With events leading up to the historical inaugural day of our now President Barack Obama I have heard countless opinions from a number of people (including a number of professing Christians) that have ranged from hopeful, well thought out statements to downright bigoted and hateful slurs. From "We no longer have to live in a country where we are ashamed and hated by the world" anthemed by a musician I see perform on most tuesdays, to "He's black and he's gonna get shot", "He's not even black", and "he's bringing a ministry of condemnation to Christ" (this one was said in response of Obama choosing an openly homosexual Episcopalian to deliver his inaugural invocation.) These statements are extreme ends of the spectrum and more than likely do not represent most people on their opinions.
Yet the most slanted and ignorant statements I have heard about Obama have come out of the mouths of those who profess to be followers of Christ, and I do not know how to feel about this. My initial response to most of these opinions is "are you really that stupid?" and my second, more causatively relevant thought is usually, "how did you come up with that?" which would beg an indepth analysis of their lives and where they get their information from. This, of course, is probably much too time consuming in passing conversations, and therefore goes unsaid. It leaves me with a feeling of "why, Lord? why?".
I have come to the conclusion that most Christians question Obama ruthlessly and accept Bush blindly. I am not saying that we should not question our new President. I am a firm believer that we should be as those submitting to authorities that govern us, but that utimately we have a higher authority Governing us, and finding out those boundaries where our faith and nationality may collide will be a task we wrestle with all of our lives (and may our allegiance to Christ supersede that of our country). But with Bush many Christians blindly took whatever he said as their faith and questioned none of it. From war, unnecessary death, Governmental lies, and a recessing economy, it was all taken in and swallowed hook line and sinker.
So I guess what makes me angry the most about the conversations I hear about Obama really has nothing to do with Obama persey, but with the fact that I heard none of this with Bush. I had a friend recently talk to me about the idolatry he sees in people making Obama their saving grace. And coming from a blue state til the say she dies I see it everyday, everywhere I go. But I have never heard of how people made Bush an idol, and I wonder if I didn't hear it because it so permeated the walls inside our churches that we refused to see it?
All of this though, reminds me of a passage of Scripture where Jesus is talking about judging others and mentions that there are those who see a sliver in the eyes of others but fail to notice a plank in their own. It's a timely message of looking in one's self before looking at others. About judging ourselves with our hearts but others with our heads and the injustice of it. It may be with Obama and Bush that there are huge planks in everybody's eyes, but the latter is rarely mentioned. And it bugs me that we can so readily point the finger outward and not inward.
Comments (7)
It's Barrack :) two r's.
and I have come across the same thing. Especially being here at bible college. Girls in the dorm crying because Obama was sworn in, and they feel as though the country is not damned to hell. Where as I see him as a huge blessing, he understands the change that the world is in and want america to catch up. As prosperous and advanced we are, we are not in a lot of ways in view of the wrold. He thinks in those terms, not just an american view.
I was sad to see that no one at our college pray openly for Barrack.
I was hoping that in at least Social Responsibilty class that we would. I come to think that if it were a republican to come into office that we would jump to pray. Instead, we are told about how our gay mayor just announced that he has been having an affair with an 18 yr old intern.
I went ot Mosaic on sunday and the first thing they did was pray for Barrack, and the gang warfare in portland, and current community issues. this made me happy.
no, it's one r dear. two r's is a barrack(s) like where soldiers live.
good article. i think that for a lot of conservatives and/or Christians, especially those under 21, they simply forget the time before Bush. they're not really conscious of how much they take Republican power for granted, particularly after Clinton blackened the Office. i know many of my friends who are younger than me were really shaken up by the election, unfortunately.
i am interested to see what happens and trying to keep an open mind. i do not put my trust in princes and i do pray for all our officials because they need God's wisdom and strength. however that said there are a couple 'big-ticket' items that concern me deeply, i.e. abortion and same-sex issues.
I have to say, the talk and slander about Barack Obama in our churches and amongst Christian people in general is disheartening. I have heard many hurtful things, not worth repeating online, that have troubled my spirits. Christians in America have been so quick to condemn and judge. And like you said, it's good to question, but at what point does the questioning become hateful and ignorant.
If Obama says he is a Christian, why do we have a hard time believing it? 1 Cor 13 says that love assumes the best. And I am no less certain of Obama's faith than yours or mine.
However, on policy issues I am torn. I have both praise and criticism for the first few decisions Obama has made as president. He has shown his sincerity and severity in freezing the salaries of several white house employees and aids, as well as passing an ethics standard for his employees and their work with lobbyists. I also think the swift executive order Barack Obama signed to close Guantanamo Bay yesterday is praise worthy.However, within the past couple hours Obama has already rescinded the "Mexico City Policy" first instated by Reagan, then stopped by Clinton, then reinstated by President Bush, and today canceled by Obama. The policy is in essence a law that prohibits federal funding to international agencies which promote abortion or provide counseling or referrals about abortion services.
just read this on the Presidential Website whitehouse.org ... a statement release by Obama about the Mexico City Policy situation. Is abortion really included in the "family planning" sector of business. I did not plan this, therefore lets get rid of "it"?
Statement released after the President rescinds "Mexico City Policy"Yesterday, President Obama rescinded the "Mexico City Policy" and released the following statement:
It is clear that the provisions of the Mexico City Policy are
unnecessarily broad and unwarranted under current law, and for the past
eight years, they have undermined efforts to promote safe and effective
voluntary family planning in developing countries. For these reasons,
it is right for us to rescind this policy and restore critical efforts
to protect and empower women and promote global economic development.
For too long, international family planning assistance has been used as
a political wedge issue, the subject of a back and forth debate that
has served only to divide us. I have no desire to continue this stale
and fruitless debate.
It is time that we end the politicization of this issue. In the
coming weeks, my Administration will initiate a fresh conversation on
family planning, working to find areas of common ground to best meet
the needs of women and families at home and around the world.
I have directed my staff to reach out to those on all sides of this
issue to achieve the goal of reducing unintended pregnancies. They
will also work to promote safe motherhood, reduce maternal and infant
mortality rates and increase educational and economic opportunities for
women and girls.
In addition, I look forward to working with Congress to restore U.S.
financial support for the U.N. Population Fund. By resuming funding to
UNFPA, the U.S. will be joining 180 other donor nations working
collaboratively to reduce poverty, improve the health of women and
children, prevent HIV/AIDS and provide family planning assistance to
women in 154 countries.
I agree with you Ian on some of his policies and being weary of them. On this Mexico City policy, i do not know what to think. Utimately i think that i do not agree with his decision, but on the other hand i do not think that these facilities are just rushing to get all these women to get abortions either. In effect, they promote abortion as an option in family planning, but i am sure that it is not the only alternative that they offer. To Obama, there are many things that these organizations we will now be funding again are working torwards, such as the betterment of women and reducing poverty, that are worth his repeal and support. And I am for spending tax dollars on those issues. In the long run i hope that the centers for family planning worldwide are doing more good than harm. There are many scared women out there who find themselves in situations that are undesired, and these centers are there to help them make decisions with their options. I do not agree with abortion as a general practice for fixing undesired pregnancies, but not all family planning centers are shoving abortion down the throats of those there seeking help.
i'm torn on this one.
man i totally agree... i love my mom, and usually shes a really smart lady, but when it comes to politcs, for her, bush can do no wrong, and obama can do no right... it makes me sad.
Well said, Mr. Green. I know this is a bit overdue, but actually, I have seen the same things happening, not coming from a church, or bible college, but those on the other end of the spectrum. People I know that have no idea what they're talking about politically, or otherwise, have come to the same conclusions about our president.
Even though I no longer have any ties to the church, I strongly believe in our government, but only so far. I understand that we have to obey the authority over us that the government has, but only so much. We can't blindly follow just anyone. Not Bush, not Obama, not anyone. We need to keep our eyes open and come to our own conclusions. We can't follow what we hear on the news, or what our friends say. We have to build our own opinions based on our own knowledge.
Even the most christian of men are still only men. They're flawed, and nowhere near infallible. They are prone to mistakes, and poor decisions. We can't judge a political leader without fully understanding their view points. Even though I didn't vote for Obama, I stand behind him as an elected official of our government.
It doesn't matter who's in office. We need to stop holding them up on a pedestal, and understand that they too, are only men, and that the decisions they make aren't 100% theirs to make. There's an entire government at work here, and we need to be active in understanding the whole picture. Lets not judge Obama based on his political ties, or beliefs, but on the decisions he makes in the coming years. Lets hope he makes the right ones.