There has never been a more loudly supposed Christian group of presidential candidates than this primary season’s GOP contenders. From the start, the campaign has been an exercise in Christian skewed thinking. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann , boasting of setting her alarm clock at 5 a.m. so she could read the Bible and issuing born-again testimonials like “I radically abandoned myself to Jesus Christ.” Herman Cain said that he was inspired to run for president by the parable of the talents in Matthew 25. Rick Perry released a video in which he intoned, “I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a Christian … As president, I’ll end Obama’s war on religion and I’ll fight against liberal attacks on our religious heritage.”
Bachmann, Cain and Perry are no longer sharing their spiritual rectitude with a national audience, but the remaining candidates continue to flaunt their supposed Christianity. Newt Gingrich, who has noisily proclaimed that his conversion to Catholicism saved his soul, repeated Perry’s charge, accusing President Obama of launching a “war on religion” by requiring that church-owned hospitals and universities provide insurance that covers birth control. “It’s a fundamental assault on the right of freedom of religion,” Gingrich said. “On the very first day I’m inaugurated I will sign an executive order repealing every Obama attack on religion.”This is like Gingrich making his own version of religious laws if he was elected ... (and if he can do this one, then what's to stop him or other GOP presidents making their interpretations of God's laws to run the Country ?) This makes him have a lot in common with Muslim extremists.
Gingrich has framed the election as a battle for America’s soul, warning that if Obama is not defeated, the United States is in danger of becoming a “secular atheist country, potentially one dominated by radical Islamist.” What?... (so radical right Christian extremists would be any better?...lol...No religion should be running run any Country.) Such apocalyptic warnings, combined with statements like “I can’t imagine being comfortable with an atheist in the presidency,” insinuate that Obama is a fake Christian – a widespread belief among the religious right.
The Republican strategy — loudly proclaiming one’s Christian faith, while attacking Obama as an agent of secular evil, if not actually Satan himself – (The hardcore see him as the Antichrist.) - is right out of the Fox News playbook. As the voice of the American far right, the ultimate undeclared super-duper-GOP-PAC, Fox News has embraced the cracked “birther” movement and generally done everything within its conflicting definition of “fair and balanced” to portray Obama as a -Christian impostor, foreign-born, America-hating Muslim. (Fox’s “War on Christmas” rants appear with such clockwork regularity at Christmas time that I use them as reminders to open my Advent Calendar.)
Rick Santorum went even further, essentially calling for America to become a theocracy. Santorum said, “Our civil wars have to comport with the higher law … That’s why as long as abortion is ‘legal,’ according to the Supreme Court, we will never have rest, because that does not comport with God’s law … As long as there is discordance between the two there will be agitation.”
Funny that the GOP seem to claim they know God's laws but, anyone does not need to believe in the infallibility of New Testament to see that the Jesus who is depicted in it was implacably opposed to authoritarianism, warmongering, contempt for the poor, exaltation of wealth, conformity, and sanctimoniousness – in short, everything the contemporary Republican Party stands for are totally against what Jesus stands for yet, they say nothing of theses.
The only GOP candidate who was smart enough to not openly pursued this strategy is the front-runner, Mitt Romney. Romney has avoided the subject because as a Mormon, his own Christian credentials are under suspect by the right. It's not to long ago back in time ( and some to this day) that the majority of American Christian Fundamentalists groups would preach the Mormon faith and it's founder Joseph Smith was a false faith and of the devil....But as the ultimate political panderer and opportunist, Romney would play the "Christian Card " when he could. Like all the GOP candidates, Romney has tried to paint Obama as an alien Other, elite, mysterious, malevolent – in a word, slightly satanic without mentioning anyone's particular Christian religion ( including his own).
And also like them, Romney presents his free-market, anti-government ideology as more “American,” and by implication more favorable towards Christians than Obama’s. (See?, he playing the Christian Card very discretely ).
Now Romney has spent many decades studying Christian theology, as well as modern scholarship about Jesus. That's part of the Mormon life style growing up. And the rest...?...Newt claiming to be a devote being a Catholic and Rick Santorum being a Christian and Ron Paul a Neo Naiz christian????
I supposed conservatives should be pleased by this eruption of holy fervor among the Republican candidates for the highest office in the land. But there’s just one little problem.
The Carpenter from Galilee would not have been pleased to learn that this pack of cold-hearten, sanctimonious, wealth-exalting politicians were claiming to be his followers. Jesus would have been appalled by the whole pack of them like He was with the rich Pharisees and Sadducees of His day who had money power and wealth and cared NOTHING for the poor.
now you hard ass righties out there in S.H.land, lets not twist this into me saying that Jesus would have been a Democrat. Anyone who pretends to find support for specific political policies or ideologies in the Bible is delusional.
But what I am saying is we all do know about Jesus regardless of our political views or religious or no-religious views is Jesus demanded that his followers help the neediest... period.
In Matthew 19:21 he says:, “If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell what thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.” That's hard for people who have a lot to do or even comprehend. The idea of selling all you worked for so hard to get...??? That kind of faith doesn't exist in the overwhelming majority of Americans.
And Jesus went further, warning that the mere possession of wealth, and the overvaluation of worldly possessions, stands in the path of salvation. From Matthew 19:24: “And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
So that's put Obama's non-religious Administration as most conservatives portrays them in a more favorable postilion with Jesus' ideologies and puts the GOP canidates totally out of Jesus' ideologies...and here's why....
In an ugly culmination of the successful, race-baiting “Southern strategy” that has essentially driven the Democrat Dixie-crats and GOP Conservatives for decades have vied with each other to demonize poor people, especially if they’re black. That’s why Gingrich has repeatedly attacked Obama as the “food stamp president,” and why Mitt Romney went out of his way to say “I’m not concerned about the very poor,” contrasting his stance with that of the Democrats, of whom he disparagingly said, “We will hear from the Democrat Party (about) the plight of the poor.” (As Gail Collins wrote in a hilarious column, “It is interesting to hear a candidate directly attacking the opposition for being concerned about the destitute.”)
And Obama?...Sure he isn't gonna sell all his possessions and give it all to the poor...but what he will do is try to use his power of the Presidency to at least give more opportunities to the poor even if it is from taxpayers dollars including his own tax dollars. He wants to pay his fair share of taxes as well. This is something none of the GOP candidate would ever want to do with their money. This is what puts Obama closer to Jesus' ideologies regardless of what we take him for....
We have no idea what position Jesus would have taken on progressive taxation or whether he would have supported the Dodd-Frank Act.
But we do know that Jesus, unlike ,Gingrich and Romney,( and the other GOP candidates ) was concerned about the poor. In fact, Jesus made it clear that concern for the poor was an absolutely essential principle of his faith. Any one can see that all through out the New Testament.
But Jesus’ most explicit repudiation of the GOP’s ethos is found in Luke 16:19, in his famous story of Lazarus and the rich man.
There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day. And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table; moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom; the rich man also died and was buried. And in hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that they who would pass from here to you cannot, neither can they pass to us, that would come from there.
We do not know very much about the historical Jesus. But everything we know in the New Testament about Jesus indicates that The Republican candidates are not devout Christians. Because as we can see between the compassionate teachings of Jesus and their cold heart mean-spirited ideology, there is a great gulf.
So ?...a conclusion in all this?
If you really believe in Jesus and have compassion for your fellowman or don't believe in Jesus but want what's best for the whole Country as a whole...then you would vote for Obama...
