The Christian Complex

The Washington Post ^ | May 5, 2005 | George Will

[gcruse]

Some Christians should practice the magnanimity of the strong rather than cultivate the grievances of the weak. But many Christians are joining today's scramble for the status of victims. There is much lamentation about various "assaults" on "people of faith." Christians are indeed experiencing some petty insults and indignities concerning things such as restrictions on school Christmas observances. But their persecution complex is unbecoming because it is unrealistic.

[Restorer]

The television networks, which can read election returns and the sales figures of "The Da Vinci Code," are getting religion, of sorts.

Of sorts is correct.

The Da Vinci Code is an anti-Christian book, by any logical standard.

[July20]

Christians are indeed experiencing some petty insults and indignities

Will does not acknowledge what Christians have suffered over the last decades. The breakdown in families, the heart-breaking phenomena of abortion, rampant deviant sexuality. These have contributed to the increase of taxes in order to support the family-less, so that good, Christian families suffer through working long hours and paying more taxes which could be devoted to our families and local charities.

Christians may be larger in numbers; however, Big Brother (the ever-present media in all its forms), continues to scream garbage messages which cows christians who don't scream as loudly.

Will is wrong. He is often off-center on these issues. A lot more time will be needed to get more christians in power positions to erase the imbalances. Christians have a long way to go. He seems to think a "God Bless America" from the Presidential Podium shows that christians have as much power as they need. Not so.

[aimhigh]

An editorian of ignorance. It's tough, to nearly impossible to get a job in the following areas as a Christian:
Federal judge, college professor, reporter, news broadcaster, Hollywood actor, police chief in a major city, ...

[Christian4Bush]

An editorian of ignorance. It's tough, to nearly impossible to get a job in the following areas as a Christian: Federal judge, college professor, reporter, news broadcaster, Hollywood actor, police chief in a major city, ...

...attorney general (Ashcroft)...and if I didn't know better, this list could also apply to conservative Republicans.

[gcruse]

An editorian of ignorance. It's tough, to nearly impossible to get a job in the following areas as a Christian:
Federal judge, college professor, reporter, news broadcaster, Hollywood actor, police chief in a major city, ...

What are the chances of an atheist being elected to anything?

[real edge John M. O.Disgay]

Actually it isn't unrealistic.

[Tungenchek]

Most of the church bashing I see is done by one denomination of Christians to another denomination. That, for example, happens here on FR on a regular basis.

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I agree... seems to me the predominate persecutors of Christians are other Christians... and everybody else gets the rap for it...

JMO

[fr_freak]

In this never terribly humble commentators view, I believe that Christians are confusing persecution with the reality that the Judeo-Christian worldview is not held in the same esteem (king of the hill, top of the heap, A#1) that it once was, and are extremely displeased by that.

Maybe someone can enlighten me: who are the Christians that are supposedly claiming they are being persecuted? I have heard a number of Christian leaders complain about the abuse Christianity receives from the media, the education establishment, etc., but I have not heard any of those complaints rise to the level of claims to persecution. I suppose to Will and others, any objection by a Christian at all to Christian-bashing is the same as "whining" and claiming "victimhood". I consider it to be just plain standing up for yourself.

[dmz]

some have chimed in on this thread, claiming persecution. Check out post 2 or 3.

[backhoe]

I culled some related links and placed them here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/833678/posts?page=4003#4003
Early warning shots-- the War against Religion...

[JCEccles]

There has always been a powerful group that believes that Christians should shut up, sit in a corner, and do as they're told.

Increasingly, Christians are speaking out, and that's alarming the secularists who are accustomed to dominating all discourse in government, society, and culture without having to consider the input and concerns of Christians and (more importantly) Christian families.

Secularists have been especially successful in persuading our courts and schools that anyone who is practicing conservative Christian presents an inherent and unacceptable danger to society and must be silenced or disqualified from holding positions of public influence or power. The correlative argument is that atheists and secularists alone think clearly and soundly enough to govern, judge, and teach. It is absolutely amazing that they do not sense the outrageous and unsupportable conceit at work in their worldview, but they do not.

[Castro]

The Da Vinci Code is an anti-Christian book, by any logical standard.

And a "cool, contemporary Jesus" isn't? The MSM doesn't get the concept of immutable truth. All they see is an increased interest in religion-related topics and how they can plug it in to tried-and-true story lines. We can only pray that this increased interest leads people to the Truth.

[Quix]

Perhaps you've been based in Antarctica the last decade and have missed the raging, serious, deep rooted, broad based, shrill, pointed, duplicitous, hypocritical etc. hostilities and persecutions against Christians in the following arenas:

1) The stated globalist goals of exterminating Christians--authentic Christians--particularly those who believe in the 2nd Coming etc.

2) MSM routine slants, jabs, characterizations, word choices, marginalizations, dissing, --this one could chronicle volumes alone for several decades--increasing dramatically the last decade

3) Africa

4) China

5) ALL THE MOSLEM countries

6) Almost all non-Christian universities--particularly in the USA but somewhat in the western world.

7) Almost across the board in the public square.

8) Columbine

9) By virtually all the significant DIMRATS except those using the nominal Christians to get elected but they also are still hostile to authentic Christianity.

10) Myanmar

11) Many science disciplines in hiring and publishing

12) Movies types produced as well as how Christians are characterized, maligned, satarized, ridiculed etc. in movies.

13) TV DITTO movies.

14) News publishing

. . .

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Or, perhaps you have been so . . . outraged at hypocritical "Christians" in your childhood that you are fairly blind to thrilled at such treatment of them.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

But Republicans should not seem to require, de facto, what the Constitution forbids, de jure: "No religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust."

George seems to be getting some things confused here. There is no constitutional requirement that conservative Republicans MUST support Giuliani for president. You can oppose someone for president for any reason you want. There is also no constitutional requirement to support Giuliani's liberal positions on such things as abortion. In fact, some would argue that we have an obligation to defend the right to life. Whatever the likelihood of a Giuliani candidacy, there is no need to listen to George Will's sermons on the subject.

Giuliani's liberal positions are also not an exercise of his religion. As a Catholic, Giuliani is not required by any religious doctrine to take a liberal position on abortion. His position is a political one. Everyone has the right in America to oppose a political position of any candidate.

[JCEccles]

Most of the church bashing I see is done by one denomination of Christians to another denomination.

They believe strongly in their respective worldviews. But you know what? So do you. There is nothing inherently wrong with that. I admire people who have spine enough to take stands. It's the mealy-mouthed and spineless members of our species I have little use for.

Do atheists and secularists agree with one another down the line? Of course not. They are prone to be just as noisily intolerant of each other, if not more so in certain matters. But by focusing on the religious believers who do do not agree with other, secularists and atheists can ignore their own disagreements and petty squabbles and pretend they are above it all, unlike their superstitious religion-believing neighbors.

It's a terrible conceit. One they are wholly blind to.

[Modernman]

How can not being able to talk about Jesus in school just be a petty insult?

Students are free to talk about Jesus all they want, so long as they don't disrupt math class with their discussions. Teachers are free to talk about Jesus all they want, too, so long as they don't use their teaching position as a pulpit.

[Quix]

Uhhhhhh . . .

no need to flame you. A big need to wake you up.

1) A global government has been long planned [a lot longer than the 35+ years I've been studying it] and is well underway. 70-85% of the written goals toward that which I was responsible for compiling and offering library patrons in 1965-69--70-85% of those goals TOWARD THE FULL TYRANNICAL ESTABLISHMENT OF A WORLD GOVERNMENT HAVE ALREADY BEEN ACHIEVED.

2) That globalist cabal is very hostile to authentic Christianity because the government is satanically originated as The Bible predicted.

3) There has been an organized and deliberate effort to remove authentic Christians and the authentic Christian perspective from public life and every other area of life possible for many decades. It's almost been achieved as far as most citizens of Europe are concerned.

4) The persistent stories of the concentration camps established on old military bases usually include some element of plans to insure that all authentic Christians are removed to them and exterminated if they do not recant and knuckle under to the world government.

5) There's the interesting story of the FBI agent who stumbled on a highly classified extermination list made up mostly of Christians--with his name on it.

6) The handwriting has been on the wall a long time. However, most wall readers see only graffiti. Most wall readers are actually allergic to the truth because it crimps their rebellion.

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Flames may well be ignored.

[Quix]

I wouldn't expect you to see such handwriting on the wall unless it was in a context that you felt like cheering anyway.