Mark Daniels Christian Blog and Commentary

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Absurd Way, pt.2

William Donahue of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights observed recently that evangelical Christians don't seem alarmed, for some reason, at the prospect of a majority Catholic Supreme Court. But the evangelical attitude should surprise no one. They understand that ours is a religiously-pluralistic nation, and these faithful have no litmus test for Supreme Court nominees, save one: that each put forth would be man or woman of character. And such is, apparently, the case with Judge Alito. It's ironic, really...time and again, the same group demonized by the Left as "the radical Christian Right"...is demonstrably more tolerant and uniting a force, than those so-called "progressives"” who are generally leveling such accusations.

 

In our last editorial, we began to unveil the battle plan "progressives" hope will deliver a Hillary Clinton presidential victory in 2008. We showed you how political organizations like "Third-Way.com" were laying the groundwork for Senator Clinton's illusionary "move to the middle," by working to re-define the term "conservative," and claim high ground on family values and moral issues--clearly, a Republican stronghold.

 

Once again, we were ahead of the pack. The very next day, former president Jimmy Carter made an appearance on the breathlessly-liberal "Today"” program on NBC. Of course, Carter took advantage of the opportunity to accuse President Bush of deliberately misleading the American people about the need for war, in an attempt to "settle a score." But why, ostensibly, was the worrisome ex-president chatting with Matt Lauer in the first place?   To promote his new book: Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis. Oh, and guess who's responsible for this "crisis?" No, not  George Bush, or even the Republicans. It's fundamentalist evangelical Christians.

 

The amazon.com review for Carter's book explains it this way..."[He] is gravely concerned by recent trends in conservatism, many of which, he argues, stem from the religious right's openly political agenda. Criticizing Christian fundamentalists for their "rigidity, domination and exclusion," [Carter] suggests that their open hostility toward a range of sinners (including homosexuals and the federal judiciary) runs counter to America's legacy of democratic freedom. He also makes resonant connections between religion and political activism, as when he points out that the Lord's Prayer is a call for "an end to political and economic injustice within worldly regimes."

 

As I state at the beginning of my radio program each day...my desire is not to be a thinly-veiled spokesman for the RNC...for indeed, my show's not about Right and Left, but Right and Wrong. But Mr. Carter has picked this fight...and conservative evangelical Christians must not back away. For the overwhelming majority of believers do not judge the sinner, but instead, the sin. Characterizing all of Christendom, as Carter does, by the outrageous positions of a few is no less ridiculous than alleging that one can't be a Democrat and a believer at the same time.

 

As Jimmy Carter adds to his confusing legacy, he is wrong to implicate some imaginary "trend" in conservatism, where it does not exist. The 39th President of the United States is also terribly out of line when he criticizes a sitting chief executive. But I bet even Miss Lillian would have scolded Billy's big brother Jim for painting his fellow believers with such a broad and inappropriate brush.

 

Besides...I've always had nothing but nice things to say about peanut farmers...