Christian Militia and Real Pagans

My latest exchange on Twitter:

onfaith: Why does the media keep referring to arrested Michigan extremists as 'Christian' militia? How are they Christian? http://bit.ly/c7lUjJ

My response: Why do they refer to Muslim extremists as Muslim? If it's what they call themselves, is it our place to proclaim them non-Xian? The IRS goes by sincerity of belief. Extremists who define their actions as springing from their faith are generally sincere about why they need to kill people or at least not be forced to treat them fairly.

Too much BS circulates about what a 'real' Christian is and isn't. The same goes for Pagans. I'm tired of hearing about which groups or people are 'real' Pagans or witches. A recent blogger began Project Pagan Enough:

Project Pagan Enough seeks to say that - no matter your beliefs, practices, looks, or loves - you are pagan enough. We can argue theology back and forth all day long and disagree with one another's fluff-factor until the cows come home, but it is high time that we stop denigrating one another's level of being pagan. Paganism does not have a set definition, and there is definitely not a dress code or music-loving requirement.

We can hold debates over what the titles 'Christian' and 'Muslim' and 'Pagan' and 'Witch' mean, we can stop extremists from killing people in the name of their faith, we can explore history, philosophy, and anecdotal evidence... but people are going to keep referring to themselves by specific religious titles because that's part of their self-definition. Arguing over them is, basically, arguing about the opinion of your invisible friend as opposed to theirs.

Or, more to the point, it's arguing semantics. It's of interest to intellectuals and theologians, but, practically speaking, you're better off judging people by their deeds, not their labels.

Reblog: Etiquette in pentecostal worship

H/T to Progressive Involvement for this instructional video!

Olbermann on Prop 8

Gads, I love listening to this fellow.

Update on KY Farm Bureau Violating Fairness Ordinance

Page One Kentucky reports:

In what could be considered one of the biggest stories ever about the historic Fairness Ordinance that protects individuals from discrimination on several fronts, the 8th District Circuit Court in Jefferson County has ruled that Todd Eklof can sue Kentucky Farm Bureau for violating the ordinance.

POK has made the court document available (click on the pic to read).

Some Programmers Have Gone Over To The Dark Side

Right Wing Watch, an arm of People For the American Way, recently discovered that when readers clicked links leading to the American Family Association's website, they weren't going to the pages RWW referenced. Instead, they were being redirected to a Good Person Test that they couldn't pass.

Answer a question about honesty and you are told you are a liar; answer a question about lust and you are told you are an adulterer; answer a question about anger and you are told you are a murderer.
...
We’ve noticed that this special redirecting service is something AFA seems to have reserved for Right Wing Watch, because, for example, Street Prophets excerpted one of our posts the other day that included a link to a OneNewsNow article that, from their blog, takes readers to the article quoting Gary Bauer whereas those clicking through from our post get redirected.

Unfortunately for our fundie friends, RWW has programmers, too. They have already figured out how to get their links working again. Enjoy this story I was able to reach from their site. By the way, the author has forgotten Rhode Island.

Ralph Long: Know Your Friends (and those who aren't)

From Ralph Long's blog:

I recently got a couple of Fund Raising emails from http://www.kentuckyvotes.com/. The emails came from Kelly L. Smith [postmaster@bipps.org]. Now I subscribe to this site, along with a number of other sites and I know its run by the same folks that run the Bluegrass Institute. Kentucky Votes is a pretty good service if you ignore most of the comments on the site.

The subject of the email was KentuckyVotes.org_A Testimonial from Norman Davis and contained this line.

Our friend and colleague, Norman Davis of Clarkson, Kentucky, is a regular user of Kentucky Votes. No big deal, I’m a regular user of Kentucky Votes. But to think that Norman Davis endorsing something will get me to pony up some bucks, well that’s not going to happen.

For those of you who don’t know who Norman Davis is let me introduce you. Davis is the leader of a coalition of groups called Take Back Kentucky.

A 2004 Kentucky Department of Justice Report - Hate Crime and Hate Incidents in the Commonwealth of Kentucky lists Take Back Kentucky as a Patriot Group.

Patriot groups define themselves as opposed to the “New World Order” or advocate or adhere to extreme anti-government or conspiratorial doctrines.

Ralph says that he won't be giving money to this group any time soon. I would suggest that everyone do the same before ponying up for any candidate or interest group that contacts them during this election year.

Too bad it's not coming to KY!

Information on the simulcast below:

Celebrities, Religious Liberty Heroes Headline National Simulcast For Church-State Separation

Activists Gather At Theaters In 25 Cities To Put Church-State Separation On National Agenda During 2008 Election

Actors, musicians and comedians will join church-state activists from across the country March 26 to put church-state separation on the national agenda during the 2008 election season.

In movie theatres in 25 cities across the nation, interested citizens will gather to learn about the threats to church-state separation and to demand that presidential hopefuls and candidates for other offices answer questions about key issues dealing with individual freedom. A list of 10 great questions to ask candidates will be featured.

Titled “Everything You Always Wanted to Know about the Separation of Church and State … but Were Afraid to Ask!,” the high-definition program is being hosted by First Freedom First (FFF), a joint project of Americans United for Separation of Church and State and The Interfaith Alliance Foundation.

Peter Coyote, a celebrated Hollywood actor and filmmaker, will emcee the program, which is to include a performance by special guests, The Bacon Brothers. Actor Kevin Bacon and his brother Michael formed the band more than 10 years ago and continue touring nationwide.

Other actors and celebrities scheduled to participate include Michael J. Fox (“Family Ties” and “Spin City”), Jack Klugman (“The Odd Couple” and “Quincy, M.E.”), James Whitmore (“The Shawshank Redemption”), Wendie Malick (“Just Shoot Me!”), Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years”), Catherine Dent (“The Shield”), stand-up comedian and Air America host Marc Maron, singer/songwriter Catie Curtis and singer/satirist Roy Zimmerman.

In addition, Americans who have fought for individual freedom will tell their stories. Invited guests include Bryan and Christy Rehm (who fought creationism in Dover, Pa. science classes), Matthew LaClair (a New Jersey high schooler who exposed religious indoctrination at his school), Roberta Stewart (an Afghanistan War widow who fought for equal rights for Wiccan veterans), Dr. Susan Wicklund (who wears a bullet-proof vest to provide reproductive services in underserved areas) the Rev. Madison Shockley (pastor and reproductive rights advocate) David and Ryan Altoon (who oppose fundamentalist proselytism at U.S. military academies) Melinda “Lindy” Maddox (who successfully sued Alabama “Commandments” Judge Roy Moore) and Susan Jacoby (author of The Age of American Unreason).

First Freedom First was launched in 2006 to mobilize Americans from all walks of life in defense of church-state separation. Recently FFF ran television ads in several presidential primary states urging citizens to ask the candidates to elaborate on their understanding of religious liberty.

The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United executive director, and the Rev. Welton Gaddy, president of The Interfaith Alliance Foundation, will also participate in the simulcast.

Said Lynn, “This is a unique event that brings together celebrity commitment, civic engagement and the latest technology. Presidential candidates have been asked what their favorite Bible verse is and what sins they have committed. I want to know where they stand on key issues of individual freedom. This simulcast will tell us how to find out that information -- and give us an entertaining evening to boot.”

Said Gaddy, “We are thrilled that so many American icons we have welcomed into our living rooms over the years have graciously agreed to lend their star-power to focus attention on religious liberty and some of its heroes. This gathering should prove to be a lively and much-deserved celebration of the diversity of belief systems in this country and some of the citizens who have boldly taken public stands to protect the boundaries between religion and government.”

The March 26 simulcast is being produced by Progressive Media Agency, a Portland, Ore.-based firm led by Adam Klugman and Enrique Arias.

Kentucky: The Newest Pretext to Force Christian Prayer Into the Schools

DINO Bob Damron, et alii panderers, are making another run at injecting religion into the schools. This is one of the reasons I voted 'No' on the constitutional amendment allowing the KY General Assembly to meet every year. The state seems to run more quietly when these folks aren't in session.

The ploy this time is to get the kids to recite the Lord's Prayer in class under the guise of understanding the American forefathers. Thus, they will have "American = Christian" (specifically Protestant Christian) stamped into their minds early on. Why do I suspect that they won't be re-enacting any Native American rituals, which would certainly be an important part of our country's history as well? Perhaps they should also include some African religious instruction, which would give the pupils a greater understanding of how the slaves brought here felt when they were forced to give up their faith. That'd really ram the message home, wouldn't it?

http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/08RS/HB460/bill.doc

HB 460 (BR 27) - R. Adams, K. Hall, J. Comer Jr, R. Damron, J. Stewart III, A. Wuchner

AN ACT relating to schools.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

Section 1. KRS 158.175 is amended to read as follows:

(1) As a continuation of the policy of teaching our country's history and as an affirmation of the freedom of religion in this country, the board of education of a local school district may authorize the recitation of the traditional Lord's prayer and the pledge of allegiance to the flag in public elementary schools. Pupil participation in the recitation of the prayer and pledge of allegiance shall be voluntary. Pupils shall be reminded that this Lord's prayer is the prayer our pilgrim fathers recited when they came to this country in their search for freedom. Pupils shall be informed that these exercises are not meant to influence an individual's personal religious beliefs in any manner. The exercises shall be conducted so that pupils shall learn of our great freedoms, including the freedom of religion symbolized by the recitation of the Lord's prayer.
(2) The board of education of each school district shall establish a policy and develop procedures whereby the pupils in each elementary and secondary school may participate in the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States at the commencement of each school day.
(3) The Kentucky Board of Education shall develop a program of instruction relating to the flag of the United States of America, including instruction in etiquette, the correct use and display of the flag, and other patriotic exercises as may be related. This program of instruction shall be provided to each public school for use in its course of instruction. The program of instruction, at a minimum, shall include the provisions of 4 U.S.C. secs. 1 to 3 and 4 U.S.C. secs. 5 to 9.
(4) The board of education of each local school district may purchase or otherwise acquire and provide for display in each classroom copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, and other documents the local board deems significant to the history of Kentucky and the United States.
(5) At the commencement of the first class of each day in all public schools, the teacher in charge of the room shall [originally may] announce that a moment of silence or reflection not to exceed two (2) minutes [originally one (1) minute] in duration shall be observed.

Note that the proposed law also enforces reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, which will probably NOT be the original one without the 'Under God' phrase. Somehow, I think the later version will be used. I guess our buddies in the House don't want the kids to get confused about what religious freedom really means.

The real fun should start, though, when the Catholic kids start using different words in the middle of the Lord's Prayer. Back in the Bad Old Days, Catholic kids got punished for using the 'wrong' words during classroom prayer. Today, they'll just get points off until they start using the American version. And they'll get the message, too.

Interested in complaining? Call 1-800-372-7181 to leave a message.

The War on Christmas BS Continues

I just returned from Eastern Kentucky, that bastion of liberality and diversity-mindedness. While there, I visited one of the small churches that dot the rolling land. No, I did not burst into flames, despite being both Pagan and lesbian (surely one of those should have gotten God's attention).

The church play for Christmas focused on those nasty retailers who say 'Happy Holidays' instead of 'Merry Christmas'. Naturally, the correct conclusion was to remind everyone of 'the reason for the season'. If one looks at history, one sees that the reason was actually tacked onto the season, but that's not what really bothers me about what the church play is teaching these kids.

What I find most troubling is the subtle message being conveyed below the radar: Christians do not have to share, or respect other people.

Forget 'framing' or those other buzzwords being thrown around by the policy wonks. Ask yourself: since when did acknowledging that other people have winter holidays equate attacking Christians? If one of your children claimed that you were attacking him every time you mentioned his brother, or used the phrase 'my children', you'd think he had a serious ego problem. Is this really that different?

In order to get respect, one needs to give it. Yelling and screaming unless everyone else pretends that no other religions, or other winter holidays, exist should be swiftly slapped down for the solipsistic selfishness it is.

By the way, Merry Christmas. I am perfectly fine with everyone enjoying their holidays.

Falwell's Double Standard

Jerry Falwell recently visited our (sometimes) fair state. From his interview in The Winchester Sun:

Patrick: One of the social conservative issues that has gotten a lot of attention this week is homosexuality, because Dr. (Albert) Mohler at the Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville has said that Christians should accept that there probably is a biological basis for homosexuality.

Falwell: That's what the article said, but today, if you go to his Web site, he denies all of that.

Patrick: What is your thought on that?

Falwell: I don't think anybody is born a bank robber or an adulterer or a homosexual or you name it. I think we are all born sinners in need of a new birth experience, but I think our behavior is all a matter of choice.

Patrick: There's a lot of science recently that contradicts. (Here Falwell interrupted the question.)

Falwell: Half of those are gay scientists. It's hogwash. I believe that when you're born, you have a clean slate, but you have a fallen nature because of Adam and Eve. Everyone needs to be born again, to come to know Christ personally.

Isn't it nice to be put in the same category as bank robbers? I get really tired of all the implications fundamentalists make about the character of gays, and not just our sexual habits. That, though, could be an entire separate post.

Falwell's finger pointing, however, did not extend to Newt Gingrich:

Patrick: Do you think Gingrich should run for president after his recent revelations to you (about his marital infidelity at the same time he was leading the charge against Clinton over having an affair in the White House)?

Falwell: I think that Newt Gingrich is, without question, the brightest politician in America today. He has forgotten more than most of them know. He is speaking to our commencement exercise in May at Liberty University. John McCain spoke last year. We have not endorsed anyone. But my opinion is that if Newt Gingrich announces, he will immediately be among the top runners.

He sidesteps the question about Gingrich completely, which I find ironic since he'd just likened gay people to adulterers, like Gingrich. Hypocrisy and sexual sins don't seem to be so bad when they're done by your people instead of those people.

The saddest part is that no one in Falwell's camp, nor any of his supporters, is likely to call him on this obvious double standard. This is why I think fundamentalist leaders are more interested in playing 'gotcha', 'mine's better than yours', and getting to treat others badly than in actually doing anything to help people or 'the family', their most cherished words. I think I know who is really demonstrating flawed character here.