The Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s discourse doesn’t sound any more damning of Americans than that of Pastor John Hagge, who’s been quoted as saying Hurricane Katrina was God’s judgment on gays in New Orleans and calling the Catholic Church the Whore of Babylon. Hagge recently endorsed Sen. John McCain for president.
Recent criticisms of Wright’s sermons and comments made by Michelle Obama raise a deeper issue: Is patriotism compatible with Christianity?
The question isn’t about Wright’s freedom of speech or Barack Obama’s freedom of religion but God’s right to damn America, rather than confine himself to piecemeal damnations of homosexuals, abortion doctors and the City of New Orleans.
If Hagge is going to get into end-times prophesy and label churches the Whore of Babylon, he needs to consider that Babylon is in Iraq. So is the American military. We’re there in part because ministers like Hagge pimped the voters in his church to the Republican Party. By endorsing McCain, Hagge is again prostituting the Bride of Christ.
The virtue of the church is one reason sincere Christians have historically been unpatriotic.
Protestant Reformer Martin Luther attributed 16th Century Islamic Ottoman invasions of Europe to God’s vengeance against the Catholic Church. “I’d rather be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian,” he said.
British writer G. K. Chesterton, an influence on C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, said, “‘My country, right or wrong,’ is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, ‘My mother, drunk or sober.’”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Christian who was hung for treason by the Nazis after freeing Jews from concentration camps and plotting to assassinate Adolph Hitler, said, “Politics are not the task of a Christian.”
Before criticizing the Rev. Wright, patriotic pundits should reread those Sunday school Bible stories. They’re not about the dangers of excessive chocolate, as “Veggie Tales” implies, but the dangers of excessive patriotism.
The difference between a patriot and a Christian is simple. A patriot says, “In God We Trust.” A Christian asks, “Can God trust in me?”
Recent criticisms of Wright’s sermons and comments made by Michelle Obama raise a deeper issue: Is patriotism compatible with Christianity?
The question isn’t about Wright’s freedom of speech or Barack Obama’s freedom of religion but God’s right to damn America, rather than confine himself to piecemeal damnations of homosexuals, abortion doctors and the City of New Orleans.
If Hagge is going to get into end-times prophesy and label churches the Whore of Babylon, he needs to consider that Babylon is in Iraq. So is the American military. We’re there in part because ministers like Hagge pimped the voters in his church to the Republican Party. By endorsing McCain, Hagge is again prostituting the Bride of Christ.
The virtue of the church is one reason sincere Christians have historically been unpatriotic.
Protestant Reformer Martin Luther attributed 16th Century Islamic Ottoman invasions of Europe to God’s vengeance against the Catholic Church. “I’d rather be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian,” he said.
British writer G. K. Chesterton, an influence on C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, said, “‘My country, right or wrong,’ is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, ‘My mother, drunk or sober.’”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Christian who was hung for treason by the Nazis after freeing Jews from concentration camps and plotting to assassinate Adolph Hitler, said, “Politics are not the task of a Christian.”
Before criticizing the Rev. Wright, patriotic pundits should reread those Sunday school Bible stories. They’re not about the dangers of excessive chocolate, as “Veggie Tales” implies, but the dangers of excessive patriotism.
The difference between a patriot and a Christian is simple. A patriot says, “In God We Trust.” A Christian asks, “Can God trust in me?”
No comments:
Post a Comment