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It's beginning to look a lot like Christians... everywhere you go...
This holiday season, we are fortunate to witness one of my favorite social/mental
disorders. It's not recognized in any psychology or sociology text,
but it is as real as the "X" in "X-mas". It has laid dormant for many
years, but for the last five years, under the evangelical sunlight of
the Bushites, it has bloomed into full flower, just in time for the holidays.
I'm talking about Christian Persecution Complex. This is what you hear from
conservative commentators like Bill "falafeloofah" O'Reilly and
the babbling Biblical literalists of the American Taliban like James "beat
your kids"
Dobson, Pat "assassinate democratically elected leaders" Robertson,
and Jerry "gays and abortionists caused 9/11" Falwell when they
claim that Christmas is "under attack" and evil liberal "secularists" (when
do I get my card?) want to remove all references to God within the public
square. Today it's their focus on boycotting companies like Sears if they
don't change their "Happy Holidays" banners to "Merry Christmas".
Because, you know, saying "Happy Holidays" equates Christmas with
other dirty heathen holidays, and these type of Christians can't stand
it if their religion is not recognized, if not as superior, than at least
as "first
among equals".
When you have Christian Persecution Complex, you see every judicial decision,
every cultural change, and every constitutional challenge to the status
quo of entrenched Christian superiority as a war on Christianity. They
cannot see the difference between "a Christian nation" and "a secular
nation with a Christian majority". Since they are the majority, they seem
to think that American culture and law should bend itself to their religious
beliefs. They'll talk about the "tyranny of the minority" when issues
like gay marriage or school prayer are decided by the courts. They'll
scream that we're trying to "excise God like a cancer" if we (you know,
"the left") argue that posting Ten Commandments in courthouses, In
God We Trust on money, or forcing schoolchildren to recite under
God during the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional (somehow, all
three are merely ceremonial deism - not religion - but the fundies defend
them as if it meant more than that.) When we defend women's abortion rights,
they'll claim that we had to "cheat" by taking the fight to the courts,
because we can't accomplish our ends through the democratic political
process. When we work to see gay people attain full citizenship in this
country, we're accused of "shoving the gay agenda down people's throats".
The persecuted Christian meme always cracks me up. The "tyranny of the
minority" line especially. The Constitution is all about majority rule with
respect for minority rights. One of those minority rights is the free
exercise of religion or the freedom from religion with a government neutral
to religion so as to prevent state endorsement of one faith or state persecution
of another. What the persecuted Christians are advocating, with their
lines about getting next to nothing through the democratic political process,
is the idea of tyranny of the majority. The majority is Christian, therefore
government should espouse Christianity. The majority thinks there should
be prayer in schools, so be it. The majority thinks gay marriage is wrong,
so gays should be treated as second-class citizens. Well, the majority
also thought women shouldn't vote, alcohol should be federally prohibited,
and blacks shouldn't integrate with white society, too.
And
woe to the poor persecuted Christians, what with their big-ass lighted
crosses overlooking many American cities (like my hometown of Boise),
little crosses along nearly every roadside where a Christian has wrecked
(why are Christians such bad drivers, anyway? I never see any Stars of
David or Buddhas marking roadside crash sites), a church steeple every
four blocks, massive scripture readerboards alongside the federal highway
system, federal holidays marking the birth of your savior (why don't we get
Mohammed's birthday as a day off?), almost every calendar made indicates
your religious holidays, your holy book in every hotel room, TV shows like "Reba", "Touched
by an Angel", "Three Wishes", "7th Heaven" and other very Christian-friendly
shows on network TV, worldwide Christian broadcast channels, popular musicians
and sports figures giving "shout-outs" to Jesus at every awards show, your
holy symbol is a popular piece of jewelry worn by many, missionaries knocking
on doors and leaving little Jesus pamphlets in phone books, no politician
can ever hope to be elected to national office without at least lip service
to your religion (no atheist stands a chance in politics, because he won't
affirm the popular superstitions), your Bible stories are inextricably
woven into the fabric of our culture, popular newsmagazines like Time
and Newsweek devoting cover stories to Jesus, popular broadcast TV news
shows running specials on Christian issues (Barbara Walters' next special
is about Heaven) and you've still got (in my opinion, unconstitutionally)
prayers by chaplains to begin Congress, oaths sworn in court on your holy
book, recognition of your deity on the currency, your Ten Commandments
still displayed (in a limited fashion) around courthouses, and the leader
of the country claiming he's ordained by God. Christians complaining about
persecution in America are like white college males complaining there's
no White Student Union on campus.
As a member of the majority religion, they don't see these government
endorsements of Christianity the way some of us do. They see In God
We Trust on
the money and it's just a simple fact to them; I see government promoting
faith in an unprovable religious opinion counter to the First Amendment.
They see Ten Commandments in courthouses and it's a natural extension
of God's Law; I see a government that claims to treat all its citizens
equally without regard to religion, yet displays Judeo-Christian scripture
to show that some religions are more equal than others. They see prayer
in public school as a healthy ritual for children; I see the children
of Wiccans, Buddhists, Muslims, and Atheists forced to endure government-sponsored
indoctrination into Judeo-Christian ideals (how am I supposed to convince
my kid that belief in God is a foolish superstition when his school and
his government are constantly telling him there is a God?)
They mischaracterize "the left" as well. No one on my side argues that God
is a cancer. In fact, many many lefties are people with as deep a faith
in God and Jesus as the persecuted Christians (probably moreso). They
just understand that their belief is their opinion, not a nationally-recognized
fact that should be promoted by government.
The past forty years of "shoving stuff down your throats" (funny how the
righties tend to use such homoerotic imagery) would be better characterized
as forty years of removing the religion that's been unconstitutionally
shoved down our throats for the 189 years prior.
Some in the Religious Reich will argue that without recognition of God
as sovereign, governments of men think themselves to be God, with disastrous
consequences for the people. Without God, they claim, the rights of man
are just grants of the government which can be taken away on a whim. They'll
try to scare folks with tales of Sweden jailing pastors for preaching
anti-gay hate speech in public (otherwise known as Leviticus).
I completely
disagree. In fact, history shows that the more intertwined church and
state become, the worse government becomes and the more tyrannical the
state becomes. Iran's done a pretty good job of de-secularizing their
state and recognizing God, don't you think? (Hey, that's as reasonable
a comparison to the right's God fetish as the righties' comparison of
American lefty secularism to Sweden.)
The genius of the Founders was recognizing that the only legitimate
government derives its authority from the just consent of the people,
not ordination from somebody's God. Yes, they were Deists, yes, they
were religious men, but they understood that their religion was their
opinion, and were well aware how the influence of the church on the state
corrupts both.
Furthermore, our rights ARE subject to change and amendment, regardless
of the existence of God or not. We used to have the right to own
slaves, then we didn't. We used to have the right to drink beer,
then that right was taken, then it was given back. Women used to not have
the right to vote, but then it was granted. All of this was done by changes
and amendments and a Supreme Court that views the Constitution, not the
Bible, as the supreme law of the land.
The difference between us is that they see the greatest danger is
America turning its back on God. I see the greatest danger is America
elevating Christianity to a higher status than any other religion
or lack of religion. My America -- religion-neutral -- creates a framework
where people of all religions or no religion are free to worship as they
please. Their America -- Christianity-endorsing -- creates an uneven playing
field favoring Christianity in recruiting, fundraising, and political
power.
Another thing I find amusing about Christian Persecution Complex
is what they are fighting over and the imaginary threats they perceive
in the battle. School prayer? Hey, as long as there are finals, there
will always be school prayer. What is the harm you can show from the lack
of school prayer? What direct, scientifically verifiable effect is derived
from forcing schoolkids to pray?
The Ten Commandments in courthouses? Why? The Ten Commandments aren't
laws. Cops can't arrest me for not honoring my mother and father
or having any other Gods before Him. Whether they are displayed or
not doesn't change our legal system one iota, for our laws are based on
secualar, not religious, authority. What demonstrable harm can you show from
not displaying the Ten Commandments?
Keeping "Under
God" in the Pledge of Allegiance? Why? Is an American Buddhist less patriotic
than a Christian? Can an atheist not show allegiance to country?
If we don't say "under God", is He going to get angry and send a record number
of hurricanes at us? (Whoops, bad hypothetical...) What terrible
thing would happen if we didn't say "under God"?
Fighting embryonic stem-cell research and abortion? Why? Name one
American citizen that's been harmed by either. Oh, I know, 40 million "murdered
womb babies", right? Ah, but fetuses are not American citizens. According
to the Constitution, they have to have been BORN in America or naturalized
to be a citizen (good thing, too, or any illegal immigrants who merely
conceive on American soil would then be carrying an American citizen
fetus, who'd be a citizen even if he were born back in Mexico).
Fighting gay marriage and gay rights? Why? What heterosexual's rights
or what straight marriage is negatively affected by allowing gay
people the same rights?
All of these issues (except perhaps abortion; there are pro-life
atheists) are only controversial to those who place their personal
religious opinions based on Biblical scripture above the constitutional
law of the land. Religion tells you that if you don't put religion
first, bad things will happen. No proof required, no skepticism allowed.
It is its own tautological argument -- "the religion is true because it's
in the Bible, the Bible is true because God wrote it, God exists because
the religion says so." That's a great way
to run a church where everyone agrees with the opinion, but a lousy
way to run a country filled with many contradictory opinions.
Our nation's continued evolution from religious fanaticism to enlightened
reason has been going on for longer than forty years. We used to
be a country that burned witches, invoked scripture to support slavery
and Jim Crow and no rights for women, and unconstitutionally injected
Christian religion into secular government as a frightened reaction to the
Cold War. Compared to most other Western countries, we still have a long
way to go.
To close, here is one of my favorite scriptures:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom
of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably
to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. |
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