Axe to Grind:
I have a friend who hooked me up with a link to a site that sells bumper stickers.
One of the bumper stickers reads...
"The real Jesus forgives your Jesus for being a conservative warmonger".
The site is politically biased. However my friend is not. He's one of those (non-churched is the name he's given) believers that finds himself in a lot of different places politically. Neither left... or right... And so consequently has a hard time in the existing religious world.
The website (and bumper sticker) came up because he was talking to me about a post that went around Facebook a few weeks ago... It was one of those posts demanding that if you agreed... you had to repost it... so people would know you were a great Christian... or patriot... Or whether you believed certain things about Aids... or politics.. or ice cream... or cheese.
This one was political. It read something like this:
Let's be clear on this: Obama did not kill Bin Laden.... An American Sailor.... did. Obama just happened to be the one in office when our soldiers finally found Bin Laden and took him out. This is not an Obama victory, but an American victory. Repost if you agree.
My friend talked to me about how most of the reposts he was getting were from his Christian friends. But he was frustrated because as he noted "the logic of the post" was all wrong.
"It's not an either/or... thing"... he said. It's not Obama... or "the sailor".... but everyone had a job to do... Sailors don't do things without commands... and leaders sometimes have to make tough decisions. And so... his conclusion was.... everyone had a role to play... right?...
Which made total sense to me.
But what he told me was that as he posted that as a comment... all the "Jesus Sharks" came out... Snapping at him about George Bush... and who deserved more credit... And all the other things wrong with Obama (in their view) and by the time he was done... he told me... I never said anything political at all.... I just said the truth. Then he added... "Christians don't really care much about the truth... do they?"...
And I've been thinking about the question ever since.
Do Christians really care anything about the truth?
I am a Christian and I care about the truth. Doesn't mean I always get it right and sometimes the truth is definitely tough to hear, but I do care about it. The great thing about the truth is that is true no matter what. Doesn't matter where it occurs or who says it. Sometimes we don't have a good view of it or it may get twisted by us, but the truth is always worth caring about.
ReplyDeleteI searched for truth all my life.The only thing I can come up with is "To thine own self, be true". Kindness and respect for oneself and others goes a long ways.
ReplyDeleteTruth is truth, regardless of if I (we) care about it. And thank God for that.
ReplyDeleteThe mixture of politics and Christianity is a dangerous game, I've come to learn. Jesus gets obscured by ideology, arrogance, the desire to win and bumper-sticker mantras.
No person or political party holds the answer. Only Jesus gives hope.
"To thine own self, be true". Kindness and respect for oneself and others goes a long ways.
ReplyDeleteI love the above quote and wish that more people belived it and followed it. But so many times the "to thine own self be true part" is pushed in everyones face when someone is wanting to get their own way and your in their way. So the resect for others part is ignored.
First, I agree that the Osama thing was a win for Obama and America. I think lots of people were frustrated that Obama didn't recognize others as much as they wished. As someone who tries really hard to lead by deflecting praise, and sharing victories with my teammates, I get their frustration. But I don't get making it a FB post and a big, hairy deal. I don't like the attitude behind it. I find it repulsive.
ReplyDeleteI care about truth a bunch. I pray that I always will. And I hope that I'll care about it more than my own biases or preferences. If I really care about truth, I can't pretend that I will find it in me. Because what is in me is not always good or truthful. And what is in you might be completely different, so then we are left wondering whose truth is most true.
I believe that the words of Jesus are true. The life of Jesus is true. That's the truth that I'm after.
Appreciate the dialogue.
the night he announced the operation successful he praised the work of the CIA along with others who had worked for years on Osama Bin Laden. 2 days later invites George Bush to ground zero to honor the death of Bin Laden. Has done nothing but praise the navy seals who actually carried out the mission....
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what else you do to share success with your team.
That said. I imagine most Christian conservatives will interpret my defense of Obama as loyalty to his cause.... But that would be a knee jerk reaction (because they don't know me or what I believe). All they know is that I'm questioning them. And they assume certain things. In fact it has already happened many times since i began this questioning of how and why christians do what they do politically...
My simple point is..... politics aside.... why can't Obama have credit? What is it about conservative Christians that get them so biased that they refuse to akbowledge the obvious?
(devils advocate...)
What are their other biases?
Do they have biases when it comes to Truth???
If they can't be trusted to be honest with political things.... maybe they can't be trusted with reality and "Truth".
When it comes to politics what allows us to gossip... to believe the worst about people.... attempt to destroy a person (or group of people). What makes us willing to throw "the truth" out the window... And it be ok? Is this the Jesus way?
Anyone?
You know what, I re-read the speech and it's pretty darn good. I had first viewed it with a crying baby and should have re-read it before posting.
ReplyDeleteI think that Condoleezza was right, when she said that the victory spans presidencies. Lots of the chatter was about who owns the credit, as if it couldn't be shared.
Hate never wins anyone to truth (and rarely, if ever, even to one's version of the truth).