It’s about time someone stood up and complained about the bad rap the Right is giving faith.
At a church in Washington, hundreds of committed Christians met recently and tried to map out a strategy to get their values into the political debate.
But these are not the conservative Christian values which have been so influential lately. This is the religious left.
“Jesus called us to love our neighbor, love our enemy, care for the poor, care for the outcast, and that’s really the moral core of where we think the nation ought to go,” Dr. Bob Edgar, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches told CBS News correspondent Russ Mitchell.
Do you suppose the left leaning mainstream media will start labeling these leftwing Christians as radicals and crackpots like they do with the rightwing Christians? I doubt not.
Somehow, it all smells like a election year ploy. This church sounds like it came out of the Democrat play book — protect the environment, end the War on Terrorism, support gay marriage, etc, etc. This is tailor made for the lefty mainstream media.
I am on the fence. Just cause they are not on the left side doesnt mean they arent hypocrites. Tons of religious people dont behave how religious folks should.
This comes and goes. These groups get all fired up to meet and press their ideals, but then when it comes time to write down their values they realize they don’t have any, at least none they’d make public.
I think churches should be churches, not lobbyists. On the other hand I am quite thoroughly sick of churches like mine being attacked by other ones. These attacks are not just verbal but also take the form of the financing of groups determined to cause schism. Also no holds barred attempts to poach clergy. Jesus was violent when he felt he should be. These right wing churches that typically do nothing other than fundraise and recruit will learn a lesson for their flirtation with secular power. The Roman Catholics will learn one for their concern of image over the safety of their followers.
In the first case they helped cause the deaths of thousands of people, in the second the destruction of thousands of innocent lives. By their fruits ye shall know them!
Jesus was violent when he felt he should be.
I always laugh when people use Jesus chasing the moneychangers as justification to kill people they don’t agree with.
I didn’t mean kill but a smackin’ might be in order. The popular myth is that Christians must be pacifists, Jesus’ own example is that we don’t have to be.
The religiuous left? Gee, I never knew of such a thing. Everyone on the left always points religion to the right, whether or not they go to church themselves.
I’m not certain which is worse. The right-wing cop-outs who simply are ignorant about the history of progressive activism among religious folks in America — or those who just lie and accept the lies of konservative khristians.
They have always been there. Ministers who helped found the Underground Railway. Churches who moved American draft resisters north to Canada during the VietNam War. Priests who poured their own blood on the gates of recuiting centers. A nun named Sister Mary Kay who worked on the first Hospice project in the United States — when that was considered too radical for Khristian medical ethics.
Oh yeah — and Father Jean DuBay — exiled by the Vatican for his part in the worker-priest movement. When he landed in the States and was offered a snazzy uptown apartment by the local parish [for he still was a Catholic celebrity] he asked them for the cash for the rent. Took the money and walked into the poorest district in town and rented a crib — and handed out the rest of the money to his neighbors.
Let’s face it. We have a couple of amateur dittoheads here. They’ve never joined in political struggle for the sort of people their “Christ” fought for. They ain’t gonna start, now. That’s why they idolize the political opportunists who unite churches and reactionary ideology.
The “other” Christians are still out there. They care about folks without seeking political power or reinforcing bigotry and backwardness. I’m not about to join a church of any flavor; but, I respect those religious folk with backbone enough to stand up for what have always been mainstream Christian ethics.
[edited for length: see comment guidelines]
A more interesting point would be declining attendance of the leftist religious groups and rising attendance of more conservative religious groups. Leftist religious group provide no guidelines or moral backing for one to live or raise children. Nothing is truely wrong in their little world.
Jesus, demanded the attendance upon a right and wrong. Those He forgave He commanded not to sin again. Just in case you missed it, He did say they had sinned. He only forgave those that wanted to quite that type of lifestyle. I don’t remember Jesus forgiving anyone of a “alternative lifestyle”, a nice word for sodemy and child rapers.
If you really think Jesus would want to support any group that promoted the “alternative lifestyle” or free sex, then you really need to read the bible again. You either don’t believe in the bible or want to interpet it to suit your own needs, which is fine that’s you right under freewill. You don’t have the right to force you perverted beliefs upon the rest of society like the little NAZI / Soclialist you are.
Gee Traax I Didnt know you could read the minds of people from 2oo years ago you know exactly what they mean and how they mean it! of course you will use this power only for good!
the Council of Churches has been around for a long, long time and very active on the left. Once, many Moons ago they were more of a middle of the road group but in the 60’s started leaning left.
I’m not of the left on most matters but I tend to agree with the Council on what it means to be a Christian. I don’t like their stance on Abortion, but it makes more sense than not allowing birth control and then not wanting to help fund the lives you allowed to be brought into the world.
If I believed in organized religion I would most likely attend a liberal church than a conservative one, based on what the 2 believe in todays society.
To me, following a moral path is all you need to do to be near God. You don’t need a building with people in charge of singing and their hands out.
The left created the religious right with abortion and banning school prayer, but even more so when Jimmy Carter era Democrats tried to regulate homeschooling and religious schools. The religious left was around back then too pushing social liberation theology and the like. I’m sure if they’re calling for more welfare from a religious perspective, all the people will be clamoring how this is an intolerable intermixing of chruch and state.
I hate church people no matter what “side” they claim to be on.
no one important you are just as igonorant as some of the people you hate blindly hating them is just stupid
I didn’t know there were left and right churches, but one
Mark T >>Do you suppose the left leaning mainstream media will start labeling these leftwing Christians as radicals and crackpots like they do with the rightwing Christians? I doubt not.
That’s because we liberal-minded Christians are not crackpots and radicals.
We liberal Christians believe in science, tolerance, fair debate, minority rights and other things that make us reasonable people and good Americans.
The Christian Right wouldn’t get those labels if so many of their members — and leaders! — weren’t acting intolerant, ignorant and nutty.
wow, the posts that touch religion, the comments that follow… really reminds me of running in the special… oh, nevermind.
people with religion aren’t the only hypocrites, they’re just the ones trying not to be, can’t say much for the rest of us.
afa the left christians go, everyone wants to be heard, left or right, religious or not, its not different then all us blurting our views on meaningless discussions
Too many liberals view their politics as a religion for this to matter.
This is all about convincing Christians that it’s OK to vote for liberals. Good luck with that.
On one hand, James, you’re perfectly correct. The majority of churchgoers — khristian or otherwise — vote conservative. Maybe that’s why they call it a “simple” majority? 🙂
On the other hand, as church attendance and commitment to ancient ideologies continues to decline in the US — as it has in the rest of the industrial world — the effect of that vote continues to diminish. In fact, the real achievement of Karl Rove for Republikans was getting those folks to vote.
I think one of the fundamental differences between conservative and liberal Christians is in “family values” issues regarding slaves. I would have to lean to the left on this matter.
The Bible clearly states in Exodus, Chapter 21, that when you buy a male servant, he will be allowed to go free after six years of service. If you have provided a “wife” to that male servant, he cannot take her with him, nor can he take any children that she has born him, when he goes free. The wife and the children still belong to you — they are your permanent property.
All of the left-wing Christians I’ve talked to have said that although technically their God gives them the right to keep the woman and children, they wouldn’t be able to bear the thought of splitting up the family in that way. However, most of the right-wing Christians have told me that they would not want to give up their property so foolishly, even if it means separating the servant from his family.
This is one case where I think liberal Christians have higher family values than their right-wing conservative brethren. That said, I think they both worship a very strange and unwholesome God. I shudder to think what America would be like if believers in the Hebrew God had put their ideas into our national law.
The Bible is there to help you get to know your God, so don’t forget to read it.
A lot of BS gets spewed around here about the insideous liberals.
Who are the “liberals”? Name them.
I don’t see any liberal representation in Washington or anywhere.
James Hill shows the fear that the thumping crowd is feeling.
“You don’t have the right to force you perverted beliefs upon the rest of society like the little NAZI / Soclialist you are.”
Yes those darn liberals trying to pass laws against who can and can’t marry and banning books and making people learn non-science things in science class. I hate those people….
“You don’t have the right to force you perverted beliefs upon the rest of society”
And you do. Is that it, traax?
I’ll make you a deal, you go over into your corner and be crazy all by yourself, keeping your perverted beliefs to yourself, and I’ll do the same. Ready? GO!
Religious left? It sounds as bizzarre as a gay Republican, or even worse, a Gay Evangelic.
I actually have a friend that is a Conservative/Anarchist. I kid you not.
Makes for really bizarre political discussions.
James Hill This is all about convincing Christians that it’s OK to vote for liberals. Good luck with that.
You gotta put down the Ann Coulter book! 😉 That’s not what this is about, at all.
We liberal Christians are ticked-off that, for so long, the conservatives have claimed they have a corner on Christianity and faith.
Yes, a majority of evangelical Christians vote Republican but not even all of them. It was 65% to 35% among all evangelical voters in 2004. Among white evangelicals it is more like 78% to 21%.
Yes, it’s a wide margin but there still are millions of us evangelicals who vote liberal. And that’s from the most conservative wing of Christianity!
Among Christians, of all stripes and colors, there are millions and millions of liberals and it really bugs us that conservative Christians keep insulting us.
This chart is pretty useful: http://people-press.org/commentary/images/103-1.gif
Angel H. Wong >> Religious left? It sounds as bizzarre as a gay Republican, or even worse, a Gay Evangelic.
Honestly, Angel, you are really out of touch with religion in America. There are untold millions of liberal religious people. Martin Luther King is perhaps the most famous.
We liberal Christians would tell you that obedience to Jesus’ teaching requires us to be liberal.