archanglrobriel said, Honestly, I keep asking myself the questions " Have these people nothing better to do? Have we solved poverty and homelessness in this country? Has New Orleans been rebuilt? Have all the kids languishing in foster homes been adopted by good Christians? " For the life of me I cannot understand this utterly disproportionate interest/concern with what gays and lesbians are up to at any given moment.
I can't figure it out myself. Last year when the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was considering changing its stance on homosexuality, some people at our church were upset. But they were traditionalists defending traditional doctrine, an internal church matter. That is the closest I have ever gotten face-to-face with an anti-gay agenda. Why would any Christians make a fuss over gay marriage when in all truth it is not going to affect our traditional marriages? How did it become a political football in the last Presidential campaign?
My best guess is that though most Christians are content with helping the poor and spreading God's good news as worthy Christian service, a few Christians want something dramatic. They want to fight evil. They want an enemy, especially an enemy that they can oppose from the comfort of their own home. (Half-heartedness and hypocrisy are common flaws among us American religious folk.) Give them a political enemy, whether it is gays with a civil-rights agenda or the ACLU trying to ban Christian symbols from public spaces, and they rally to the cause.
Moreover, helping the poor is not a good way to get rich or acquire power. Consider Focus on the Family as an example. Dr. James Dobson wrote some books on straight-laced Christ-centered ways to manage a marriage and children, and Focus on the Family started as business that provides such information to customers. As such a business, it is a fine organization. They also make an excellent radio drama, "Adventures in Odyssey." However, it grew to have a political agenda. Dr. Dobson was not content to give advice to only the people who wanted it, he wanted to spread his ideas to the whole country, willing or not. And his efforts to do so provide free publicity that helps his business. I think he is too passionate about his cause to be motivated by greed; nevertheless, the trickle of power, wealth, and fame must be tempting. It lures him into extreme positions and distracts him from asking whether his agenda is really serving God.
no subject
Honestly, I keep asking myself the questions " Have these people nothing better to do? Have we solved poverty and homelessness in this country? Has New Orleans been rebuilt? Have all the kids languishing in foster homes been adopted by good Christians? "
For the life of me I cannot understand this utterly disproportionate interest/concern with what gays and lesbians are up to at any given moment.
I can't figure it out myself. Last year when the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was considering changing its stance on homosexuality, some people at our church were upset. But they were traditionalists defending traditional doctrine, an internal church matter. That is the closest I have ever gotten face-to-face with an anti-gay agenda. Why would any Christians make a fuss over gay marriage when in all truth it is not going to affect our traditional marriages? How did it become a political football in the last Presidential campaign?
My best guess is that though most Christians are content with helping the poor and spreading God's good news as worthy Christian service, a few Christians want something dramatic. They want to fight evil. They want an enemy, especially an enemy that they can oppose from the comfort of their own home. (Half-heartedness and hypocrisy are common flaws among us American religious folk.) Give them a political enemy, whether it is gays with a civil-rights agenda or the ACLU trying to ban Christian symbols from public spaces, and they rally to the cause.
Moreover, helping the poor is not a good way to get rich or acquire power. Consider Focus on the Family as an example. Dr. James Dobson wrote some books on straight-laced Christ-centered ways to manage a marriage and children, and Focus on the Family started as business that provides such information to customers. As such a business, it is a fine organization. They also make an excellent radio drama, "Adventures in Odyssey." However, it grew to have a political agenda. Dr. Dobson was not content to give advice to only the people who wanted it, he wanted to spread his ideas to the whole country, willing or not. And his efforts to do so provide free publicity that helps his business. I think he is too passionate about his cause to be motivated by greed; nevertheless, the trickle of power, wealth, and fame must be tempting. It lures him into extreme positions and distracts him from asking whether his agenda is really serving God.
Erin Schram