Washington Hotlist » Religion

Jesus Never Would Have Supported This

Joshua Rosenstock — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:59:01 +0000

I’ve often asked myself how all these hatemongers know how Jesus would have felt about a procedure that wasn’t in use until thousands of years after his death. The same individuals that claim to speak for Jesus have absolutely no idea what he stands for. Whatever happened to love thy neighbor as thyself?

The pastor of St. Mary Catholic Church in Greenville, SC, is urging parishioners who voted for Barack Obama not to present themselves for Communion unless they go to confession first because they have cooperated with “intrinsic evil” by voting for a candidate who supports abortion rights over a candidate who does not. The Rev. Jay Scott Newman told the Greenville News that he doesn’t intend to deny anyone Communion, but made it clear that his view is that Obama voters should not present themselves without seeking penance first “lest they eat and drink their own condemnation.”

Newman is the only priest in the U.S. known to have taken this position — the Catholic bishops met this week in Baltimore and this idea was not even discussed, at least in public session. Newman has posted on his parish web site the following letter explaining his rationale.

It sounds like there is a lot of evil people in this country. One can only imagine what this nut job was thinking (there were probably voices inside his head) when he saw millions of people screaming in joy after Obama was elected. Instead of concerning themselves so much with politics, religious hatemongers should stick to learning more about their own chosen profession, namely, why someone that professed love and unity would advocate for hate, division and segregation. It would be reassuring to see the Catholic Church publicly repudiate this guy and state their opposition to this type of religious advocacy.

Maybe the IRS should investigate why a religious nonprofit organization is openly supporting one political candidate over another. Either this reverend is removed or the tax exempt status for his church should be immediately revoked. Doesn’t religion also teach respect for laws?

Anyone Else See The Irony Here?

Joshua Rosenstock — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:02:38 +0000

While in New York, the president also was to address a United Nations conference on religious tolerance and meet privately with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.

Quote Of The Day

Joshua Rosenstock — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 21:56:35 +0000

“You’ll be encouraged by the power of God’s love and His desire to transform the lives of those impacted by homosexuality.”

- the insert in the bulletin of the Wasilla Bible Church, where Sarah Palin has prayed for about six years.

Once Again, McCain Tries To Have It Both Ways

Joshua Rosenstock — Fri, 23 May 2008 18:37:32 +0000

Maybe the RNC can stop endlessly looping Jeremiah Wright’s hate speech, especially considering the comments made by influential Texas televangelist John Hagee:

“Then God sent a hunter. A hunter is someone with a gun, and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter. … How did it happen? Because God allowed it to happen. Why did it happen? Because God said, ‘My top priority for the Jewish people is to get them to come back to the land of Israel.’”

Got that? God needed to kill six million Jews in order to save them. Of course, Hagee conveniently omits the fact that thousands of Jews were slaughtered by British soldiers during their War of Indepedence but I would never confuse him for a student of world history.

Hagee has referred to the Roman Catholic Church as “the great whore” and called it a “false cult system.” He also has linked Hitler to the Catholic church, suggesting it helped shape his anti-Semitism. And Hagee said Hurricane Katrina was God’s retribution for homosexual sin.

McCain still can’t decide if people like Hagee are agents of intolerance or necessary bedfellows towards the White House. He says he wants their endorsements and support, except when he doesn’t (and you thought John Kerry was a flip-flopper).

Being on both sides of an issue is ok if you are a Republican (so is hate speech by a religious leader, which is what makes the repeated references to Reverand Wright so laughable). Republicans can easily produce three Hagees for every one Wright. Both of them are equally disgusting and as usual distract the mainstream media and its viewers from much more important issues. Why discuss energy policy when we can discuss American Idol? In case you were keeping score, hate speech by whites is ok but hate speech by blacks is anti-American and dangerous. I bet if Hagee was wearing a flag lapel pin at the time he made those statements, all would have been forgiven.

Sorry John, but you can’t wish this away any more than Senator Obama can.

As Usual, Einstein Was Right

Joshua Rosenstock — Tue, 13 May 2008 21:27:06 +0000

“…the word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish. For me, the Jewish religion like all other religions is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions…the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people. As far as my experience goes, they are also no better than other human groups, although they are protected from the worst cancers by a lack of power. Otherwise I cannot see anything ‘chosen’ about them.”

For Hillary, Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures

Joshua Rosenstock — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 23:29:22 +0000

Mobile post sent by washingtonhotlist using Utterz. Replies. mp3

Will The Base Accept McCain?

Joshua Rosenstock — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 12:44:38 +0000

With the Democrats virtually evenly divided between Senators Clinton and Obama, an interesting divide has become exposed in the seemlingly united Republican Party. It is no secret that the Christian conservative base and its numerous compliant media mouthpieces can not stand the thought of John McCain as the presidential nominee, with talk of forming a third party (which would all but ensure a Democrat gets elected this fall) among other fantasies. The sad part is that McCain is with these folks on 90% of all issues but they hate the idea that he occasionally compromises and disagrees with his own party. Propaganda machines thrive on the inability of people to think and form opinions for themselves. It is much easier to say Democrats = traitors than explain that democracy and our legislative process requires bipartisanship for major accomplishments.

Predictably, the very influential Dr. James Dobson, Founder of the Focus on the Family endorsed former Governor Mike Huckabee, who unlike former Governor Mitt Romney, will not depart the race and unite around the presumptive nominee. You have to laugh at Dobson calling Mitt Romney “pro-family” (obvious code for pro-life, as if someone that tortured themselves for days before painfully deciding that they needed an abortion is against every single family in this country). Will Huckabee carry the mantle for the base against McCain or will he see the bigger picture and try to heal this damaging divide? Regardless of who wins in November, this country remains more divided than ever while facing substantial issues in the near future. These problems will require cooperation if they are to be solved. Will President Hillary Clinton, who would most likely govern with a fifty plus one model be able to pull it off? McCain? The future does not look very promising this morning in America.

Thou Shalt Not Covet?

Joshua Rosenstock — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 20:22:11 +0000

The 80-year-old leader of a megachurch pleaded guilty Wednesday to lying under oath about his sexual affairs and was sentenced to 10 years’ probation. Archbishop Earl Paulk, who has been in ill health, was also fined $1,000 on a single felony count.

The charges stem from a 2006 deposition Paulk gave in a lawsuit against him, his brother Don and the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit at Chapel Hill Harvester Church by former church employee Mona Brewer, who said she was coerced into an affair.

In the deposition, Earl Paulk said under oath that the only woman with whom he had ever had sex outside his marriage was Brewer. But the results of a court-ordered paternity test revealed in October that Paulk is the biological father of his brother’s son, D.E. Paulk, who is now head pastor at the church.

As part of Brewer’s lawsuit, eight women have given sworn depositions that they were coerced into sexual relationships with Earl Paulk.

Rudy Follows In Huckabee’s Dangerous Footsteps

Joshua Rosenstock — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:10:29 +0000

“I’m not coming here to ask for your vote. That’s up to you and it’s not the right place. But I am coming here to ask you for something very special and more important: I’m asking for your prayers. I’ve faced odds that were at times seemingly impossible, situations where people had given up hope, but we didn’t listen to the doubters, we didn’t listen to the naysayers. Fear not, be strong, and of good courage.”

The dangerous pandering and invocation of a higher being in return for political success has spread like a bad disease from one candidate to another. Besides, how are prayers going to be counted accurately? Talk about an Election Day nightmare…

Huckabee Dangerously Blurs Church And State

Joshua Rosenstock — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:56:30 +0000

“The criteria to get into heaven is you have to be not good, but perfect. That’s the real challenge in it. On that day, when I pull up, I’ll be asked, `Do you have what it takes to get in?’ And if I ask, `Well, what does it take to get in?’ ‘Gotta be perfect.’ Well, I’m afraid I don’t have that, but you know what, I won’t be there alone that day. Somebody is going to be with me. His name is Jesus, and he’s promised that he would never leave me or forsake me.”

It would be prudent if presidential candidates refrained from proselytizing on a particular religious faith. Language like this puts our nation on a road to a very dangerous place (which, strangely enough, is what draws so many voters to Mr. Huckabee). The American public needs a better grasp on the history and value of church-state separation or the social and religious progress we have made since our founding will be severely stunted.