The ban on politics from the pulpit all but gone now
Bishop Daniel Janky
Some of you may recall Bishop Daniel Jenky, head of a Catholic diocese in Illinois, who during Mass last April likened President Obama and Senate Democrats to Hitler and Stalin. He also asked God to “have mercy especially on the souls of those politicians who pretend to be Catholic in church, but in their public lives, rather like Judas Iscariot, betray Jesus Christ.”
Now, on the eve of the election, Jenky has sent a message to every priest in his diocese, telling them that “By virtue of your vow of obedience to me as your bishop, I require that this letter be personally read by each celebrating priest at each Weekend Mass, November 3/4.”
The mandatory letter states:
Dear Catholic Believers,
Since the foundation of the American Republic and the adoption of the Bill of Rights, I do not think there has ever been a time more threatening to our religious liberty than the present. Neither the president of the United States nor the current majority of the Federal Senate have been willing to even consider the Catholic community’s grave objections to those HHS mandates that would require all Catholic institutions, exempting only our church buildings, to fund abortion, sterilization, and artificial contraception.
This assault upon our religious freedom is simply without precedent in the American political and legal system. Contrary to the guarantees embedded in the First Amendment, the HHS mandates attempt to now narrowly define and thereby drastically limit our traditional religious works. They grossly and intentionally intrude upon the deeply held moral convictions that have always guided our Catholic schools, hospitals, and other apostolic ministries.
Nearly two thousand years ago, after our Savior had been bound, beaten, scourged, mocked, and crowned with thorns, a pagan Roman procurator displayed Jesus to a hostile crowd by sarcastically declaring: ‘Behold your King.’ The mob roared back: We have no king but Caesar. Today, Catholic politicians, bureaucrats, and their electoral supporters who callously enable the destruction of innocent human life in the womb also thereby reject Jesus as their Lord. They are objectively guilty of grave sin.
For those who hope for salvation, no political loyalty can ever take precedence over loyalty to the Lord Jesus Christ and to his Gospel of Life. God is not mocked, and as the Bible clearly teaches, after this passing instant of life on earth, God’s great mercy in time will give way to God’s perfect judgment in eternity.
I therefore call upon every practicing Catholic in this Diocese to vote. Be faithful to Christ and to your Catholic Faith. May God guide and protect his Holy Church, and may God bless America.
It is important to note that Jenky’s description is wrong or incomplete on several points. The health-insurance coverage requirement does not apply to churches or church employees involved in its religious mission. It applies only to any secular operation by the church, such as hospitals and universities, just as it would apply to any other business.
More importantly, the policy does not require coverage of abortion. It does require that policies include contraception methods that block implantation of a fertilized egg in the womb, which the church considers abortion.
Jenky is not alone in such statements. Nicholas DiMarzio, a Catholic bishop in New York, expressed similar sentiments last week, warning parishioners that “It is inconceivable to me how Catholics could support such policies. Indeed, Roman Catholics who support abortion rights and vote for a candidate because of those policies, place him/herself outside of the life of the church. In so doing, they also place themselves in moral danger.”
“Is it possible to vote for somebody despite their support for these policies?” DiMarzio asks. “To my mind, it stretches the imagination, especially when there is another option.”
Nor are such statements confined to the Catholic leadership. For example, the Rev. Randy Mickler, head pastor of Mount Bethel United Methodist Church in Marietta, touched on multiple political topics in his Oct. 21 sermon:
In his message, Mickler tells his congregation (9:20 in the posted video) directly accuses President Obama of showing “great hostility toward Christianity, and at times an encouragement toward Islam,” rattling off a long list of alleged such actions, many if not most factually questionable.
For example, Mickler claimed that in June of 2012, the Obama administration banned the use of Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps emblems on Bibles to be distributed by the government to our troops. He did not mention that it did so under threat of a lawsuit by a group making the reasonable point that imprinting U.S. government symbols on Bibles could be interpreted as government approval. The Bibles are still being distributed, just as they always have been, but absent the military emblems.
‘I’m not telling you whom to vote for,” Mickler says. “I don’t think God cares who wins this election as much as he cares about how we reflect Christian integrity in a voting booth. It is ridiculous to think that we can divorce our faith from our actions and say, this is secular and this is sacred.”
He also tells the congregation that they face a quandary. “I’m not telling you to vote for the Mormon,” he says. “The Mormon is not a Christian. According to the National Council of Churches, that is a sect, not a religion.”
Technically, federal law still prohibits churches and other groups that enjoy tax-free nonprofit status from engaging in partisan politics. In practice, though, that law is seldom if ever enforced because the political cost of doing so would be prohibitive. And while I don’t have a major problem with that turn of events and accept it as inevitable, I think violating federal law was always one of the more minor risks that religious leaders take when they so flagrantly entangle their churches with the sordid world of partisan politics.
Once you step into that political world, the rules change significantly, and I’m not talking federal or state law.
UPDATE: I put this in comments below, but I’ll add it here as well:
It’s perfectly legitimate to question the mixing of politics and religion in the black church, although I think you also have to acknowledge how the tradition arose. For a long long time, going well back into slavery, the church was the only black institution through which the black political voice could be expressed, and black church leaders the only representatives that the white establishment respected. Separating church and state was not an option to a community allowed only a religious voice.
That said, it is impossible as a legal and practical matter — and as a matter of fairness — to allow that to continue in black churches while trying to enforce the pulpit/politics ban in other institutions. That’s in part why I wrote above that the ban is basically a dead letter from here on out.
– Jay Bookman
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748 comments Add your comment
Joe Hussein Mama
November 1st, 2012
4:40 pm
Williebkind — “It is idiotic to believe the values and ideals of religion, especially one that is the choice majority of this country now and at its inception, can’t contribute to the way that the country deals with its own citizens and people abroad.”
Contribute, yes. Control or dictate, no.
They BOTH suck
November 1st, 2012
4:40 pm
ad
You will find that this blog as some of the finest “cherry pickers” in the land when it comes to Bible verses and interpretation……….
The finest in the land; hands down.
clem
November 1st, 2012
4:42 pm
lets see bloomberg and the Economist are endorsing O
from economist: Mr Romney has an economic plan that works only if you don’t believe most of what he says. And for all his shortcomings, Mr Obama has dragged America’s economy back from the brink of disaster and has made a decent fist of foreign policy. Thus, The Economist says “this newspaper would stick with the devil it knows, and re-elect him.”
Read more at http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2012/11/01/The-Economist-Endorses-Obama%20in%20The%202012-Election.aspx#64kEKd5wi37eYmKs.99
Brosephus™
November 1st, 2012
4:44 pm
You sure dont!
What???
¿Qué?
ماذا?
To co?
Что такое?
کیا?
何？
מה?
是什么?
क्या होगा?
ad
November 1st, 2012
4:44 pm
Willie – I’d like to see how you sew something up if you’re dragging your thread through a camel gate. Now, “eye of the needle” could be a phrase used, metaphorically, for a camel entrance, but, if it’s a metaphor, then how many other things in the Bible don’t need to be taken literally?
josef
November 1st, 2012
4:47 pm
williebekind
“But it is because the morals taught by the bible conflict with progressive liberal morals and agendas.”
Just for the record, the Bible is where I got my morals and is a, if not the, guide for my agendas….
Jefferson
November 1st, 2012
4:48 pm
willie is full.
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
4:49 pm
Bro
Try this
क्या एक डुबकी थूक
josef
November 1st, 2012
4:49 pm
BOTH
@ 4:40
Yep.
Brosephus™
November 1st, 2012
4:51 pm
NoCom
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
4:51 pm
I lookd up camel trough and came up with these gems LOL
http://www.urbandictionary.com/products.php?term=Camel%20Trough&defid=3516817
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
4:54 pm
josef
Your all time favorite
हो गयी चाटुकार
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
4:54 pm
Just for the record, the Bible is where I got my morals
The good ones as well as the bad ones? They’re all there, right.
jd
November 1st, 2012
4:55 pm
Alas — the anti-christ can convince the minister that politics is the church’s mission – and we find ministers spreading lies — hardly the mission Christ described. Of course, Christ eschewed politics –
josef
November 1st, 2012
4:59 pm
Common
TAXI
Right there, in time and place…
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:00 pm
Morals are progressive.
pogo
November 1st, 2012
5:02 pm
This topic is timely Jay considering that Joseph Lowery, supposedly one of the most “respected” black ministers in the country, has now said that white people should “go to hell” with the rest of the country. What say you about that Jay? Didn’t Lowery actually speak at Obama’s inauguration? Will you condemn him (or any other black preacher) for preaching politics from the pulpit Jay? No you won’t because you are scared to. Your condemnation of the mixture of religion and politics only applies to the religious leaders that don’t support Obama, doesn’t it? Another words, according to you, black preachers are exempt. The reality is that everyone knows black preachers preach liberal politics practically every Sunday in every black church in this country and that is AOK with you liberals who feign to condemn the mixture of religion and politics. Once again your hypocritical side is on plain display for all to see. Write a piece on Lowery Jay, I dare you.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
5:02 pm
Now the rest of the country can see what a racist bigot Joseph Lowery is.
http://atlanta.cbslocal.com/2012/11/01/report-obama-inauguration-preacher-says-america-is-going-to-hell-in-a-hand-basket/
They BOTH suck
November 1st, 2012
5:03 pm
pogo
Double dog dare him. Sometimes it takes a real dare from someone like you to get him going
hahahahaha
Thomas Heyward Jr
November 1st, 2012
5:03 pm
I DO know that an intelligent GOD designed Evolution………….and that Obama/Romney-Bots are the missing link between apes and peaceful decent human beings.
.
I………..on the otherhand………..have reached the pinnacle of evolution.
.
Ron Paul …………Revolution.
jd
November 1st, 2012
5:04 pm
Rev. Mikler should also have read the verse proceeding Prov 10:9
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:04 pm
TAXI
“Morals are progressive”.
Yep.
Erwin's cat
November 1st, 2012
5:05 pm
Adam – You should look up the statistical definition of outlier…because if I am then I have no brethren
just now saw where you were referring to downstairs
Tundra Dude
November 1st, 2012
5:06 pm
You will find that this blog as some of the finest “cherry pickers” in the land when it comes to Bible verses and interpretation……
Strange…there’s more Bible quoters on this blog than I ever met in real life living down there in Candler Park……
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:06 pm
The results of the analysis suggest that changes over the past 65 years in the top marginal tax rate and the top capital gains tax rate do not appear correlated with economic growth. The reduction in the top tax rates appears to be uncorrelated with saving, investment, and productivity growth. The top tax rates appear to have little or no relation to the size of the economic pie.
However, the top tax rate reductions appear to be associated with the increasing concentration of income at the top of the income distribution. As measured by IRS data, the share of income accruing to the top 0.1% of U.S. families increased from 4.2% in 1945 to 12.3% by 2007 before falling to 9.2% due to the 2007-2009 recession. At the same time, the average tax rate paid by the top 0.1% fell from over 50% in 1945 to about 25% in 2009. Tax policy could have a relation to how the economic pie is sliced—lower top tax rates may be associated with greater income disparities.
Of course Republicans would suppress that report. The facts run counter to their faith-based economics.
They BOTH suck
November 1st, 2012
5:07 pm
Thomas
Tell Alex Jones that I said hello.
Erwin's cat
November 1st, 2012
5:07 pm
TaxPayer – Have you ever seen an electron?
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:08 pm
pogo should write a piece on Lowery and dare Jay to post it.
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:08 pm
Just so folks won’t keep saying it’s just the white folks going to hell making a to-do
http://atlantablackstar.com/2012/11/01/rev-joseph-lowery-under-fire-for-joking-that-white-people-going-to-hell/
Jay
November 1st, 2012
5:08 pm
Pogo, as I said last night, I’d like to see the video of Lowery’s remarks that is reported to exist. He says he was joking, others say he wasn’t. If he wasn’t, he’s forfeited his public voice from here on out. But before I take that position, I want to see for myself and judge for myself.
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:09 pm
Erwin,
Have you ever seen God.
Thomas Heyward Jr
November 1st, 2012
5:09 pm
They BOTH suck
November 1st, 2012
5:07 pm
Thomas
Tell Alex Jones that I said hello.
—————————————————————–
.
No.
I don’t take orders.
That’s for collectivists.
Joe Hussein Mama
November 1st, 2012
5:09 pm
ogop — “The reality is that everyone knows black preachers preach liberal politics practically every Sunday in every black church in this country and that is AOK with you liberals who feign to condemn the mixture of religion and politics. Once again your hypocritical side is on plain display for all to see. Write a piece on Lowery Jay, I dare you.”
I swear, it’s like someone cut off part of an extension cord, stripped the wires bare, jammed them in his ears and then plugged the cord into a wall socket.
Jaquavious
November 1st, 2012
5:09 pm
“…the current proposal to increase taxes on those 1%’ers (technically 550K and up) will bring in 80 billion a year..its’ already been spent..”
That and then some. Per this morning’s USA Today the current federal debt stands @ $16.16 trillion. TRILLION! That couldn’t be covered even if the government confiscated 100% of the earnings of every individual and corporate taxpayer.
Erwin's cat
November 1st, 2012
5:09 pm
TP – no, but have been touched by her…..you?
Thomas Heyward Jr
November 1st, 2012
5:10 pm
Jay
November 1st, 2012
5:08 pm
But before I take that position, I want to see for myself and judge for myself.
————————————————————————————————————————–
.
One shouldn’t judge either.
Too much.
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:11 pm
ERWIN’S
“Have you ever seen an electron?”
Sure…I think his name was Chiou Li
They BOTH suck
November 1st, 2012
5:13 pm
Thomas
You may not take orders but you sure willing accept a load a crap each time you listen to Alex Jones or read his articles……………
The election is going to be Tuesday, hope you finally realized that crap he sold you about Ron Paul getting the nomination was a lie.
Jim S.
November 1st, 2012
5:13 pm
It’s not often I say this, but thank God my parents raised me Southern Baptist, where, believe it or not, independent thinking is encouraged and we were not beholden to believe what our local Bishop pronounced as truth…politics gets more ‘icky’, the more active in the dark arts that these ‘religious’ ‘leaders’ become…One has to love a lecture from that dude about anything sacred…you know what I mean, I don’t have to say it, do I?
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:14 pm
IMAM
“But Forsyth Mayor John Howard, who is African American, said he was “pretty shocked” by Lowery’s comments. Howard “said if a speaker had made the same comments about black people, he would have gotten up and left… He said the Bible gives set instructions on how to go to heaven and it doesn’t say anything about skin color … [and] he said he looked at the face of his pastor, the Rev. Antonio Proctor, and could tell he was real shocked too,” according to the Macon County Reporter account.“Howard said he and Proctor talked about putting a video of the event on Forsyth Cable TV but decided after [Lowery’s] comments that it wasn’t a good idea,” the article said.”
From the link above.
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:15 pm
TP – no, but have been touched by her…..you?
No but I’ve been touched by more electrons than I can count. It’s a miracle.
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:16 pm
ERWIN’S
Oh, wait. That was an election. Nevermind.
Erwin's cat
November 1st, 2012
5:18 pm
TPNo but I’ve been touched by more electrons than I can count. It’s a miracle.
that would be a miracle mister science
Erwin's cat
November 1st, 2012
5:18 pm
josef…I had no idea how to respond to Chiou Li
Keep Up the Good Fight!
November 1st, 2012
5:20 pm
Well if Jay is going to write a story about Lowry, he should probably include Huckabee’s claims that “value voters” should vote on values on marriage, abortion and contraception mandates that would stand the “test of fire”. Or is that somehow less offensive because he is suggesting that those who vote Democratic will be condemned to hell?
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:22 pm
IMAM
I guess we just say preacher Lowery is “off the reservation,” eh. Just kidding. Ha, ha. Yeah, sure.
Jay
November 1st, 2012
5:23 pm
Yes, Josef, I know. But before saying what ought to be said if he was indeed being serious, I’d have to see or hear it myself and be able to judge for myself.
A few other notes:
– The link you posted suggesting that “black folk” are making a big deal of it too is actually just a recounting of how white folk are making a big deal of it.
– Lowery has long been one of the most outspoken black clergy in defense of gay rights as a civil rights issue.
– The glee in some quarters that a 91-year-old of Lowery’s accomplishments might have said something disqualifying stupid is at best unseemly and probably something worse. If he was serious, it’s more cause for sadness than excitement and exhilaration.
dbm
November 1st, 2012
5:23 pm
The more things government gets involved in, and the more extensive and controlling that involvement becomes, the harder it gets to keep anything separate from government, and therefore the harder it gets to keep anything separate from politics.
If we had separation of state and healthcare, as we should anyway for more fundamental and comprehensive reasons, we would have a better shot at keeping separation of church and state.
Paul
November 1st, 2012
5:24 pm
“Partisan politics”?
Is there not a difference between a religious leader who says “this person says they adhere to our beliefs but they sponsor and vote for legislation contrary to our beliefs. If you’re going to vote for a candidate who portrays himself as of our faith, or who has sympathy for our views, then make sure they do. You should vote for those who actually do.”
as opposed to the religious leader who says “this guy is of the same race as us. Vote for him.”
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:25 pm
ERWIN’S
“…I had no idea how to respond to Chiou Li”
I had some!
GOOD FIGHT
“Well if Jay is going to write a story about Lowry,”
That’ll be when hell freezes over and the white people come skating across!
pogo
November 1st, 2012
5:25 pm
The sad truth of what spoiled, self-indulgent and entitlement minded people the American people have become is on full display in the Northeast disaster. It has taken only three days for the people in NYC and NJ to start blaming the Red Cross and the government for not doing enough. Compare this to the Japanese tsunami disaster. The Japanese stuck together and they did not whine, they did not complain and their first response was to think as a society of what they could do to recover and they helped each other, starting with the elderly. We (Americans) have people in NYC that are raising hell because they can’t get cellphone service or that can’t get a train to take them to where they want to go. The video of the thugs in NYC attacking the guy during the storm is deeply disturbing. They beat him, they robbed him and they took time to stomp on his head before they scuttered off to whatever sewer they live in (just as all sewer rats do). Imagine that. During a time of disaster these bastards were out there looking for people to prey on. These are the children of decades of liberal politics.
Paul
November 1st, 2012
5:26 pm
Didn’t finish, sorry.
And, are either of those two religious leaders I used as an example engaging in ‘partisan’ politics?
I think not.
TaxPayer
November 1st, 2012
5:27 pm
that would be a miracle mister science
What makes being touched by more electrons than one can count a miracle.
Ol' Timer
November 1st, 2012
5:29 pm
“In every country and every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty.”
~ Thomas Jefferson
“The tendency to claim God as an ally for our partisan values and ends is the source of all religious fanaticism.” ~ Reinhold Niebuhr
Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.
Thomas Heyward Jr
November 1st, 2012
5:31 pm
pogo
November 1st, 2012
5:25 pm
The sad truth of what spoiled, self-indulgent and entitlement minded people the American people have become is on full display in the Northeast disaster. It has taken only three days for the people in NYC and NJ to start blaming the Red Cross and the government for not doing enough. Compare this to the Japanese tsunami disaster. The Japanese stuck together and they did not whine, they did not complain and their first response was to think as a society of what they could do to recover and they helped each other, starting with the elderly. We (Americans) have people in NYC that are raising hell because they can’t get cellphone service or that can’t get a train to take them to where they want to go. The video of the thugs in NYC attacking the guy during the storm is deeply disturbing. They beat him, they robbed him and they took time to stomp on his head before they scuttered off to whatever sewer they live in (just as all sewer rats do). Imagine that. During a time of disaster these bastards were out there looking for people to prey on. These are the children of decades of liberal politics.
—————————————————————————————————————————————–
.
Don’t worry pogo.
They’re sending in the TSA to help.
.
St. Louis (KSDK) – More St. Louisans are headed into the destruction zone to help with the recovery efforts in the northeast, including some local federal employees.
TSA workers are leaving Thursday to help Sandy survivors. They’ll not only be helping the traveling public, but their fellow TSA screeners who are dealing with the aftermath of a storm in their personal lives.
Around 20 to 25 TSA workers from Lambert-St. Louis International Airport are leaving on two flights starting first thing Thursday morning. They are headed to the New York City area, along with more than 200 other TSA agents from around the country.
.
lol
Thomas Heyward Jr
November 1st, 2012
5:32 pm
dbm
November 1st, 2012
5:23 pm
The more things government gets involved in, and the more extensive and controlling that involvement becomes, the harder it gets to keep anything separate from government, and therefore the harder it gets to keep anything separate from politics.
If we had separation of state and healthcare, as we should anyway for more fundamental and comprehensive reasons, we would have a better shot at keeping separation of church and state.
———————————————————————————————————————————-
.
Sage.
getalife
November 1st, 2012
5:34 pm
“These are the children of decades of liberal politics.”
Way to attack the victims jerk.
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:38 pm
IMAM
Did I say black folks were making a big deal of it? I was simply making the point that it’s not just the right wingers reporting on it. In other words, we need an explanation beyond just I was joking. I’m with you on I’d like to see the video…but, and I stress, the mayor and the local minister were quoted and have not publicly denied that they were displeased…
And he wasn’t always such a fierce advocate of gay rights. His earlier stance was for civil union, but not marriage…you know, on the bus, but a second class back seat..
And you’re doing your own two-step worthy of the orange shorts girl with this…just like you did with Helen Thomas…
But question: why shouldn’t white folks make a big deal of it? And, by the same token, why should they?
To me, bottom line, this is what happens when you take to hagiology of the still living. They’ve got plenty of time to f up. Better do like the Catholics and wait a few years after they’ve gone to the great beyond…
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
5:38 pm
Ol’ Timer
November 1st, 2012
5:29 pm
“Among the most inestimable of our blessings is that … of liberty to worship our Creator in the way we think most agreeable to His will; a liberty deemed in other countries incompatible with good government and yet proved by our experience to be its best support.”– Thomas Jefferson, Reply to Baptist Address, 1807
Vast Right Wing Conspiracy (aka "Knuckle-Dragger")
November 1st, 2012
5:39 pm
The government, through its blatant disregard for the Constitution, has picked a fight with the nation’s churches, and the folks that attend these churches. And you are surprised they have provided a response? Spin it however you want, but it is a direct assault on people’s strongly held beliefs.
Bottom line – y’all get mad when we try to keep you from killing not-yet-born children, and we get mad when y’all try to force us to become part of the killing. This is not so difficult to understand, is it?
Tap Out
November 1st, 2012
5:42 pm
Mitt’s constant lies and flip flopping doesn’t bother them at all.
getalife
November 1st, 2012
5:43 pm
White people going to hell?
Depends on their behavior according the Bible.
Thou shall not………
Perhaps he was trying to get them to behave better.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
5:46 pm
Joseph Lowery needs to go take some “sensitivity and tolerance” classes.
Babatunde
November 1st, 2012
5:47 pm
“He also tells the congregation that they face a quandary. “I’m not telling you to vote for the Mormon,” he says. “The Mormon is not a Christian. According to the National Council of Churches, that is a sect, not a religion.”
That ^^^ is why I walked away from organized religion years ago and never looked back.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
5:48 pm
Joseph Lowery needs to go on the Don Imus show and apologize to white people.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
5:49 pm
Another Thomas Jefferson quote:
“Most bad government has grown out of too much government. “
Brosephus™
November 1st, 2012
5:50 pm
Don’t worry pogo.
They’re sending in the TSA to help.
TSA is under the Dept of Homeland Security umbrella, just as FEMA. You’d really get your panties in a bunch if you knew that CBP and other DHS agencies already had people in the area helping out those who’ve been hit by the storm.
I haven’t heard about any Ron Paul supporters going to help their fellow citizens. What gives??
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
5:55 pm
Bro
The RuPaul supporters are headed that way
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CtRneKv3F0
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:56 pm
JOSEPH L
Sensitivity training, no doubt. But he doesn’t need to go on Imus and apologize the WHITE people, he needs to apologize to generations of people who held him up as a role model an icon…what he said, just kidding, ha, ha, was an affront to the religion he professes which is shared by people of all colors… just like when Scout and company come in damning me to hell just because I’m gay, or a non Christian, or like ZamVet, Mary Elizabeth and company damning me because I’m a white rural Southerner…
But Scout, ZamVet and Mary Elizabeth aren’t put on pedestals from which they have made a career of their pontification…
JamVet
November 1st, 2012
5:56 pm
I haven’t heard about any Ron Paul supporters going to help their fellow citizens. What gives??
No worries, the great humanitarian of our era, Donnie Birther is giving $5,000,000.00 away to his fellow NYC neighbors who were devastated by this storm. With no strings attached!
Because that is the kind of guy he is!
Jay
November 1st, 2012
5:57 pm
The polling numbers say that Obama has a significant lead among Catholic voters, which is explained in part by his strong support in the Latino community. However, even among white Catholics, he and Romney are roughly even in the polls I’ve seen.
If Catholic leaders make voting a test of their parishioners’ faith, the church may end up on the losing end of that arrangement in many cases.
josef
November 1st, 2012
5:59 pm
Common
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
6:01 pm
Jay
Many Catholics that I grew up with in the 60’s have already left the church.
Their far right stands on almost every single issue have driven many away.
F. Sinkwich
November 1st, 2012
6:03 pm
What a nice little blog on religion! But it doesn’t mention anything about lib ilk’s religion, big government.
Here’s an example of the kinds of things we as Americans can look forward to if O’bozo wins re-election:
“The Department of Interior (DOI) is requiring private oil companies to hire marine mammal and sea turtle monitors if the companies are granted a lease to drill offshore. A marine mammal observer’s job is to watch for whales, dolphins, and similar sea creatures and to advise on minimizing the underwater noise created by offshore drilling, which can affect the sea mammals.”
A fish monitor???? Really? I’m guessing the DOI will insist on a six figure salary for this productive member of society. Anything to raise the cost of fossil fuels is ok with O’bozo.
Matti
November 1st, 2012
6:08 pm
Awwww, look. Somebody never learned the difference between mammals and fish, or the basics of the food chain and how life on this planet is sustained. Bless his lil’ ol’ dummy heart! Can we please take up a collection to buy this poor unfortunate soul a book or two?
Oscar
November 1st, 2012
6:09 pm
The IRS should take action and start removing tax exempt status of the offending churches.
This is something up with which we should not put.
Aquagirl
November 1st, 2012
6:09 pm
Sinky hates dolphins. Are kittens, puppies and bunnies on the hate list too?
godless heathen
November 1st, 2012
6:09 pm
Pogo, as I said last night, I’d like to see the video of Lowery’s remarks that is reported to exist.
Jay, you don’t trust newspapers?
josef
November 1st, 2012
6:11 pm
AQUAGIRL
I do hear he’s right fond of sheep, though…
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
6:11 pm
F. Sinkwich
November 1st, 2012
6:03 pm
“A fish monitor????”
You can get a good fishfinder at Bass Pro Shops for $199.
http://www.basspro.com/Lowrance-Elite-4x-DSI-Color-Imaging-Fishfinder/product/53518000/?cmCat=CROSSSELL_THUMBNAIL
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
6:12 pm
Matti
Can we please take up a collection to buy this poor unfortunate soul a book or two?
—————————————-
As if they can read
godless heathen
November 1st, 2012
6:13 pm
A marine mammal observer’s job is to watch for whales, dolphins, and similar sea creatures and to advise on minimizing the underwater noise created by offshore drilling, which can affect the sea mammals.
Where do I apply? Conclusion after first year of mammal observation: “No obvious effects noted, but more observation required. Invoice attached.”
josef
November 1st, 2012
6:13 pm
HEATHEN
@ 6:09
Jay
November 1st, 2012
6:13 pm
Godless, if the words “I don’t care about poor people” don’t make a case for wanting context before lambasting someone ….
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
6:13 pm
josef
You can get banned for talking about someone’s significant other
Krystal'sBalls
November 1st, 2012
6:16 pm
I laugh uncontrollably when I hear these wingnuts profess to high heaven that religion should be a part of our politics and government, because it provides some damned “moral basis”. Well, well. These same people are super gung ho about the wars we wage against Muslims (like the Taliban) who only believe the same thing as they live under their own THEOCRACIES.Yet, we frown upon them and look at them as savages for doing so. Why??? Because we disagree with what THEIR own Holy Book dictates, and it doesn’t fall in line with OUR religion. Ain’t that about some bullshizznittle??!
I wish a preacher, pastor, bishop or any other jackleg church leader WOULD EVER try to tell me how to vote or who to vote for. I’d get right up and walk out of the damned church making a scene, and I would verbalize it for the church to hear. That there is no different than the Taliban and major hypocrisy. I am not the one.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
6:16 pm
Just wondering, how funny would it be if a white preacher said black people were headed to hell? Would the black community just go along with the “joke”.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
November 1st, 2012
6:17 pm
You can get banned for talking about someone’s significant other
You would think that, wouldn’t ya?
josef
November 1st, 2012
6:17 pm
common
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
6:18 pm
Krystal’sBalls
November 1st, 2012
6:16 pm
If Obama thought like you he would have walked out of Jeremiah “Dice Clay” Wright’s church 20 years ago.
F. Sinkwich
November 1st, 2012
6:18 pm
“Where do I apply? Conclusion after first year of mammal observation: “No obvious effects noted, but more observation required. Invoice attached.””
emz
November 1st, 2012
6:19 pm
I am a member of a United Methodist Church in North Georgia and very much disagree with Rev. Mickler’s comments. Churches should stay out of politics. People can pray and think and arrive at their own conclusions. I do not need a minister to tell me, or even suggest, who I should vote for in any election.
Krystal'sBalls
November 1st, 2012
6:19 pm
… and Bishop Daniel Jenky NEEDS to ask God to “have mercy” on many of his brethren for keeping their hands and everything else in the little boys’ pants while hiding behind “the cloth”. How bout that one “Bishys” and “Passys”?
Keep Up the Good Fight!
November 1st, 2012
6:19 pm
Just wondering, how funny would it be if a white preacher said black people were headed to hell?
Have you checked out Huckabee [white preacher] claims about voting Democratic? And since “we know” all black people are voting Democratic (see Colin Powell), you would think that this would just be hilarious, right?
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
6:21 pm
Keep Up the Good Fight!
November 1st, 2012
6:19 pm
So Mike Huckabee and Colin Powell both said blacks were headed to hell?
Common Sense isn't very Common
November 1st, 2012
6:21 pm
Keep
They are more into ugly women up here in Pittsburgh, so celibacy seems to be my only option
j/k Jay I know you loved it here LOL
Aquagirl
November 1st, 2012
6:21 pm
You can get banned for talking about someone’s significant other
Making a funny comment even funnier…..
Moderate Line
November 1st, 2012
6:22 pm
Brosephus™
November 1st, 2012
4:20 pm
Moderate Line
The funny thing is the 80-99 are the ones getting hosed by the 1%.
That’s what happens when you don’t pay attention. It also helps to be able to afford a politician or two.
++++
I believe you are correct. Both sides spread so much disinformation unless you really try to get at the truth you will never find it.
Joseph Lowery is a racist
November 1st, 2012
6:24 pm
Moderate Line
November 1st, 2012
6:22 pm
“Both sides spread so much disinformation unless you really try to get at the truth you will never find it.”
Probably the only “totally true” post of the day. Congrats!!!
godless heathen
November 1st, 2012
6:25 pm
Jay! A newspaper reporter wouldn’t take a statement out of context.