Friday, August 13, 2004

GRENDEL’S AZTEC BAPTIST CATECHISM:   What is a Secular Christianist?     A Secular Christianist: Roy Moore   A Secular Christianist is not a Christian per se, but a particular kind of Christian; a political Christian rather than a spiritual Christian. Not all Secular Christianists are what my Grandma would have called good Christian folk, if you judge them by their public behavior. I don’t even want to think about their private lives. But the Gospel and my Granny have told me that I have no call to judge. They certainly stridently identify themselves as “true” Christians, and they prefer to be in the judgement seat, not before it.   Secular Christianists are people who cross the line drawn by the First Amendment, because they think have a direct line to God Almighty, and seek to impose God—their idea of God, their “bible-based” morals, their particular version—and their peculiar interpretation of—the Word of God, on our designedly secular government, and our religiously—spiritually—diverse society.   Secular Christianists would like to teach the children of our country that United States of America is a Christian Nation, established from the very beginning on Christian principles by the Founding Fathers.  The small t truth about our founding fathers and our nation is a whole lot more complicated than that, but Christianists don’t like complications. Their political principle—if not their motto—is “Keep it simple, for stupid”—for the credulous, the gullible, and the self-deluded.    White, black. Good, evil. Right, wrong. With us, against us. Secular Christianists like to feel that they are surrounded by enemies, and they want us, their fellow citizens to feel that way, too.  I think it can be fairly and balancedly said that Secular Christianism as movement, with an assist from Al Qaeda, has succeeded in achieving that goal.    Secular Christianists believe in unity through fear and demonization of the other. They believe in terrorizing wayward souls into the arms of Jesus.  Christianists believe in soul searching, but not their souls; they want to search your soul, your hard drive, your bedroom. Many of them are what I call Soul Arsonists, who work on the principle of destroying souls in order to save them. Secular Christianists find solace as well as salvation in the thrill of hellfire and the comfort of myriad enemies hugging them close.   Do you want to live in fear? They do.    Two words: Secular Christianism. Two words: Vote Kerry.   I’m Dr. Omed and I approved this meme. Go forth and propagate it. 3:43:57 PM    comment []

steal this t-shirt #14 copyright 2004 The Dromedary Syndicate (click image to see larger) 2:11:33 AM    comment []

From the New York Times: SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 12 - The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a blitz of same-sex weddings here in February and March had no standing under state law and declared the marriages "void and of no legal effect from their inception." In a unanimous ruling, the justices said that Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco had exceeded his authority in allowing the marriages. By a 5-to-2 vote, the court also rendered the licenses, more than 4,000 in all, nothing more than a collector's item, ordering city officials to remove any record of them from the books and to offer the couples refunds of license fees. From Reuters: TRENTON, N.J - New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey admitted on Thursday to having had a homosexual affair and said he was resigning to avoid rumors and "threats of disclosure." McGreevey, who is twice married and has two children, told a news conference he had had a consensual affair with another man who he did not identify. "At a point in every person's life one has to look deeply into the mirror of one's soul and decide one's unique truth," he said, acknowledging that he had grappled with identity issues "throughout my life." McGreevey, who earlier this year said he opposed gay marriage, declared: "My truth is that I am a gay American and I am blessed to live in the greatest nation with the greatest tradition of civil liberties in the world." These two news items force Dr. Omed to ask: Must I repeat myself? Yes, pilgrims, I must: St. Sergius and St. Bacchus, martyrs and patron saints of gay unions. DR. OMED’S EARLY SUNDAY SERMON:  OUTLAW LOVE   Those who oppose gay marriage say that legal and sacerdotal recognition of the abiding love between a man and a man or a woman and a woman somehow degrades marriage between a man and a woman, and even threatens the social order.    I think love is outside and above the social order.  If there is a higher law, love is that law.   I think denying gay people the sacrament of marriage degrades heterosexual marriage.  I think that the refusal and the legal legitimization of the refusal to recognize the union between two people of the same sex degrades any claim we have to being a free society, and threatens the institutions that protect all our freedoms. There’s nothing civil about it.    Banning gay marriage makes a mock of God’s love, and a mockery of the idea that we are all God’s children.  It is an attempt to outlaw love.  It is an attack on families that protect and nuture love in a dangerous world.  To echo something Lincoln said, those who deny family to others do not deserve it for themselves.  Denying marriage and family rights to some is no defense of the freedoms we so proudly, and loudly,  proclaim.  People who propose such a ban should be ashamed.     You cannot outlaw love.  As St. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, love never fails.  Love is greater than faith and outlasts hope.  Love abides, as Paul says, when tongues and prophesies fail.  Love will prevail.   Note: I would like to thank Chris Key for inspiring this sermon. Originally posted February 22. DR. OMED’S SUNDAY SERMON:  GAY MARRIAGE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT   I can almost hear the members of my e-congregation chorus as one: “Wait-one-gosh-darn-minute, Dr. Omed, there ain’t no gay marriage in the Bible!”  Au contraire, pilgrims and seekers.  Shall we examine the text of 1 Samuel 18?  Young David has just slain Goliath in battle with the Philistines.  He has just met King Saul and his son Jonathan for the first time:   And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father's house.  (Like a new bride?)  Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.  And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.    1 Samuel 18:1-4   If you don’t want to call the covenant between Jonathan and David marriage, call it a civil union.  However, later in the chapter Saul gives his daughter Michal in marriage to David, and makes a curious remark:   Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son-in-law a second time. 1 Samuel 18:21   The only child of King Saul’s other than Michal with which David has a contracted relationship—is Jonathan.  Saul’s words certainly imply that he regarded David as already married to Jonathan.   Later, when Saul and Jonathan are killed, David sings a lament:   I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother; you were very dear to me. Your love for me was wonderful, more wonderful than that of women.   It seem that at least one instance of same sex… civil covenant between two of the Lord’s Anointed was condoned and even approved by no less an authority than the King of Israel.   Fundy FactsTM   Did you know:   Of the patriarchs in the Old Testament, only Issac(Gen 25-28)had just one wife reported, with no concubines mentioned. Abraham(Gen 25:6) was fairly conservative, limiting himself to one wife and several concubines. Jacob(Gen 30) had 2 wives and 2 concubines. King David(1 Chr 24:3) had 6 or more wives and 10 or more concubines (Not to mention his husband, Jonathan). Rehoboam(2 Chr 11:21) had 18 wives plus 60 concubines. Studly King Solomon (2 Kings 11:3) had 700 wives plus 300 concubines. King Solomon also flouted the ban on intermarriage, and "loved many strange women" including at least one Egyptian, several Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. (1 Kings 11:1;14:21) Originally posted February 29. See also this post and this post by Real Live Preacher. We thank Sister Deborama for pointing them out. 1:38:22 AM    comment []