A liberal Christian friend said today that she asks fundies,
Why is it that the call to help widows and orphans does not mean that "we" should work hard for healthcare for all, programs to help single mothers, etc but "being gay is a sin" means "we" have to make sure that homosexuals do not have the right to get married. And by "we" I mean the typical Christian. Why is it that some things in the Bible mean we should change laws and others mean we shouldn't and should just handle it all ourselves? Why can't the response to widows and orphans be to help how you can personally and work to change laws to help even more? Uh! Drives me nuts!
And she has a great point. Why do you need the government's help to make sure gays are kept from sinning, but you don't need the government's help to keep people from the sin of letting the least of Jesus' people starve?
Anyone? Anyone?
Because the Christian Far Right has been hammering at the gay issue for years. Its something nobody has escaped hearing about. There is no similar campaign for helping the poor. Many people who think themselves Christian don't really know the Bible.
Matthew 25
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
If the Christian far right had been hammering these verses with as much vigor as they have been hammering at gay issues, the ignorant masses would not be so hostile to things like Obamacare,or the general indifference towards health issues as we have seen since the dawn of the Reagan 'revolution'.
If the creepy far right types knew Matthew 25 well, things in the Christian world might be rather different.
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
These are fun verses. All candidates for president in 2006 should be repeatedly asked about theses verses in regards to government policy, especially those who loudly claim to be Christians. If Jesus came back and ran for president, we know what his policies would be.