NOT A GOOD MOVE BARACH

When the framers of the Constitution made a conscious effort to separate the church from the state, there was a reason. And, we have a good example from Jesus when He was confronted by the Pharisees with the notion of church and state. His quote was simple and to the point, even providing an illustration, he took a coin and asked, “Whose picture is on the coin? Caesar. “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and the things that are God’s to God”. Makes sense to me.

How we have gotten ourselves to this point is beyond me. The idea that preachers can wield such power is baffling. Having studied the old time preachers, they never seemed to get into politics and yet to be fair, they didn’t have the temptation of the media either.

Billy Graham seems to be the first media religious darling to any degree. I always liked him. He never did get away from his basic message but then again, he didn’t dispute his influence either. Surely didn’t refuse an invite to the White House.

To me, it is hard to say what this religious forum means: a potential president appearing before a preacher to be questioned about his religious beliefs. Seems unseemly to me. Well, this is what my Mom would say.

The flip side of the coin is that those like Rick Warren can only be given influence and power in politics by those like Obama and McCain. I surely don’t blame those like Warren. In a sense, be is the pastor of a mega church with a slant on interpreting what Jesus meant. These gigantic mega churches usually are part church, part entertainment. I don’t care for them very much but they seem to meet many people’s need and I want to be fair. Mostly in my view, they are church/gospel/Bible lite.

THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE

Warren’s book, The Purpose Driven Life, which I’ve read is OK as a guide for living but if people really wanted to get a formula for making it in this world and into the next, they should read the four Biblical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John which are what Jesus said and did. Unfortunately, in Church culture, most people had rather take the shortcut of listening to a preacher say what Jesus said and did. The few times I’ve been in dialogue with the clergy and they have given me the word, “Jesus said such and such or God says: ” my usual retort is, “Where does it say that God says this?” End of discussion usually!

I don’t fault Warren for this coup of getting Barach and McCain to acknowledge the perceived importance of the “right wing” mostly. They are politicians, afterall. HELLO!!

I think probably these mega church pastors are fighting to be the titular head and Warren seems to be the front runner. Others have bit the dust in various ways: Falwell has gone on to his reward. Ted Haggard left Colorado after the gay masseuse scene, the Focus on the Family 's James Dobson has become a one issue type: gays are taking over the world; and the Texas syrupy pastor Osteen’s wife is flying first class and accused of assaulting a flight attendant. So, we have Warren.

A BOOK WHICH IS A MARVEL IN MARKETING

To me, his book is the interesting thing. It is a marketing phenomena and mark me jealous. It started off with everybody in his church buying a copy or several. Then covering the entire country with promotion. All the evangelical churches bought copies and developed courses around the book, a 40 day spiritual journey that will change the reader's life was the so called, "purpose." An entire cottage industry has grown up around it. It has sold millions, reported to the various sources like the NY Times best sellers' list and the book reinvents itself over and over.

THE POTENTIAL PRESIDENT SHOULD HAVE RESISTED

Barach should have resisted. It was natural for McCain as his party routinely panders to the right wing as a part of their persona. I fear Barach is being handled already. What he didn’t get is that he can’t win these people over. It can’t be done. A kind of “Don’t confuse me with facts, I have my mind made up” exist with them. "Right wing" (in terms of social issues, I don't see any difference in the terms, right wing and evangelical) Christians have certain issues: abortion, gay marriage, prayer in the schools, stem cell research, and various other fringe ideas. These good folks are not going to change their minds. They are willing to have a war that is bankrupting us, the worse deficit in history with the very real possibility of sacrificing our children and grandchildren’s future--a litany of negatives: a spiraling down economy where no one really knows the bottom, hard working folks losing their homes,the dollar falls and falls, inflation is moving upward and lastly something totally inexplicable, an amazing blindness to reality. If only they can have a candidate to champion their issues, to hell with all this other stuff.

Obama would have been better to have said, “I respectfully decline. If I attend, it gives the impression that I am choosing one expression of faith over another. Our country has always prided ourselves on freedom of religion or no religion at all. Thank you for your invitation and may the God of your choice bless you."

WE F..... UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hank, the Admiral shared with us this article, written by his Professor Brother. Here is the link,






http://marty-center.uchicago.edu/webforum/052003/response_miller.shtml


Hank, I think your brother is "right on." Unfortunately, it is a "voice crying in the wilderness" and has been for 8 years. I am amazed that the President finds himself at this spot where he can literally walk away and leave a mess to the next Prez. However, he has done this, in my opinion, with many allies, mainly those who even today will put the same spin on Iraq as he does: yesterday, with 4000 dead, his view was this is a payment for peace. John McCain has begun to frame the war in terms of his goal is to save American lives. Not remaining in Iraq or the war on terror. It remains a mess with no real "out." My view. And, most Americans think really that we are on the right course in Iraq. The surge has worked. Nothing has worked other than we have paid off those who were killing us and we don't know what will happen when the money goes.

What is interesting about your brother's comments is that his view is pretty much the same of most who legitimately point out how we have violated all sorts of principles and our own declared intentions by invading Iraq; but it really doesn't matter to this president and his minions. As one who gave him the benefit of the doubt in the beginning and only became so opposed as we mismanaged it unbelievably, still my disgust at this stage is that he merely salutes and hands this quagmire off to someone else.

I've thought lots about this. There are two people, I think, who had a chance to change the course of history; two in the persons of Colin Powell and Condi Rice: I think, surely would love to see your brother analyse that. They didn't, they went along. Not sure anything could have stopped Bush; but, what if Powell had said to the UN: "after careful consideration, I don't think there is enough reason to invade Iraq and for the time being, I recommend against it." It might have worked even in the face of those like Rumsfelt, Chaney, Pearl, and Wolfowize (sp).

Oh well: don't want this to be a penguin experience for you guys like you are still reading anyway.

God bless.