I rarely write about
religion because when I do, it tends to:
(A) Bring the ugliest
of ugly out in people.
and/or
(B) Sets me up as a
verbal punching bag for those who don't respect others' opinion
and/or are angry about anything and everything and yet about nothing
in particular.
But I'm putting it out
there anyway. Like it or don't; this is how I feel about this Sylvania mess.
Mild(?)-Mannered
Politicians By Day, God's Warriors By Night
This whole Sylvania town
sign fiasco has gotten people in a tizzy. Who will be the hero? It
appears Councilman Tony Goolesby has stepped up to the plate. "I'm ready to stand-up for God!" he proclaims and a cheer erupts
from the cyber-sphere. And just in time for elections, too. Oh, how
easy it is for the masses to forget that just a few short years ago,
this very man who is standing up for God lost his temper over a
simple political matter at Ider Mule Days and ended up getting himself arrested.
On a side note, for those
who would say it is a fluke, it's not that hard not
to get arrested. I'm not saying I'm infallible, just that I've been
on this Earth for 34 years and have yet to have a "run-in"
with the law. Okay, so once about a
decade and a half ago, I got a ticket for coming to a "rolling
stop" at a stop sign, courtesy of the Fort Payne PD . Other than that, I haven't found it that
difficult to behave in public.
Now, I don't know
Councilman Goolesby personally (probably just as well) and I don't
know if he's running for reelection (Update: I actually found out today - 5/15/12 - that he is running for mayor, so there you go), but I do want to put out a word
of caution to voters who seem all too eager to jump on the religious
bandwagon. I will say (DISCLAIMER: in no direct relation to
Goolesby!), that when it comes to campaigns and elections and so
forth, it's easy for any politician to proclaim they are Christian
but it doesn't always mean the same thing to them that it may mean to
you. When there is money or power involved, people will say or do
almost anything to get their way, even if it means using their faith
as a catalyst for support. I've always based my voting decisions with
an amount of skepticism in cases of religion, as should everyone.
Signs with Scripture =
Heaven?
As for the signs, I can
see both sides of the fight. I think it's incredibly sad that there
are people out there with nothing better to do than go poking around
for the slightest little thing to gripe about.
But, it is the
law and aren't Christians supposed to obey the law of the land? No government should give the perception that it endorses,
backs, or mandates any religion. I'm a Christian and even I agree
with that.
I once had a preacher man
tell me how baffled he was about how anyone could claim themselves a
Christian but be okay with the above sentiment. Because I'm aware of
our history, I say. I'm aware how many of our ancestors fled their
home countries because of government mandated religion. Do we really
want to give our government the power to tell us who, what, when,
where, and why we can worship? Because that's how it starts. Keep
reading.
But what ticks me off the
most are the comments referring to "Christian rights" and
how our rights are being stripped away.
Humor me, por favor,
and answer the below questions for me:
1. Will anyone arrest
you or cut off your head if you walk into a park, a store, or other
public venue, bow your head, and pray?
2. Are you forced to
attend a church not of your choosing?
3. Are you worried
about your life and the lives of your family because you believe in
God?
No? Great. Then riddle
me this:
What rights exactly are
being stripped away that prohibits you from praying, attending
church, and worshipping God as you see fit?
Because, see, our
ancestors didn't have that luxury. They were told by their
governments when, where, and how to pray. But that's okay; as long
as that government's beliefs lined up with your own, then there
wasn't a problem, right? Wrong, because with any change in
government leadership came a change in beliefs. And if you didn't
conform, you were killed. Read up on your history, especially in the
Middle Ages in Europe. Heck, take a look at what happened to Jews
less than a century ago.
“Oh, but Pamela,
you're being silly. We would never resort to those barbaric
measures.”
You may not, but how can
you be so certain of everyone in the Christian faith? Take the
Westboro Baptists, for instance, who think its okay to protest
military funerals. And that's just because it is within the scope of
the law. How far do you think this hate group would get if the
government opened up to religion? These people claim to be of the
same religion and faith many of us are. So you see, you can't be
entirely certain that things like that wouldn't happen.
So great! We've succeeded
in making our government a Christian government. But wait... we've
been duped into electing someone of a different faith (or a fanatic
of our own faith) that has the power to change the laws to favor
their beliefs. Uh-oh. And the worst part of this scenario would be
that we did it to ourselves by
cheering on these notions that we need an openly Christian
government.
If you're so boxed in that
you think there would be no shift in population and belief systems as
the future rolls on, then I have nothing for you. And if you think
it's okay to persecute those who believe differently, I have nothing
for you, either. This also goes for those who love to tell others
they are going to go to hell or any variant on that. That is
snobbery via religion and one of my pet peeves. Who
knows what God really wants or what God has planned for others? Not
I. And likely, not you, either.
And we don't just have to
look at history. The terror our ancestors lived with is real in the
current world, too. Two online acquaintances come to mind; one in
the Middle East who fears for his and his family's lives everyday
because of his Christian beliefs and another one who barely escaped the horrors
of genocide when she was a child. It's
horrible what other people have to go through every day and we want
to sit here and squabble about words on a sign and how our "rights"
are being stripped away.
I think Americans have
lost a little of that rationalization that comes from fearing for
your life daily like our ancestors once did. Like many in the world
still do.
Seriously, it is a sign.
It is a piece of wood with words on it and to
consider that it holds any significance in reflecting the town's
Christianity is ludicrous. In the meantime,
the lawsuits that will crop up over this will likely bankrupt the
town. I guess if that's what Sylvania residents want their tax
dollars spent on, they can have at it. But what good is that going
to do anyone?
Really, no one is being
denounced or denied. You can still pray, you can still go to church,
you can go sing Amazing Grace in the middle of Walmart, and you can
even, as the Times Journal suggested, post
your own signs.
Just as you may be baffled at how a Christian can think it is okay to take scripture off a town welcome sign, I'm baffled at how other Christians refuse to look at history and the bigger picture of what we'd really be giving up if we allowed religion in government.
I always end my blog posts
with "Peace, love, and..." whatever my overall thought for
the post is. It is important because that is what my faith is to me.
Believe, pray, share with others, be
peaceful, be happy, and love one another.
The rest is up to Him.
Peace, love, and more,
Pamela
