Category: Religion

  • False Prophets Among Us

    False Prophets Among Us

    False Prophets
    Pixabay.com

    “Christian nationalism poses a grave threat to democracy, the church, and the common good — and grassroots Christians are sick of seeing False Prophets distort the Gospel for their agenda of hatred, power, and division. To help Americans respond to the threat of Christian nationalism, Faithful America has identified the following influential False Prophets in both the church and the public square.” 1

    • Greg Abbott – Has been commended for his attacks on the LGBTQ community by fellow False Prophet Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council, designated an anti-LGBTQ “hate group” by the Southern Poverty Law Center
    • Steve Bannon – Bannon’s CPAC 2022 speech was tinged with an implied threat of political violence and rife with Christian nationalism, including calling progressives “radical, cultural Marxists” and “groomers” who “want to destroy the Republic” and declaring that conservatives must pursue absolute victory over “power-mad and lawless” opponents, asserting: “There can be no half measures anymore” for “This is war, this is war.”
    • David Barton – Has suggested that climate change is God’s punishment for legalized abortion
    • Lauren Boebert – Openly advocated for a theocracy at a religious service, saying: “The church is supposed to direct the government. The government is not supposed to direct the church. That is not how our Founding Fathers intended it. I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk that’s not in the Constitution.”
    • Ted Budd – Signed an Amicus brief contesting the results of the 2020 election, objected to certification of the results, and called the 2020 insurrectionists “just patriots standing up”
    • Ron Desantis
    • Sean Feucht
    • Mayra Flores
    • Michael Flynn
    • Franklin Graham
    • Marjorie Taylor Greene
    • Josh Hawley
    • Kristina Karmamo
    • Kari Lake – “Kari Lake was booted from Arizona town hall audience before Hobbs took the stage” 2
    • Blake Masters
    • Doug Mastriano
    • Mary Miller
    • Tony Perkins
    • Joseph Strickland
    • J.D. Vance
  • Catholic Governors Turn Their Backs on Their Faith

    Catholic Governors Turn Their Backs on Their Faith

    Right Wing
    Pixaby

    “Three prominent, right-wing, Catholic governors — Ron DeSantis of Florida, Greg Abbott of Texas, and Doug Ducey of Arizona — have been making headlines for brazenly abusing migrants to score political points. And the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) hasn’t said a word about these shockingly cruel attacks on migrant families.

    Last week, DeSantis tricked at least 50 asylum seekers into boarding a plane to the island of Martha’s Vineyard, MA — leading them to believe that the flight was actually to Boston and cruelly promising them shelter and assistance that didn’t exist. Abbott and Ducey have likewise bused thousands of migrants to northern cities without any plan in place to greet or care for them once they got there.

    These relocation transports by MAGA governors aren’t without tragic — and racist — precedent. During the 1960s, southern segregationists orchestrated “Reverse Freedom Rides,” pushing hundreds of Black citizens to board one-way buses to northern cities and falsely promising them jobs and housing once they got there.

    Catholic social teaching couldn’t be clearer on treating migrants with understanding and respect. The USCCB’s own website states that “we cannot excuse inhumane treatment of certain persons by claiming that their lack of legal status deprives them of rights given by the Creator.”” 3

  • False Prophets Among Us?

    “In the streets of Washington, D.C., we have seen religion used as a political prop and we have seen it exercise its prophetic voice.” – Religion News Service, Thomas Reese, June 11, 2020 – Four ways to tell a prophet from a political puppet – Today, there are prophetic voices on almost every issue: pro-life prophets and feminist prophets. How can we judge true from false?

    • Follow the money.
    • Who are the prophet’s friends?
    • For whom does the prophet speak?
    • How do they speak?

    The following people “seem” to fall into these categories and may be very dangerous to society as a whole.

  • How Evil is Franklin Graham? His Father Would Be Ashamed.

    How Evil is Franklin Graham? His Father Would Be Ashamed.

    Preacher
    Pixabay.com

    “Graham has also been fanning the flames of right-wing violence in the wake of the FBI’s Constitutional search of Donald Trump’s Florida home. While Trump supporters are busy sending death threats to judges and attacking the FBI’s Cincinnati field office, Graham has taken public aim at the FBI’s credibility and even compared the Mar-a-Lago search to the deadly 1992 standoff at Ruby Ridge. Later in his life, Billy Graham often lamented getting involved with politics when he was younger — once telling Parade magazine, “The hard right has no interest in religion except to manipulate it.” It’s a shame his son didn’t listen.” 4

    References:

    • glaad.org – Gladd Accountability Project – Franklin Graham
    • ACLU – LGBTQ Discrimination Cases: Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
    • The Washington Post, Jonathan Capehart, April 21, 2014 – Franklin Graham’s detestable anti-gay statements
    • Salon, Tom Boggioni, April 17, 2022 – Franklin Graham hit with furious backlash for Easter weekend plea to “pray” for Putin
  • Prayer on the Fifty Yard Line?

    Prayer on the Fifty Yard Line?

    Impact of Kennedy v. Bremerton already apparent as courts are forced to reconsider Establishment Clause cases

    Justice

    “In June, the U.S. Supreme Court in Kennedy v. Bremerton ruled that a high school coach’s prayers at midfield following football games did not violate the Establishment Clause. The decision in Kennedy is notable for more than just the troubling outcome. In its ruling, the Court overturned the long-standing “Lemon test,” which has guided courts since 1971 in determining whether a government entity has unlawfully established religion. As BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler lamented, “the Court … severely limit[ed] the Establishment Clause and its important protections for religious freedom.”” 5