Church, State and Campaign ‘08

[Echo In Light]

Church, State and Campaign ‘08
By Bill Boyarsky

When Adolf Hitler came to power, he said, “I am not going to do anything in my lifetime that hasn’t been done by the Roman Church for the past 800 years. I am only going to do it on a greater scale and more efficiently.”

This comes from the Rev. John Hagee, a hugely popular televangelist who is an important supporter of Sen. John McCain, the prospective Republican presidential nominee. Hagee’s congregation in Texas has 19,000 members, and he appears on more than 150 television stations, 50 radio stations and eight religious networks. Although Hagee is not McCain’s personal minister, Hagee gives McCain an entrée to the Christian right, a group that has considered McCain too liberal.

Could anything be more bigoted and inflammatory than Hagee saying the Roman Catholic Church inspired Hitler when he crafted the Holocaust? Certainly it ranks with or exceeds the ranting of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Sen. Barack Obama’s former minister. McCain’s religious nut is every bit as destructive as Obama’s.

Considering the importance of Hagee to McCain, I would think such an outburst of anti-Catholicism would have created a frenzy of stories and comments by political journalists and their cousins, the cable news network analysts. Yet Hagee’s words have disappeared into the limbo of news not hot enough for prime time.

Similarly, there was minimum attention paid to Hagee’s declaration that Hurricane Katrina was God’s punishment to New Orleans for permitting a gay pride parade. “I believe the judgment of God is a very real thing,” said Hagee. “I believe that Hurricane Katrina was in fact the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans.”

On another occasion, he said, “Those who believe in the Koran have a scriptural mandate to kill Christians and Jews.”

And where’s the outrage over his belief that Jews who do not convert to Christianity will be banned from Hagee’s heaven-bound express during the Rapture and forced to remain behind and boil on Earth? By the way, the segment of right-wing Jews who welcome Hagee’s support for Israel and his advocacy of a pre-emptive United States-Israeli strike against Iran should study this particular belief carefully. They should be aware that the Jews are doomed on Rapture day unless they convert.

Compared to the torture inflicted on Obama over his association with Wright, McCain has mostly escaped bad publicity from his Hagee connection.

Continued:
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080501_church_state_and_campaign_08/

[mac2]

1. Candidates are associated with clergy to cause a stir and

distract from the real issues. Religion does not belong in the campaign.

There is a religious war going on for power in this country because of those public funding grants. Religious groups have never been so flush with money. Bush started it illegally.

God did not punish New Orleans but the failure of Congress and the President to provide funding to have modern levees did. Bush wanted NO destroyed for his own power and profit. The new governor is Republican. DA.

Bush strummed on the guitar while NO was destroyed. Yet they won't impeach this Nero like President.

Remember the storm was a level three not a four which would have destroyed the levees? The flood did the damage not the hurricane. I believe those witnesses from the levee areas who said during the hearings they heard bombs. Congressman Shays all but called them liars. He was the lair.

[Echo In Light]

2. Sure, the point here, however, is how what's good for the goose is apparently not for the gander

[mac2]

3. You are saying the media is harder on Obama than McCain's

religious guy? That's because they want it that way. The media might want a religious fight regardless of which candidate at this point to distract from the problems we now face. Going after a black clergy is more effective than a white one because religion and racism can be the issue...distraction. Divide and conquer.

"Under our constitution when the goverment becomes so appressive we have the legal right to dispose that goverment. It is called (INPEACHMENT)."

Posted by: madmax
Date: September 7, 2007 2:44 PM

[Echo In Light]

5. Understood. Wasn't requesting clarification, but attempting to point this out

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

4. Church and State should be separate

My Order does not allow ANY talk of politics by a member who is representing the Order. As individuals, we can do what we like.

NOWHERE in the Qur'an does it say Christians and Jews are to be killed. In fact, it says to honor the People of the Book.