Digby writes about this drivel from conservative Cal Thomas. One among many of our fellow humans who thinks he has a direct pipeline to God,
The Christian right has actually been at war with mainline churches (like Clinton’s) for a long time, under the radar, and this argument isn’t new. They have tried to defund and decertify them by saying they aren’t legitimately Christian. Their effort continues apace. In their own sector of society they are just as ruthless, bullying and intolerant as they are in the political sphere.
Cal and the Right are entitled to keep moving the religious ball around – Kerry was pro-choice so he couldn’t be a real Catholic, but its fine that Guiliani is pro-choice. Cal belongs to the political party that has made it clear that they reject the Beatitudes
How about Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes?
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. …
And so on.
Not exactly planks in a Republican platform. Not exactly Donald Rumsfeld or Dick Cheney stuff.
For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes. But, often with tears in their eyes, they demand that the Ten Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course that’s Moses, not Jesus. I haven’t heard one of them demand that the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, be posted anywhere.
“Blessed are the merciful” in a courtroom? “Blessed are the peacemakers” in the Pentagon? Give me a break!
Digby also linked to this story, Vatican reiterates hardline on primacy of Catholic Church
The Vatican set itself on a collision course with other Christian faiths Tuesday, reaffirming the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church in a corrective document which it said was designed to clear up recent “erroneous” doctrine.
The document’s central claim, that only the Catholic Church is “the one true Church of Christ”, is likely to revive a debate which has dogged the Vatican’s relationship with rival Christian denominations for decades.
On every corner there’s someone claiming to be the only source or path or possess the one and only true dogma that will get us into heaven, from Cal Thomas to the Pope to James Dobson to Osama Bin Laden. Its like a cheesy franchise that most people quietly hope doesn’t open a store front in their neighborhood. People should in light of the history of the self appointed-self-righteous find Hillary Clinton’s or anyone’s humility about their faith reassuring. It means at the very least they’re a little more rational.
The Bushies claim to be religious, but that hasn’t stopped them from making politics a priority over the rule of law, Bush Justice Is A National Disgrace
The public record now plainly demonstrates that both the DOJ and the government as a whole have been thoroughly politicized in a manner that is inappropriate, unethical and indeed unlawful. The unconscionable commutation of I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby’s sentence, the misuse of warrantless investigative powers under the Patriot Act and the deplorable treatment of U.S. attorneys all point to an unmistakable pattern of abuse.
In the course of its tenure since the Sept. 11 attacks, the Bush administration has turned the entire government (and the DOJ in particular) into a veritable Augean stable on issues such as civil rights, civil liberties, international law and basic human rights, as well as criminal prosecution and federal employment and contracting practices. It has systematically undermined the rule of law in the name of fighting terrorism, and it has sought to insulate its actions from legislative or judicial scrutiny and accountability by invoking national security at every turn, engaging in persistent fearmongering, routinely impugning the integrity and/or patriotism of its critics, and protecting its own lawbreakers. This is neither normal government conduct nor “politics as usual,” but a national disgrace of a magnitude unseen since the days of Watergate – which, in fact, I believe it eclipses.
These are dark days. Dark days for a president that makes a lame duck look like an Olympic sprinter. What can we do they ask themselves. Well ya know that boy who cried wolf stuff has worked before, Al Qaeda Cell in the U.S. Or On Its Way, According to New Intel
Charles Gibson: The obvious question, Brian, is how hard and how specific is the intelligence?
Brian Ross: Not hard, but good. It’s being taken very seriously, in connection with increased chatter, e-mail traffic back and forth, the attacks in London, and a general concern, as Secretary Chertoff said today, that summer seems to be a time that al Qaeda likes to attack.
Low Approval Ratings = Another Terror Warning
Things are dark for the Bu$h malAdministration right now. Congress is talking about standing up on its two hind feet. Iraq hasn’t made its 18 benchmarks. Newspapers are actually talking about the phoniness, fraud, and illegal activities, WaPo even openly mentioned Abu Gonzalez broke the law when he lied to Congress – multiple times. More than 2/3rds of America wants us out of Iraq and Mr Bu$h out of our White House.
Maybe something really is going on and we’re all being too cynical. Since we’re being Biblical today, its a matter of reaping what you sow. At one point I remember one blogger was tracking terror alerts like this and I think he gave up because there have been so many. Bush is creating a dangerous situation by creating a certain level of terror alert burn out.
Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. – Galatians VI (King James Version)
The Long Goodbye 