Mississippi Religiosity
In the January 5th edition of Jackson, Mississippi's newspaper "The Clarion Ledger" there was a news story announcing the selection of a chaplain for the state of Mississippi's Senate. This piqued my interest, because I wondered "why in the world would they need a chaplain?" The Mississippi Capitol building is literally surrounded by churches: 5 of the most powerful churches in their denominations and three of the denominational head offices. Upon further reading I discovered this position was created by the current Lt. Governor (who is making a bid for the governor's seat) and the justification for this position is "Our Christianity is under attack and I think this is a way for us to make a statement that faith in our lives is very important," according to Senate President Billy Hewes R-Gulf Port.
This comment made me do a double-take. Is Christianity really "under attack"? Is creating another title and position REALLY the way to make a statement that faith is important to our state legislators? This gesture of faith reminds me of the uproar over the monument of the 10 Commandments that the state of Alabama tried to build a few years back. I can't help but question the sincerity of these kinds of "statements of faith" when they seem to reflect showboating for political gains. I know people are scared right now. Every time we turn on the news there seems to be another story about an Al-Qaeda suicide bomber killer dozens of innocent people. The memories of the attacks on September 11th are still fresh on our minds, and it seems that every radical Muslim cleric and backwoods Evangelical preacher are predicting the fall of America to debauchery and sin. I think it is crucial for our faith leaders to step up and be calming voices during these tempestuous times! But it offends me as a Christian and as an American to see our elected officials using the guise of "defending our faith" to justify what seems to be a political move. If the senators of the state of Mississippi need pastoral counseling, by all means get it! But do not try to make a political point by saying you have a senate chaplain, or that you see him regularly.
Jesus tells a parable in Luke chapter 18 where a pharisee and a tax collector both go to the temple to pray. The pharisee (a holy man) makes a big production as he prays about what a great and righteous man that he is, and how he is so unlike the heathens and sinners... like a tax collector. While the tax collector (who society doesn't like because he steals from folks) quietly and earnestly prays "God, have mercy on me a sinner." At the end of this parable Jesus says that it is the tax collector who goes home justified before God, not the pharisee. I hope the legislators of the state of Mississippi know this story, because true faith is not constructing monuments and creating positions for people in order to demonstrate your faith. It's loving God, loving your neighbor, blessing those who persecute you, aiding the orphan and widow in their time of need, and not judging lest you yourself be judged (all of these are quotes from the Bible). Political grandstanding doesn't prove how great a Christian you are, it makes you look like a pharisee... and Jesus didn't like them too much.
In closing, I appreciate how enthusiastic Mississippians are about religious, but folks we're missing the point when we're more concerned about having the 10 commandments on display than we are about loving and taking care of our neighbors no matter what they look like, where they live, what they've done, and what party they vote for.
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110105024
This comment made me do a double-take. Is Christianity really "under attack"? Is creating another title and position REALLY the way to make a statement that faith is important to our state legislators? This gesture of faith reminds me of the uproar over the monument of the 10 Commandments that the state of Alabama tried to build a few years back. I can't help but question the sincerity of these kinds of "statements of faith" when they seem to reflect showboating for political gains. I know people are scared right now. Every time we turn on the news there seems to be another story about an Al-Qaeda suicide bomber killer dozens of innocent people. The memories of the attacks on September 11th are still fresh on our minds, and it seems that every radical Muslim cleric and backwoods Evangelical preacher are predicting the fall of America to debauchery and sin. I think it is crucial for our faith leaders to step up and be calming voices during these tempestuous times! But it offends me as a Christian and as an American to see our elected officials using the guise of "defending our faith" to justify what seems to be a political move. If the senators of the state of Mississippi need pastoral counseling, by all means get it! But do not try to make a political point by saying you have a senate chaplain, or that you see him regularly.
Jesus tells a parable in Luke chapter 18 where a pharisee and a tax collector both go to the temple to pray. The pharisee (a holy man) makes a big production as he prays about what a great and righteous man that he is, and how he is so unlike the heathens and sinners... like a tax collector. While the tax collector (who society doesn't like because he steals from folks) quietly and earnestly prays "God, have mercy on me a sinner." At the end of this parable Jesus says that it is the tax collector who goes home justified before God, not the pharisee. I hope the legislators of the state of Mississippi know this story, because true faith is not constructing monuments and creating positions for people in order to demonstrate your faith. It's loving God, loving your neighbor, blessing those who persecute you, aiding the orphan and widow in their time of need, and not judging lest you yourself be judged (all of these are quotes from the Bible). Political grandstanding doesn't prove how great a Christian you are, it makes you look like a pharisee... and Jesus didn't like them too much.
In closing, I appreciate how enthusiastic Mississippians are about religious, but folks we're missing the point when we're more concerned about having the 10 commandments on display than we are about loving and taking care of our neighbors no matter what they look like, where they live, what they've done, and what party they vote for.
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110105024
Comments
Post a Comment