by Dr. Bruce Prescott
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January 2005
Religious Studies and the First Amendment (1-19-05)
Coleman at the
Bending Faith blog has posted an insightful
essay by Stephen Prothero about the religious illiteracy of Americans.
This essay is well worth reading as are the introductory comments by
Coleman.
I would only disagree with one statement that Prothero makes. He says,
"Because of misunderstandings about the 1st Amendment, religious studies
are seldom taught in public schools."
My own experience tells me this excuse is simplistic. Having participated
in a conference of ministers discussing teaching creation science at a
small town public school in Oklahoma, I know that conservative preachers
will drop their demand for public schools to teach creation science if
that also means the schools will be teaching the creation accounts and
religious beliefs of Native Americans and other religions.
Religion is all or nothing for conservative Christians. They don't want
"teaching about religion" -- certainly not comparative religion -- they
want the schools to indoctrinate students in their own brand of religion.
If they can't have that, they don't want public schools teaching anything
about religion at all.
Our Guilty Stewardship (1-18-05)
BBC News
has reported that some scientists have determined that the sun seems
to be 'dimming.' They have evidence that there has been a 22% drop in
sunlight over the last five decades and believe that pollutants have
been reflecting sunlight back into space that used to shine down on
our planet.
Maybe this helps explain some of the unusual weather patterns around
the world.
If concerns like this are even half true:
Even the most pessimistic forecasts of global warming may now have to be drastically revised upwards.
That means a temperature rise of 10 degrees Celsius by 2100 could be on the cards, giving the UK a climate like that of North Africa, and rendering many parts of the world uninhabitable.
We've done more damage to the ecosystem that we realized.
Celebrating Diversity (1-18-05)
The Baptist Standard is reporting that Texas Baptist's governance committee is recommending that nearly a third of the membership of its Executive Board be non-Anglo. That would double the percentage of non-Anglo Executive Board members.
Kudos to BGCT's governance committee and the leaders of Texas Baptists. The days of Anglo dominance in Baptist life are ending. The future of Baptist life will be rich in diversity and inclusivity.
Those Baptists content to see token ethnics leaders spotlighted on occasions will find the Southern Baptist Convention a more comfortable home.
On Judicial Oaths (1-17-05)
Tom Parker, a comrade of former Judge Roy Moore was recently sworn in as Supreme Court justice in Alabama. Moore swore him in at a symbolic ceremony. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas presided over his formal oath of office. The Birmingham News reports that:
Parker said Thomas told him a judge should be evaluated by whether he faithfully upholds his oath to God, not to the people, to the state or to the Constitution.
If this is true, and I suspect that it is, what Thomas said is ultimately
true. Ultimately all persons will stand before the judgment seat of
Christ. Mortal Alabama justices, however, are not authorized to sit in
that chair. Neither are U.S. Supreme Court justices. All earthly justices
are authorized to do is to fulfill their oath to uphold the laws of the
people as embodied in the statues of their state and the Constitution.
An interesting discussion of the propriety of Thomas' remarks is already
under way at
Sam Heldman's blog.
Gays a Threat to National Security ? (1-14-04)
The Guardian is reporting that the
"Military
has discharged 26 Gay Linguists" for violating
the military's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy.
13 of them were Arabic translators -- a skill-set that has been in
desperately short supply since before 9/11.
Obviously, homosexuals are more threatening to our national security than
all the terrorists in Al Queda, all the insurgents in Iraq, and all the
weapons of mass destruction that they desire to obtain.
Hmm. It is also seems apparent that key
decision-makers have determined that Jesus' command
to let the tares grow together with the wheat was ill-advised.
Textbook Disclaimers Ruled Unconstitutional (1-13-04)
A Georgia District Court Judge as ruled that the textbook disclaimers against evolution in Cobb County's science textbooks violated the First Amendment of the Constitution. The court said:
The sticker sends "a message that the school board agrees with the beliefs of Christian fundamentalists and creationists."
"The school board has effectively improperly entangled itself with religion by appearing to take a position," Cooper wrote. "Therefore, the sticker must be removed from all of the textbooks into which it has been placed."
Contrary to what the Theocratic Televangelists will say, this was not a victory for "Atheists" and "secular humanists." It is a victory for the constitutional separation of church and state.
Theocrats need to stop trying to force their medieval scientific beliefs on public school children and start focusing on sharing the gospel with whoever they can get to voluntarily attend their churches.
Rigged Elections at Louisiana College ? (1-12-04)
Fundamentalists may have rigged the election of the teacher of the year at Louisiana College in 2004. It looks like they were trying to boost the profile of a candidate for the college's presidency. Alumni and former faculty are considering filing a lawsuit challenging the college's search committee process that nominated the teacher as President.
Students have set up a website in an effort to save Louisiana College from the chokehold of Fundamentalism.
The Pope & Richard Land (1-11-05)
Thanks to Bob Allen for calling my attention to the article "Beyond Belief" in the current issue of Atlantic Monthly. In it Richard Land says,
'I've got more in common with Pope John Paul II than I do with Jimmy Carter or Bill Clinton.' . . . We both say all human life is sacred, that marriage is between a man and a woman, that homosexual behavior is contrary to God’s will.’ All this is just ‘more relevant’ he says, ‘than whether I’m Catholic or Protestant.'
Land forgot to mention that both he and the Pope believe in an earthly, autocratic, hierarchical religious authority that presumes infallibility when interpreting the Bible.
Intelligent Design -- Another Concept that Closes the Mind (1-11-05)
While wrestling with a persistent advocate of 'Intelligent Design' at a forum on Evolution and Creation, it occured to me that the mental mechanism of this idea is similar to that of inerrancy. It closes the mind and puts an end to inquiry. To modify a statement that I quoted in the previous blog:
To say creation is by 'Intelligent Design' is to put an end to questioning. It is the conclusion of one brand of human logic. It is the answer to the only question a fundamentalist cares to ask. Once this conclusion is drawn, inquiry is ended and nothing further needs to be discovered, discussed or explained. For those who put faith in this brand of logic, 'Intelligent Design' is an 'exhaustive' summary of the truth and meaning of science.
I happen to believe that an 'Intelligence' (God) created the universe and that it is 'well designed' (good). That, however, is a conclusion drawn by faith. It has nothing to do with the political wedge issue concocted by right-wing Christians in an attempt to force public schools to teach their brand of religion as science.
Inerrancy -- A Concept that Closes the Mind (1-10-05)
Nothing seems to infuriate
Fundamentalists more than to sense that people perceive them to be
closed-minded. Whenever they get the slightest hint of such a perception,
they add another latch to the deadbolt securing their intellect and complain
that they are being persecuted.
I'm beginning to think that there are some ideas that serve as locks in the
mind. Once installed, as long as the thinker throws away the key and/or
refuses to open the mechanism to further scrutiny, that mind is
hermeneutically sealed. That seems to be the goal of Fundamentalist
indoctrination.
The idea of inerrancy appears to be one of the strongest deadbolts of the
cognitive. It seems to be perfectly designed to put an end to the quest for
deeper insights and broader understandings of scripture. As I said in
a sermon years ago:
To say the Bible is 'inerrant' is to put an end to questioning. It is the conclusion of one brand of human logic. It is the answer to the only question a fundamentalist knows to ask. Once this conclusion is drawn, inquiry is ended and nothing further needs to be discovered, discussed or explained. For those who put faith in this brand of logic, 'inerrancy' is an 'exhaustive' summary of the Bible's truth and meaning.
Government Payrolls Education Propaganda (1-07-05)
USA Today is reporting that the Department of Education paid a TV host nearly a quarter of a million dollars to promote the administration's "No Child Left Behind" initiative.
This initiative is so ill-conceived and poorly funded that there is no doubt that only propaganda could prop it up.
Anyone who has read David Berliner's The Manufactured Crisis: Myths, Fraud, and the Attack on America's Public Schools knows that "No Child Left Behind" is just one more nail in the coffin that right-wingers have been building for public education for a long time.
For those unfamiliar with Dr. Berliner's work, here's a link to some of his work that is published on the web. His essay, "Educational Psychology Meets the Christian Right" is my favorite. Here's a link to some bio on Dr. Berliner.
Newdow Fights Case Against 'Ceremonial Deism' (1-06-05)
Michael Newdow has filed his case against the use of 'under God' in the pledge of allegiance again. CNN has clearly identified the legal argument holding sway in the Supreme Court:
Rehnquist wrote that the phrase "one nation under God" is more about ceremony and history than about religion. He likened the phrase to the motto "In God We Trust" on U.S. currency, and to the call that opens each session of the high court itself: "God save this honorable court."
Perhaps the Supreme Court could solve the problem by adding a couple words to the pledge of allegiance.
School children could be instructed to say, "One Nation under a Deist God," then Newdow and all the right-wing Christians in the country would know that the Supreme Court is only making "ceremonial Deism" -- not Judeo-Christianity -- the established religion of our country.
On "Scotosis" (1-5-05)
Thanks to Robert Cunningham for
sending me a link to the essay, "'I
Didn't See Any Anti-Semitism': Why Many Christians Don't Have a
Problem with The Passion of the Christ"
in the Spring 2004 issue of
Cross
Currents Magazine.
The article introduced me to a very useful word -- "scotosis." Mary C.
Boys credits Bernard Lonergan with defining the term "scotosis"
as "a hardening of the mind against unwanted wisdom through
the repression of questions that might lead to a deeper insight into
problematic readings of the Gospels."
I must confess that, before I read Boy's article, I missed discussions
of this concept.
It summarizes a phenomenon that I observe every day on a massive scale
among Southern Baptists -- but have never had a term to describe it.
The only difference is that Southern Baptists are "scotosistic"
regarding problematic readings of the entire biblical canon.
Defying Dobson (1-5-05)
Kudos to Robert Parham at Ethics Daily
for his essay "Dobson
distorts faith, threatens Democrats."
Dobson and others in the Religious Right have been over-the-line separating
church and state for a long time.
Mainstream Baptists are more than willing to let Fundamentalists use their
strong-arm tactics in their own churches where people voluntarily cower into
submission. Some of us refuse to cower when they employ the same tactics in
the political life of our country.
It's time for more Christians to begin standing up to the bullies in the
pulpits of America.
Alberto Gonzales called to Repentance (1-4-04)
Church Folks for a Better America has issued an Open Letter to Alberto Gonzales encouraging him to repent and uphold human rights. The letter is signed by a list out of Who's Who in Religion in America -- minus the Religious Right.
There aren't any shades of gray for Christians about the use of torture. There's no doubt that Jesus stands with the victims of torture, not with the bystanders or the perpetrators.
Why have Richard Land, Al Mohler, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, James Dobson, and D. James Kennedy been so silent about this issue?
Tsunami and Theodicy (1-4-04)
Greg Horton on his The Parish blog has been wrestling with the inadequacies of tsunami theodicies. The most interesting theodicy that I've seen to date is by Rabbi Michael Lerner of Tikkun Magazine posted at Public Theology.
Lies, Darn Lies and Southern Baptist Statistics (1-3-05)
After reading Bob Allen's story at Ethics Daily about International Baptists disputing overseas Baptism claims, I'm beginning to wonder about some other creative ways the SBC might be using statistics.
Are they as creative at counting dollars as they are in counting souls? What happens to the funds that the SBC receives when it sells off assets that Southern Baptists acquired for the work of missions? For instance, when the SBC sells a university in a place like Hong Kong are the receipts reported as contributions to the Cooperative Program? In other words, are assets being sold to disguise a real, ongoing decline in contributions to the Cooperative Program?
Why are IMB missionaries being required to raise money from their home churches to support their ministries? Are those donations being counted as CP receipts? Under previous administrations soliciting funds directly from churches was forbidden because it could undermine funding for the entire Cooperative Program. Recently Morris Chapman complained about the BWA soliciting funds directly from SBC churches. Isn't the IMB doing the same thing?
Is the IMB getting the most bang for its buck? Several former missionaries have reported that the salaries of IMB administrators are exorbitant and their travel, lodging and conference expenses are extravagant.
When are Southern Baptists going to stop turning a blind eye to this kind of mismanagement?
A New Year's Resolution (1-1-05)
Frederick Clarkson
and
Max Blumenthal have written some sobering
blogs about the theocratic ideas that have come into prominence in
America as we ring in the new year. What they are saying won't give
Mainstream Baptists anything to cheer about, but it could provide some
good grist for a New Year's Resolution.
This year, I resolve to stop remaining silent whenever I hear
Christians talk about our country being a "Christian Nation." Nations
can't be Christian. Genuine faith requires an individual, voluntary,
personal commitment.