The Christian-Right's Last Stand

Shortly after the Twin Towers came down, a man by the name of Jerry Falwell used his influence in the media to bring his preaching into the public square. His claim was that 9/11 was proof that God was fed-up with America's sins and abominations, and that this would be a common sight if the United States did not turn to God. First of all, I'm always a bit skeptical of men who claim to converse with the divine, but I could not believe the arrogance of such a comment. Although specifically told by his lord and savior to not judge, Mr. Falwell felt it his duty to judge the entire nation. Why you may ask, and the answer is much simpler than I had previously thought. A core doctrine within the history of Christianity, and religion as a whole for that matter, is God does not necessarily judge individually, but as a whole. The Bible is filled with God's intention of punishing a group for the sins of individuals, and this idea has been carried into the modern age. This becomes the foundation for what Christians would call, "the war on Christianity".

God is a stickler for sin, and has exerted his authority on not only the people committing it, but all who are destined to stem from their genetic line. Yahweh is particular about this in many sections of the Old Testament where he even punishes the whole of mankind because of the infractions committed against his pride in the Garden of Eden. This is why the prophets were sent throughout the "pre-Jesus" eras. They were there to warn the people of the coming catastrophes that would fall upon the nation of Israel for the transgressions of some. How about the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, where Abraham had to plead Yahweh to let the innocent survive? Like a child with unlimited power, the ancient Hebrew God was adamant about destroying the entire society in which a group of sinners were welcomed.

It spawned countless persecutions throughout the great epochs of history. The inquisitions were conducted to punish, embarrass, and occasionally kill heretics who questioned the authority of the church and played with God's wrath. For it was known, if these men and women were allowed to live amongst them then God would destroy them too. The Salem Witch Trial, is a perfect example of this reoccurring issue. "Found out" witches were hanged because of the beliefs they were said to have. How could the Puritan theocracy of 17th and 18th century Massachusetts survive if God was to repeal his love and blessing because of the actions of a few sinners? Well, the religious authorities of the day didn't think the colony could and were strict on the people who threatened to bring down the entire system.

This is the truest sense of the idea "us" v. "them". The forces of good ride out to fight the forces of evil, and the church, in all of its stages, has portrayed itself as good. However, secularism arose from the destruction caused by these endless religious wars in Europe. At first it was simply religious men being reintroduced to the ancient Greeks and Romans, but a movement was in the process of cutting ties with the old forms of religion. Even some of the founding fathers adopted the new secularism over the religions of their day. Although many debate this issue, it is a known fact that many were deists; Thomas Jefferson being one of them.

This new secularist movement became the new "evil" that religion would be forced to fight. However, this time, their adversary was much more worthy to oppose them. Loaded with unlimited ammunition of science and free thinking, secularists were beginning to push back religious institutions from the monopoly of knowledge they had claimed for centuries. "Battle" after "battle" was fought about evolution, the historicity of the bible, the philosophy of morality, and more recently the civil rights of gay Americans, a woman's right to choose, and creationism in school. The fight has lived on into the modern era, but unfortunately for the christian-right, it is an up-hill battle they cannot win.

The jury has deliberated, and I'm sorry to all the creationists out there but evolution is actually true. Science, and it's ability to reason objectively has continually found evidence to support the theory and has been able to destroy the concept of the Genesis story. However, the Christian- right has launched a counter-offensive looking to sneak a Trojan Horse into the public school systems under the disguise of "Intelligent Design". The debate has re-surfaced in certain sections of the United States.

Certain rural areas of Pennsylvania, for instance, have been in the news over the last couple of years due to their insistent push for Intelligent Design to become a part of the science curriculum. Although lacking the presence of scientific facts, logic, and rationale, the religious community is trying to invade the schools and raise the flag of religious science (an outrageous oxymoron). But, thanks to the secular courts, which were designed to be secular, the first amendment has been upheld. In 2004 a case was presented to the Federal Courts which challenged a school dictrict's new science curriculum where Intelligent Design would be taught as an alternative to Evolution.

In the case Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School Disctrict, the judge ruled that although having different names, Intelligent Design was a new version of the old Creationism and was unconstitutional under the first amendment. This makes sense. Creationism, as defined by an early draft of the reference book that the Dover Area School District was using, is, "the theory that various forms of life began abruptly, with their distinctive features already intact: Fish with fins and scales, birds with feathers and wings, mammals with fur and mammary glands." So, in order to say intelligent design is not creationism the reference book would need a slightly different definition. But, of course, that was not the case. When published, the book kept the definition but changed creationism to intelligent design.

This is the Trojan Horse that the judge was able to burn down before it tore through the walls separating church and state. It was one example of the desperate situation the christian right finds itself in. They live in a world that is supported by the myth that lies in the religious texts they cling to, but are surrounded by the world of scientific theory which does a superb job of explaining the natural world. Although most Americans have abandoned the fight that the far right hopes to continue, the zealot Christians are not going to stop until all of their options are gone. So, in lieu of that, it is the job of secularists or anyone who appreciates the separation of church and state to stand against such religious extremism.

The christian-right makes it quite known to Americans how much they despise the gay community and their so called "agenda". Although sexual preference is found in our genetic code, these specific christian groups are afraid of the gay indoctrination of children; an irony I simply can't ignore. What it comes down to is the fear America is walking down the path of destruction. Around every corner is another sin towards God, and as the zealots of the Westboro Baptist Church would say, it is angering the creator of the world. As sad is this may sound, this extremist church is not necessarily wrong in their beliefs. It would be incredibly foolish to ignore the fact that Yahweh is an aggressive being who does punish people with methods that would seem cruel and unusual to the modern mind.

Homosexuality is one of these sins that the far right Christians have to fight or the United States is punishable under God's divine law. Although these people cannot execute homosexuals like during the inquisition, they can persecute them. The christian-right, fueled by the evangelicals who were so emboldened under Jerry Falwell, have begun the process of isolating homosexuals and forcing them into second-class citizenry. With the push for defeating gay marriage, restricting hospital visiting rights, and even destroying civil unions, the far right is looking to destroy a minority group's sense of dignity. Because of the perverse and paranoid idea that gay Americans are threatening their personal life styles, the zealous Christians are looking to trump individual freedoms in the name of their religion.

But, much like intelligent design, the religious movement is loosing ground. New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and Iowa all have same-sex marriage. California's ban has now been deemed unconstitutional, although it is on appeal once more, and the state of Washington is on the fast-track to gay marriage. There is a secular movement that embraces the fact that it doesn't matter if men marry men and women marry women. It harms no one except for the religious right that claims god's wrath will swallow the United States if his laws are broken. This is simply paranoia and should be treated with contempt. Religion releases the prejudices of the far right and shows how desperate these men and women are. In order to save the bigoted and prejudiced world they love, the far right is willing to trample on the rights of fellow citizens and human beings.

Be fruitful and multiply says Yahweh to his newly created creatures. Well, our ancestors have accomplished that task, but now it's time to get a hold of the population crisis that is quickly approaching. With the word population thought to be around 7 billion, it would be suicidal to think we need to continue birthing four kids per family. However, if that's your goal, go for it, but don't tell me birth control is morally wrong. The pope may think condoms are bad and the religious right may think birth control is ungodly, but don't force me to follow your rules.

The new "controversy" that the far right has concocted is about birth control in religious organizations' insurance plans. Now, let's get rid of some of the fallacies before continuing. Even before Obama put the responsibility on the insurance companies to pay and supply for birth control, no church would have had to supply their employees with this devilish pill. Church organizations, such as universities, hospitals and charities, who usually hire outside of their church would be the ones forced to participate in this program.Your everyday catholic or protestant church would not be forced to supply birth control to their female employees or pastors.

Now that that's out of the way, what makes the religious right-wing think their quest for religious rights trumps the personal liberties of women? If these religious health and educational institutions are willing to hire outside of their ranks and accept students and patients that are not of the same religion, then they should not be allowed to hold back insurance coverage of birth control. How about those professors whose religion allows them the use of condoms and birth control pills? Do their religious freedoms not matter?

Churches love freedom of religion until it becomes freedom of other people's religion. Take a look at the case of the Mosque in New York City. Although completely unconstitutional, the religious right wing was looking to stop the construction. The same kind of logic can be applied to this issue. Even if a woman's religion allows the use of birth control, the Catholic Church will not allow the employee to purchase health insurance that supplies it. If the church wants to cling to barbaric and immoral doctrines in its history that's fine, but the government can stop those doctrines from being forced onto employees of a different faith or constitution. The Catholic Bishops's opinion on a woman's reproductive organ should not inhibit a woman's ability to receive birth control. Even though Obama has made it clear, the insurance companies will supply the pills, the Bishops are making a stand because they can feel the force of secular change.

The ultra-religious are running out of options. Right-wing social reform is being defeated throughout the country. New polls are showing a slight majority of Americans are for marriage equality, a woman's right to choose, and many of the other issues that the religious are scared of. The future is looking more and more disappointing for these neo-religious zealots who, whether or not they know it, are trying to tear down the framework of a secular nation. It was not until Church and state were separated that countries such as the United States were able to form and prosper, but many forget that. And, many forget that when the religious are given the power they demand, bigotry, sexism, and draconian law are instituted. The evidence for this is overwhelming. The Catholic Church and the Islamic Empire in Middle Ages, the rise of fringe Buddhist groups in World War Two, and even the Muslim mullahs in the modern world, all have claimed absolute power and look to control the actions of their followers.

No thank you, and more importantly, I don't have to lay down and take it. Although these "last stands" need to be met with rhetorical force, there is a sense of comfort that can be found in the pathetic zealot religious movement. The christian-right's counter-offensive shows that these people know that the era of religion in politics and society is gone. The West has entered into a time of secular thinking, where religion can be practiced in the privacy of our homes, but not forced upon society as a whole. It is almost as if these Christian groups look to the Middle East for guidance. The cradle of humanity has become a world of religious slavery, where men and women are forced into laws that are supposedly dictated by God himself. This is why it is important to keep the Christian-right at bay so that theocracy never sets foot on the shores of the United States.