Posted on 11/20/2015 8:23:15 AM PST by SeekAndFind
A leading voice on the religious right sharply criticized the "dangerous" anti-refugee sentiment that has permeated the recent political debate in the United States -- and warned that some Republican presidential candidates may turn off Christian voters with their lack of compassion.
Russell Moore, the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, told BuzzFeed News on Thursday that he was shocked by the "overheated" rhetoric being employed by high-profile politicians in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris. "Donald Trump is saber-rattling about shutting down mosques in this country, which, as somebody who works every day on religious liberty, I'm astounded that we could have a presidential candidate of either party speaking in such a way," Moore said. "Evangelicals should recognize that any president who would call for shutting down houses of worship ... is the sort of political power that can ultimately shut down evangelical churches."
Moore was also critical of candidates like Ted Cruz who are now arguing that the U.S. should only accept Christian refugees from Syria, not Muslims.
"I don't think we ought to have a religious test for our refugee policy," Moore said, adding that a rigorous vetting process could still make room for innocent Muslims. "We really don't want to penalize innocent women and children who are fleeing from murderous barbarians simply because they're not Christians," he said, though he added that persecuted Christians in the region haven't received enough attention from the U.S.
Moore is an influential figure in the evangelical community, and frequently goes to bat for religious social conservatives in the national media. His comments come as many Republicans are studding their campaign stump speeches with calls for a crackdown on Syrian refugees and arguing that the Paris attacks revealed how ISIS will take advantage of Western countries' generosity.
But while conservative voters generally agree that national security must come at the cost of aiding Syrian refugees, polls suggest evangelicals are split on the issue.
Moore suggests the divergent attitudes come from Christ-like compassion -- and an evangelistic spirit. "Our Muslim neighbors are not people we want to scream and rail at -- we don't want to demonize our mission field," Moore said. "I think that the evangelistic missionary impulse of Christianity that sometimes seculars present as nefarious actually is what grounds evangelicals to see individuals not as issues but as persons."
"Every person may well be our future brother, sister in Christ."
Who is this idiot ??? Ive never heard of him..
and hes no leader..
So now “Christ-like compassion” means accepting shoddy screening for terrorists and putting a couple hundred thousand foreigners on Welfare, Food Stamps and Obamacare.
There are morons brainwashed in every religion.
Conservative Christians do not have “leaders”.
We have the bible, and teachers.
Hey Russell show us how compassionate you are. Take 20 refugees yourself.
Whoooo?
RE: Who is this idiot ??? Ive never heard of him..
From Wikipedia:
Russell D. Moore is an American evangelical theologian, ethicist, preacher, and President of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (Baptist Press). He previously served at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, one of six seminaries of the Southern Baptist Convention, as Dean of the School of Theology, Senior Vice President for Academic Administration, and as Professor of Christian Theology and Ethics.
Why can’t people research an issue before they pop off with some cockamamie opinion.
Has he looked at what this group is comprised of? Has he heard the statement by Syria’s own Ambassador saying 20% are ISIS influenced?
Even if all were “peaceful” do we really need more Muslims? When they reach a certain population level they become a problem with their demands. And they do not assimilate.
Then he has been compromised. Caught in bed with a dead hooker or a live little boy, or he’s been given something that solves his financial problems/future. Either way, you can’t believe a word he says
I need to contact the SBC and tell them this idiot does NOT speak for me or most baptists! If he tried saying this in front of our church, he’d be lucky to get out of the church in one piece.
Well...OK, he’d be in one piece. But he would be told to shut up!
Tell this idiot to eat shi’ite! Then sell his family to mussie slavers.
...(for those who remember "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance")
He did this because there is some motive that benefits him in this. Whether financial, exculpatory, or just supplementary to his future solvency, to take this tack is utterly ridiculous. Morally vulnerable, financially precarious, or egregiously conniving and ambitious, his words should be discarded with the trash.
Wrong. He was part of social liberal coup in the leadership of the SBC. Moore is a former staffer to a D Congressman. He is shallow evangelical, leftist scum. He also soft of th e sodomite issue and others.
I think the SBC like many other denominations, get government (your and my tax dollars here) $$$$$$$ for "help resettling refugees."
I know the Don Bosco as well as the Lutheran Church gets $$$$ in my area and I also think that the Baptists do as well.
First, it was illegals. Now it’s these alleged refugees. I’m tired of supposed Christian leaders judging the rest of us because we don’t want to import terrorists and criminals. I don’t recall anything in the Bible that says we have to be charitable to people who want to kill us.
Mr. Moore is a dhimmified jackass.
Being part of the liberal socialist coup of the SBC isn’t a disqualifier for perversion, depravity, avarice, greed, or self-protection; it’s part of the overall resume. :0)
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