Forgiving Ignorance
As promised yesterday, this is my response to Jennie Koppman’s letter.
Based on what I’m able to see hear and touch, I’ve reached the reasonable conclusion that many righteous Christians and Papistical Catholics are responsible for this county falling apart.
Since electing Bush, we have lost 3.3 million manufacturing jobs. We have higher unemployment, more Americans without health insurance, and a record number of home foreclosures. The median family income is down $1200 and purchasing power is down $4500. Prices have skyrocketed for everything from gas to food.
More than 4,124 young America men and women have been killed and over 30,409 wounded. Over one million Iraqis have met violent death and four million Iraqis have been displaced from their homes.
By reelecting Bush, many righteous Christians and Papistical Catholics played a role in fostering the disrespect, violence, vulgarity and shootings, we see in America today. Bush’s preemptive war against innocent Iraqis has set a terrible example, for our youth.
In 2003, an Associated Press poll found that 77% of Evangelicals favored the Iraqi war. At 62%, significantly fewer Catholics and mainline Protestants were in favor of war, but only 44% of non religious citizens favored the war.
In 2004, a majority of Evangelical Christians and Catholics continued to support Bush after he claimed God “instructed me to strike Saddam” and ordered our military to invade Iraq.
Is Jennie Koppman ignoring that Bush took the Lords thy God’s name in vain by claiming God instructed him? Does she recognize that our imperialistic military invaded Iraq, because big oil coveted thy neighbor oil? Does she deny that in the lead up to the invasion, members of the Bush regime presented false witness to the United Nations, Congress and the American people?
I recommend things go back to the way they were in the 1940’s. During our elementary school education, we recited a pledge which didn’t include the words “under God.” In 1954, Congress added the words “under God,” after a vigorous campaign by the Knights of Columbus at which point the Pledge became both a patriotic oath and a public prayer.
Effort to undermine the separation of church and state doctrine reached it’s peak in the 1950’s, when Congress created a prayer room in the Capital and added the words “In God we Trust” to all paper money.
The 1960’s, a Supreme Court decision ruled it unconstitutional for public schools to allow prayer, even though the prayer was non-denominational and students were allowed to abstain from the exercise. Kennedy replied that he understood many people were angered by the ruling, and that there was “a very easy remedy -not a constitutional amendment but a renewed commitment to pray at home, in the churches and with their families.”
I agree that there isn’t anything wrong with showing pride and love in your God and country, but as Michael Parenti pointed out in his book Super Patriotism: “U.S. leaders repeatedly weave piety with patriotism.”
Atheists and devout Christians appear to be incapable of being intellectually honest, because they can’t admit that when it comes to the existence of a Supreme Being they don’t “know.” Reasonable people recognize that no amount of scientific evidence can prove or disprove the existence of a creator.
How sweet of Jennie Koppman to add in the last paragraph of her letter: “I’ll say a prayer for you and maybe God will forgive you for your ignorance.” That remark has got to be one of the most revealing sanctimonious comments, I’ve ever read.
Based on what I’m able to see hear and touch, I’ve reached the reasonable conclusion that many righteous Christians and Papistical Catholics are responsible for this county falling apart.
Since electing Bush, we have lost 3.3 million manufacturing jobs. We have higher unemployment, more Americans without health insurance, and a record number of home foreclosures. The median family income is down $1200 and purchasing power is down $4500. Prices have skyrocketed for everything from gas to food.
More than 4,124 young America men and women have been killed and over 30,409 wounded. Over one million Iraqis have met violent death and four million Iraqis have been displaced from their homes.
By reelecting Bush, many righteous Christians and Papistical Catholics played a role in fostering the disrespect, violence, vulgarity and shootings, we see in America today. Bush’s preemptive war against innocent Iraqis has set a terrible example, for our youth.
In 2003, an Associated Press poll found that 77% of Evangelicals favored the Iraqi war. At 62%, significantly fewer Catholics and mainline Protestants were in favor of war, but only 44% of non religious citizens favored the war.
In 2004, a majority of Evangelical Christians and Catholics continued to support Bush after he claimed God “instructed me to strike Saddam” and ordered our military to invade Iraq.
Is Jennie Koppman ignoring that Bush took the Lords thy God’s name in vain by claiming God instructed him? Does she recognize that our imperialistic military invaded Iraq, because big oil coveted thy neighbor oil? Does she deny that in the lead up to the invasion, members of the Bush regime presented false witness to the United Nations, Congress and the American people?
I recommend things go back to the way they were in the 1940’s. During our elementary school education, we recited a pledge which didn’t include the words “under God.” In 1954, Congress added the words “under God,” after a vigorous campaign by the Knights of Columbus at which point the Pledge became both a patriotic oath and a public prayer.
Effort to undermine the separation of church and state doctrine reached it’s peak in the 1950’s, when Congress created a prayer room in the Capital and added the words “In God we Trust” to all paper money.
The 1960’s, a Supreme Court decision ruled it unconstitutional for public schools to allow prayer, even though the prayer was non-denominational and students were allowed to abstain from the exercise. Kennedy replied that he understood many people were angered by the ruling, and that there was “a very easy remedy -not a constitutional amendment but a renewed commitment to pray at home, in the churches and with their families.”
I agree that there isn’t anything wrong with showing pride and love in your God and country, but as Michael Parenti pointed out in his book Super Patriotism: “U.S. leaders repeatedly weave piety with patriotism.”
Atheists and devout Christians appear to be incapable of being intellectually honest, because they can’t admit that when it comes to the existence of a Supreme Being they don’t “know.” Reasonable people recognize that no amount of scientific evidence can prove or disprove the existence of a creator.
How sweet of Jennie Koppman to add in the last paragraph of her letter: “I’ll say a prayer for you and maybe God will forgive you for your ignorance.” That remark has got to be one of the most revealing sanctimonious comments, I’ve ever read.
posted by Jim O'Leary | 12:01 AM
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