From our archive
Irrational panic and ad hominem attacks that are routine towards Christians in the American Media both old and new and by many is not most adhering to the secularist collectivist left is distressingly common. These crazy assumptions and inaccurate assignments can’t be demonstrated by ANYONE to have ever been the case regarding mainstream American Christian believers. Instead the most extreme fringe wacko cases are trotted out as indicative of all Christians. Its pretty disgusting. When pressed all these folks can do is trot out “The Crusades” (usually inaccurately represented), “The Inquisition” (also usually inaccurately represented) or the “Salem Witch Trials” (also usually inaccurately represented).
Christian faith is predicated on love, forgiveness and submission of our own imperfect (fallen) natures to the salvation provided freely by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ through his work on the Cross. Christians are told to love their neighbor as themselves and as they love Christ. Doesn’t seem to be a creed oriented towards domination or dictatorship does it?
Another thing Christian Americans realize is how to have a sense of proportion and fairness. Secular people, humanists, atheists and agnostics all want their views, aims and values accurately and appropriately fowarded and defended by government and their elected representatives. Yet when Christians pursue their aims, values and views in the political process they are excoriated as wanting to “impose their religion” and “set up a theocracy”. The founders were predominantly Christian believers and THEY didn’t want such. Why would Christians today? No, Christians simply want their views, aims and values accurately and appropriately forwarded and defended by government and their elected representatives. Just as any other grouping of citizens do.
Why the fear of Christian believers? Christians know that you can’t *make* someone believe. They understand the adage about leading a horse to water but not being able to *make* the horse drink. What is the threat? Christians want to be free to spread their good news as their Lord has commissioned them. No significant grouping of Christians are in favor of a State Religion. Where do the vitriolic paranoid fervent claims of the left come from? Fear. Liberalism as defined today is a political and social stance based on emotion and on selfishness. Despite the mouthing of care for the “little guy” liberals want to feel good THEMSELVES individually. They are patently afraid of ANY standard not of their own individual making. They don’t want to have deal with any bad feelings or be held to any account not their own. So they gather and group together with like feeling people to outlaw that which makes them feel bad. Any consistent standard of right and wrong of good and evil terrifies the left. So they attack it as “intolerance” and “hate” thereby projecting their OWN behaviors on to that which terrifies them.
Political activists amongst homosexuals, Union members, Blacks, Hispanics, women and any other demographic you choose. Socialists, collectivists of all stripes and humanists don’t want this though that is their claim. They are the ones who want to suppress, eliminate and legislate away that which isn’t proper in their minds. The ones who want to control people by the tyranny of government. That which they determine is incorrect, wrong or intolerable they want to make illegal. Now this can be said of some Christian positions as well. Many Christians believe killing the unborn is wrong and should be legislated away. Some want to censor movies and music by law. I haven’t ever seen it demonstrated that most Christians want such things, particularly at the Federal level. Abortion is an exception because Christians value life and consider life to begin, as is biblical, at conception. Other social positions held by some Christians, and it varies, are generally not majoritarian views. Christians think families should control the media consumed by their kids. They work the MARKET to try influence content.
Christians don’t “hate” as a rule. It contradicts the very faith itself and what believers are called to do. Christians founded this free Republic, Christians built it, defeated slavery, contributed to women’s suffrage and give more than ANY OTHER segment of society. Sure they preach. So does the left. Sure they want government and society run in as close accordance to their values as is possible in freely elected government.
Christian belief is predicated on freedom. Liberalism is predicated on collectivist control of those *inferior* to those who “know better”. Humanism and atheism are predicated on SELF. The weakest cog there is. It FEELS GOOD to imagine or wish that people are by nature good. History, society and the daily news (and if you look honestly in to your OWN heart and brain) belies that. Christians follow a faith that is based on a gift freely given to those undeserving by nature, yet FREE to accept or reject that gift (some Calvinists would disagree but I don’t claim to be a theologist). Grouped together in FREELY associating congregations. Giving back to society FREELY to their communities with money, projects, aid, gifts and services.
I am often struck by the shrill and nasty lengths some will go to in order to mischaracterize Christians in order to not have their poor emotions impinged in a way they might not be comfortable with. When you look to see who wants to force others to their will it won’t be a Christian. It will be a social collectivist and/or humanist atheist seeking to buttress their internalized fears of having to cope with the real nature of human kind and society.
Wouldn’t the honest and open minded note the *good* (giving, caring, contributing) Christians far outweigh and outnumber the fringe wackos *claiming* Christianity that so many of the leftists/collectivists/humanists/atheists try to hold up as the norm?