I agree with Obama completely, what was once faith in God and a higher purpose has turned into hate, intolerance, and vitriol against others.
“Somehow, somewhere along the way, faith stopped being used to bring us together and faith started being used to drive us apart,” the Democratic presidential candidate said in a 30-minute speech before the national meeting of the United Church of Christ.
“Faith got hijacked, partly because of the so-called leaders of the Christian Right, all too eager to exploit what divides us,” the Illinois senator said.
“At every opportunity, they’ve told evangelical Christians that Democrats disrespect their values and dislike their church, while suggesting to the rest of the country that religious Americans care only about issues like abortion and gay marriage, school prayer and intelligent design,” according to an advance copy of his speech.
America has always been a place where people of any faith could find a common ground in our society. The polarization brought on by the bible-thumpers has poisoned this country.
Weak minded sheep.
Funny how the radical right can poison any- and everything, from Jesus to democracy to Mom and apple pie. Kind of like an anti-King Midas. They take gold and turn it to shit. Evil.
…hate, intolerance, and vitriol againt others.
Aren’t those cornerstones in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Close but no banana.
“what was once faith in God and a higher purpose” now is an environment of anything goes and no standards. Clearly the COC doesn’t subscribe to bible standards.
What was once belief in the bible as a moral standard is now condemnation of anything that constrains people in doing what they want no matter how disgusting and repugnant. .
I thought Obama had a brain. I was wrong.
Jägermeister (#3),
…hate, intolerance, and vitriol against others.
Actually describes every post you have made on this blog regarding all people who believe in any religion.
>>Aren’t those cornerstones in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Naw, not unless you define Christianity and Islam as Jimmy Swaggart and Louis Farrakhan (not sure of an example of a famous bigoted, ignorant, hatemongering Jew, but probably some could be found among the columnists at Jewish World Review – any publication that counts Ann Coulter among the contributers should have somebody).
The right-wing neocon nutjobs have hijacked just about EVERYTHING.
#5
I’m sorry if I’ve offended you, but religion is my pet peeve.
“Faith got hijacked, partly because of the so-called leaders of the Christian Right, all too eager to exploit what divides us,”
It’s not that faith was hi-jacked. It stood its moral ground while a culture of whatever-feels-good and moral relativism washed any sembelance of right or wrong away. Thank God for people who still hold to what is right and wrong… and have the courage to say so.
>>religion is my pet peeve.
Perhaps that’s because the most vocal proponents of “religion” (note the quotes) are lunatic assholes like Jimmy Swaggart and Tammy Faye and Jerry Falwell and Ted “The Recently-Cured Homosexual” Haggard. Shitbags like that are a pet peeve of mine also.
Good for Obama. About time some pol or other told something resembling the truth about those Rethuglican tools.
#9
Or the current Pope or the Popes before him. How many millions of people have suffered and died because of their stupid decisions…
8—I got to go with 8 here. Religion in name only appears to be acceptable when it is vague, wishy-washy, non-judgmental free floating love with no requirements–ie, can be ignored. But whenever it takes a position, ANY position, then it gets criticized. I’m sure #8 agrees totally with this.
Only problem is, when Religion does take a stand, its always wrong.
Funny how that works out.
>>Or the current Pope or the Popes before him.
Well, yeah. Catholicism has a whole host (and not a heavenly one, either) of problems. The Pope is just the spokesmodel for a dysfunctional and repressive culture (in my opinion).
OTOH, Jimmy and Ted and Tammy Faye and Jerry are (or were) supposed to represent an inclusive community, fostering spiritual growth, understanding, a love of all humanity. Perverse. Kinda like if the Dalai Lama decided to join the Aryan Nation.
>>Thank God for people who still hold to what is right and wrong.
Yeah, and those fucking hatemongers who preach divisiveness and exclusion and war and repression in the name of their “god” are wrong on so many levels, I can’t even count them.
The use of the expression “moral relativisim” means someone can quote a book whether it is the Old or New Testament, the Koran, or Mein Kampf and use it for political power. The notion that there are individuals who see life as black and white and lack the ability to discriminate the hues and delicacy of life are, as if, dead. I know – I am one of misguided liberals that believe differing opinions are worth considering. May be Buddhists, Hindus aren’t minions of the devil but the God fearing Christians are…
>>when Religion does take a stand, its always wrong.
Uh, no, Einstein. When religion tries to ram its system of beliefs down the throat of others who believe something ELSE, then it’s always wrong. Repression is always wrong.
Funny how that works out.
Have to go with Mister Mustard here. Though I’ve been an atheist for decades, a philosophical and scientific materialist, there are a fair number of believers in my extended family. Most of ’em belong to one or another Eastern or Western faith. And they understand what the differences are between faith and scientific understanding.
My sister put it best to me when the “born again” crowd began to shove their one-way-ideology onto the American stage. She accepted Christianity as an inclusive theology. The “born again” thugs said then – and now – that unless you are born again into their definition of a pretty narrow theology and political outlook, you can’t even be a Christian.
That’s not a new fundamentalism. That’s the worst of the old kind – from the Inquisition on over to latest generation of hijackers.
#13 – The Pope is just the spokesmodel for a dysfunctional and repressive culture (in my opinion).
True, the Pope sure has this in common with Kermit.
…Dalai Lama…
This guy is another religious clown. Read up on the history of Dalai Lama’s… they were an oppressive bunch.
>>Read up on the history of Dalai Lama’s… they were an
>>oppressive bunch.
Maybe so. I’m referring to Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th (and current) Dalai Lama (the guy who won the Nobel Peace Prize). Dunno too much about the ones from the fifteenth century, as I am not a Buddhist, so I can’t speak to that.
Or are you saying that all Buddists are opressive hatemongers and religious clowns?
#20
What I’m saying is that things aren’t always what you see. He’s a cute little guy, but what does he really stand for? We would have known if he had been allowed to rule Tibet.
>>what does he really stand for?
Well, I guess he stands for stuff like this: http://tinyurl.com/3dmszm
Kind of a far cry from the Pope, Jimmy Swaggart, or Jerry Falwell.
In any case, I’m with Obama on this one. Hatemongering slimeballs have given religion a bad rap.
16—Name one religious tenet that is not wrong ((not to include wishy-washy non-judgmental love)). I agree with the rest of your post, even when (anything) is right, forcing it on other people is wrong.
#23 – I’m really not interested in the rightness or the wrongness of individual religious tenets.
As long as they don’t harm others, and as long as they don’t try to ram them down other people’s throats, people are free to believe whatever they like. In my opinion. If you believe that your USB cable is Jesus and is telling you you can only eat kippered herring forever, go for it.
Just leave me the fuck out of it.
So what’s your take on Islam?
>>So what’s your take on Islam?
Same as my take on any other religion. Why is this so hard to understand? Believe what you like. Just leave me the fuck out of it. And “leaving me the fuck out of it” includes stoning me to death, cutting off my hands, bombing skyscrapers in my neighborhood, or telling my wife she’s going to burn in a lake of fire if she takes birth control pills.. Worship in the privacy of your own home or place of worship.
Or is that un-American?
As KarlMarx said, religion truly is an opiate — a fallback for weak lazy minds that don’t want to accept uncomfortable scientific fact (like the fact that you’re going to just DIE, not go to some happy fun made-up everafter). They’d much rather have their 72 virgins or clouds and harps or Flying Spaghettiland or whatever.
The Pope is just the spokesmodel for a dysfunctional and repressive culture (in my opinion). //// No, he’s much worse than that. The hand up his bun is the hand of God. When the Pope speaks on matters of faith, he is speaking (for/as/in the place of) God. He is in fact forming the religion because like God, the Catholic church is a fascist organization with power flowing from and owing to the top. Disagree and you are out. Thats not being a spokesmodel.
Muslims? They take from the worst of the Catholic and Protestant traditions without a reformation, without having to live “with” opposing views. Maybe the main silent majority would bring accommodation to this group, but until then, I think you should take people at their word. The Muslim word is, become a Muslim or die. This is not wishy-washy free floating love, so I reject that.
>>The Muslim word is, become a Muslim or die.
So far, I haven’t heard a single argument in conflict with my original position: “Believe whatever you want, just leave me the fuck out of it”.
The religion/church has/is turned into the corporation (of/we hate?)
Whatever happened to separation of church and state?
Come on folks….Obama is speaking to the choir here. There are leftist churches as well as rightist. The UCOC is one of the leftiest.
I hate sweeping generalizations, but I do make them as well, and calling all right wing church members hateful, vitriolic and intolerant is a generalization. There are good, kind, and tolerant people in just about all religions. We just hear about the assholes, and most judge the whole religion by those few.
If Obama has the balls he thinks he has, then go to Falwell’s University and make that speech, or go to a Mosque, or a Hindu Temple. Then I might think he’s serious and just not looking for a way to score points on Hillary. He choose a veneu that was a sure thing. The UCOC dosen’t do God anymore, they have joined the **if it feels good do it** side.
I don’t want anyone for President that uses religion as a crutch or a scapegoat. We have the crutch kind in office now and look where that has got us.
If one has to subscribe to a religion, I guess Theravada Buddhism would be the closest to what a religion should be, the rest pretty much have institutionalised one form of bigotry and intolerance or another.