The evangelicals who like to giftwrap Islamophobia

Guardian ^ | 11/10/03 | Rev Dr Giles Fraser

[stayathomemom]

I think the original question was "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" He thought he had the law down cold. Jesus was just showing him that he was unable to love his neighbor as himself. He was not keeping the law. By showing him how much he hated this neighbor, he was pointing out his (and all of our's) inability to keep the law. Hence the need for a savior.

[Maynerd]

No wonder the Church of England is dying. This fundaphobe prefers radical Islam to devout Christianity.

Samaritans purse is a fabulous organization and yes for you NPR types, it even helps AIDS victims in Africa. I am so appalled by the Rev. Fraser's bigotry that I am stroking a check to Samaritan's Purse tonight.

www.samaritanspurse.org
800 353-5949

[DB]

Bump.

[mitch5501]

"If the story was just about helping the needy, whoever they are, it would have been sufficient to cast the Samaritan as the victim and a Jewish layperson as the person who helped. Crucially, however, the hated Samaritan is held up as the moral exemplar. Conclusion: we must overcome religious bigotry."

Maybe the story also involved not judging by outward appearances (ie:those all dressed up and talking church may not be what they appear)but rather what was in people's hearts regardless of religion,race,colour etc etc.The one who did was trully his neighbour,not the one's who simply talked.Much like some who lecture as opposed to some who "...that brings Christmas joy, packed in gift-filled shoeboxes, to children around the world". Over the past 10 years, 24 million shoeboxes have been delivered, making it the world's largest children's Christmas project. Every US president since Ronald Reagan has packed a shoebox for Operation Christmas Child..." etc etc.

Conclusion:yes "we must overcome religious bigotry" The question is who exactly is the religious bigot?

"We must get over our fondness for charity and develop a thirst for justice."

Ideally...wouldn't true justice actually be born of charity?

"What is astonishing is that Christian fundamentalists have managed to persuade millions that their warped version of Christianity is the real thing and that mainstream churches have sold out to the secular spirit of the age. The truth is quite the reverse."

We shall see.

[Wilhelm Tell]

The double-standards are amazing. The idea that a child might read a Gospel tract is so terribly offensive to our sensitive multi-culturalists.

To put it in perspective, suppose Christians of my particular sect were persecuted and in an incredible act of generosity, Saudi Arabia allowed us to move over there, practice our religion and customs, and even get jobs without being discriminated against. I would be a poor guest and maybe even crazy if I was "offended" that most of the people over there were Muslims and there were Muslim rather than Christian holidays, etc.

I would just be grateful that they gave me sanctuary and I would not expect every Muslim I met to go out of his way to make me feel comfortable. I would respect the fact that they were going our of their way just to give me sanctuary and I would not demand that everyone like me. I would expect that people from different cultures would not always be comfortable with one another and I would not be devastated if someone did not "understand" me. I would not demand that every Muslim accept the doctrine of the Trinity just to make me feel comfortable and important.

Now, according to the article, there are Muslims in the UK who are "offended" that there is Christian literature and there are Christian symbols in a country that has been mostly Christian for over 1,000 years. Were they surprised and expecting perhaps Buddhist symbols? I don't understand. The last I knew, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and even Christains were free to give out literature and teach their religion. If someone finds it offensive that people can freely express their views, perhaps he is intolerant and should leave to find a less open country. And I really don't know what to think of so-called Christians who are upset that anyone is preaching Christianity.

[APFel]

A program called "Operation Christmas Child" actually promoting Christ.

This is a surprise and or affront to a REVEREND and a Ph.D. WHY?

[VoiceOfBruck]

We must get over our fondness for charity and develop a thirst for justice.

This fake "reverend" is over the top. Imagine a real Christian denigrating charity!

And I bet his definition of "justice" is pretty interesting. Wanna know how to get people to succinctly divulge their political philosophy? Ask them for an open-ended definition of "justice."

[tessalu]

Who ever heard of a single time that Islam or Buddhism or Hinduism has served all the people?
The tragic part of this is that Franklin Graham is telling the truth. I wish it were not so, but it is.

[Soliton]

In Autumn 2000, Dr George Carey, the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, gave a pessimistic summary of the spiritual state of Britain, referring to his country as 'a nation of atheists'. Taking as his theme Lyte's magnificently brooding nineteenth century hymn 'Abide with Me', he painted a gloomy picture of a dying church and decaying spirituality

[DonQ]

Instead of bleating about how terrible it is for Christian organizations to be sending relief to Iraq and Afghanistan - on the assumption that, gee, they might favorably mention Christianity, the Guardian ought to be asking why the oil rich Moslem states are not sending their own relief. And, while we're at it, let's talk about the rights of Christians in the Moslem countries.

[Hyacinth Bucket]

Packing shoeboxes with toys, candies and toiletries for distribution to needy children all over the world is one of my favorite projects to do. They have pictures (see website below) taken during distributions and you should see the smiles on the kids faces when they each get a gift.

If any of you are interested in participating in the Operation Christmas Child Project, shoebox collection week is Nov 17-24.

http://www.samaritanspurse.org/

[ppaul]

And a particularly toxic version of Christianity it is.

Yeah.
I guess offering people hope, and a chance to enjoy true freedom on earth and to escape eternal torment in hell is poison, eh?

[kcvl]

Sounds like a GAY religion...

The bullshit before the but

The problem isn't simply the nine bishops - the Church of England itself is institutionally homophobic

Giles Fraser
Friday June 20, 2003
The Guardian

Everything before the but is bullshit. It's a useful hermeneutic rule when dealing with sentences of the type: "I'm not racist, but..." It's just as applicable to the official position of the Church of England concerning homosexuality: "We're not homophobic, but..." I'm not allowed to accuse others in the church of homophobia, for it is one of the conditions of dialogue between people with "different views" that we respect each other's viewpoint and don't call each other names. But if it looks like a dog and barks like a dog, by golly it is a dog. The Church of England is institutionally homophobic.

[ppaul]

Huh?

[rmlew]

There are still two active communities of Samaritans/Shomronim. I belive that there are about 730 Samaritans divided in two communities. There are a group of Israeli Samaritans numbering about 300 in Holon, a suburb of Tel Aviv. The main community is in Arab occupied Shechem/Nablus around their holy montain, Gezarim.

The Samaritans follow a Mosaic faith that developed seperately from Judaism for 2500 years. They are not idolitors.

[tkathy]

I would like to see Franklin speak out more and challenge Islam's horrific belief system. The truth is the truth.

[nonsporting]

Graham is being a faithful and obedient servant.

Jesus said (Matthew 28:19-20) "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you."

I hate when the religious left "lectures" us on "legitimate" Christianity. They strain at a gnat and swallow a camel (sexual perversion).