If Pat Robertson never opened his mouth again, I would be an extremely happy man.
What this guy represents is a fading minority of believers who somehow think they have the right to speak for God. I'm not even talking about people who take what God already said and give it their own interpretation, as the people who think the whole book of Revelation is an end time prophecy, soon to come true (which could be a whole different blog). I'm referring to those who put words in God's mouth that He did not even say.
A great example of this is those "God" billboards that seem to pop up everywhere. My personal favorite is, "What part of 'Thou shalt not' don't you understand?" Based on the tone of this statement, we might as well finish it: "What part of 'Thou shalt not' don't you understand, you stupid dumbass?!" I could be wrong, but I do not believe God would ever say anything like that to anyone; yet the genius who created this somehow saw fit to attribute this quote to none other than God Himself.
But what really gets under my skin is when people like Pat Robertson take current events and interpret them through a deterministic lense--basically, God causes everything. When the buildings when down on 9/11, Robertson came out and said that God is judging us because of all the homosexuals in our country. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, many of Robertson's disciples are saying that the hurricane ravaged New Orleans because of the sin that exists down there.
Maybe I am ignorant, or maybe I do not know God like I thought I did. However, if you contend that New Orleans got what was coming to them, you have to also say that the priests, nuns, and other God-fearers in the surrounding parishes were not living right. From there, you must defend the argument that those folks in the Bible belt in Mississippi deserved what they got.
Can you make sense of this logic? I certainly cannot. It is time for people to stop using God to advance their own personal, political, or other agendas and start figuring out how they fit into God's agenda. It is time for people to stop rejoicing at others' supposed judgment, and start realizing that we are all imperfect, unworthy of anything good. And it is time for people to stop putting words that God never said in His mouth, and start listening to what He already said.
If we pay close attention, we might hear Him say, "I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me; I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to me...as you did to one of the least of these you did to me" (Matt. 25:35-36, 40). "Wait a minute...do you actually mean helping out those victims of the hurricane, as wicked and evil as they are, would be the same as helping Christ?!" I don't want to put words in God's mouth, but I think this is what He is trying to say.
Let those of us who represent God represent Him for who He really is, so that people may come to know who He really is. Then, maybe Pat Robertson can stop talking, so that Jesus Christ can actually be heard.
15 comments:
I think that you are a very wise man. I love you.
dan,
i do agree with everything you have to say here. but i also agree with a lot of other things. while i will not say new orleans had it coming to them, i might add though humanity does not deserve anything that it has. everything is God's and there of is important. i do know that there are a lot more storms, (hurricanes, tsunamis, tornados) and earthquakes. some explain these away as global warming. and i am not totally sure that God is behind it. what i do know is the u.s. is fighting an unwinable war in iraq. now of course we have pre, post and amillenialism that can be discussed with all these ideas about how the world will destruct itself. whatever it is i know that these have become a part of our life and we are going to deal with it one way or the other. i am not sure new orlean was or had to be a target. but in the long run we will self destruct ourselves as a country and world because it is meant to happen one way or the other.
dan i love you man. please dont take this as criticism. take it as a guy trying to sort out thoughts just like you. keep up the fire. and nobody liked pat robertson before he made those comments anyway.
I have always known that you are a gifted man of God and reading your post just reinforces my original feelings. I agree with you on all accounts and most of all hope that people will put themselves in the shoes of victims and think about what they would want others to do for them and their families. We are all here to take care of each other and to live the words that Jesus did say "love your neighbor as yourself". I am proud to call myself your friend Dan.
Dan,
Are you saying that as Christians we are not supposed to be intolerant, holier-than-thou, self-righteous, xenophobic bastards who feel "moved by the Spirit" to force upon all people our profoundly distorted and perverse views of God and our obliviously ignorant interpretations of Scripture? I was always taught that anybody who contracts an illness, who is involved in a car accident, or who is suffering in any way or form on this earth is a sinner who is being punished by the Almighty for his/her evil lifestyle. I am perfect and so is everybody of my denomination. All of you heathen scumbags out there had better start repenting, because only those of us who follow the Bible without taking historical, metaphorical, and grammatical, and linguistic context into account will avoid eternal damnation in the fiery pits of hell.
(For those of you who are from my hometown I must point out that the preceding statement is sarcasm. I am actually agreeing with Dan. If you are indeed from my hometown, please, learn some basic English.)
I love you Dan!
--Robert Underdunk Terwilliger
God isn't real. He's made up by grown ups that still need an invisble friend.
Dear anonymous:
What you just said tells me that you really need a friend. Is this an accurate observation or not?
I have real friends, flesh and blood people. I don't need to talk to a pretend cloud to feel like I'm loved.
I feel sorry for Christians.
Did you know Christians committ more crimes, per capita, than athiests?
The Romans had the right idea.
Interesting discussion here...
I would be interested to hear he events, circumstances, or evidence that led you to this conclusion. Would you be willing to share that?
INVISIBLE PEOPLE ARE MY FRIENDS....DAMN YOU AND YOUR ANTI-INVISIBLE PEOPLE PROPOGANDA!!!!!
http://www.angelfire.com/hero2/rhythm8er/alexs_photo_album/thumbnails/400x300/Fantastic4_InvisibleWoman_01.jpg
she's invisibly hot!!!
The "Christians" who commit crimes are usually the ones who are in all reality pseudo-Christians . . . but Jesus still loves them.
--Satan
See, even Satan knows that God exists and loves us all.
--Not Satan
Just what do you consider to be a "pseudo-Christian?" If someone "accepts" Jesus, they're a Christian, no?
Plus, the lions wouldn't eat them if they weren't guilty. They're smart like that.
You bring up a good point. It's only in America that you can become a Christian simply by "accepting Jesus." It's the prime example of risk-free membership, probably perpetuated by a consumer culture.
Very soon, I will have an article on what it truly means to be "Christian." I hope you stick around for the dialogue, as I'm sure it will be good.
P.S. When you say "the Romans had the right idea," keep in mind that they all converted to Christianity later! Not that that means anything.
Jesus was the Lion of Judah...
Satan prowls like a lion, seeking to devour...
So are lions good or evil?
Stay tuned...
Christians are people who accept Christ AND strive to be like Him. Pseudo-Christians are people who either accept Him and then don't act accordingly or simply say that they accept Christ without having the slightest idea what that really means (or both).
--Satan
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