including 14,000 into the U.S.) being trafficked every year

... be equally or even more pressing moral issues?

Indeed, if, as NOAA suggests, global warming may lead to increasing occurrence of highly destructive category 5 storms (i.e., more Katrina like events--more people dying, more internally dispaced persons, etc.), then doesn't that make global warming a great moral issue?

Jerry Falwell and public schools

"I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won’t have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them. What a happy day that will be!"

– Rev. Jerry Falwell

That's from his book America Can Be Saved, written in 1979, according to multiple internet sources (now there's lousy citation for you)

But ... the thing is, I rather suspect he still thinks this.


I guess he wants to see a United State where:

• no one has any body piercings except women can have ear rings.
• no men have hair longer than their collar
• all students are taught that the earth is 6000 years old
• students are not allowed to have unapproved demonstrations
• no one is allowed to watch R rated movies
• students are required to tattle on their classmates or else be considered guilty of whatever they didn't tattle about.

All from Liberty Universities rules and regulations
(except the 6000 year old earth bit, but to the best of my understanding that is what is taught at Liberty)


So 15,000 people are currently paying $80,000 for the privilege of going to Liberty University for four years and earning their undergrad degree from an institution whose chancellor and founder (as best as I understand) has never actually earned a doctoral degree

I don't get that.