Posted on 04/29/2010 8:58:35 PM PDT by se_ohio_young_conservative
Let me say first of all that I am a Christian with a strong faith in God. I grew up going to church with my grandpa. I accepted Jesus Christ into my life at a young age.
My wife was raised in a strict christian home. But I think that worked against her in some ways. I think certain people in her family turned her off on religion at points along the way. She is now an atheist. She is a great mom to our 16 month old twins. She is an awesome wife. I love her so much and I will never let it destroy our marriage. So I have been very open and tolerant of her views while praying for her like crazy at the same time.
She has been mostly apolitical and I guess she has been more intrested in recent months watching Fox News with me and listening to the radio. She is very much against abortion. She knows that Obama is a disaster for this country.
It came up in another thread. We have been watching Glenn Beck. and my wife likes him at times. But he really loses her when he goes off into a deep religious discussion. Here I am trying to get her to see and understand things that are going on, and religion comes up, and she sort of tunes out and changes the subject.
That got me thinking. I know this country was founded by men of faith. I know many of us conservatives are religious. But can't a person be a conservative, pro life and atheist ? and still love their country just as much as I do ? ... How many out there are like my wife ?
I tend to think so for sure. But at the same time. I don't want to remove our religious traditions either. They are very important. Our country needs them now more than ever. But I think people like my wife are important to our cause as well. Men and women in their 20s, not religious, but conservative on many issues and they don't even label or know they are conservative. So I guess the problem is.. We can't slip into a politically correct echo chamber, but at the same time we must carefully equate our christian traditions with religious freedom for all. Our rights come from God. and that includes the right not to be religious of course.
what do you say ?
My husband, an atheist, is conservative and pro life. As far as love of country, he and I both love it as our founders envisioned it. The progressives have destroyed any resemblance of the original.
So knowledge of indirect harm is on the table?
Well, that's good for you. I'd resort to far greater extremes than profanity.
No.
I will worship the way I want to.
I really don’t care what you think is the only way of anything.
Far as I can tell, you sound like a muslim.
This is the only way, that is the only way. Bullsh!t, pal.
None of us has the answer, and don’t tell me that you do, because you don’t. What you have is your beliefs, and I have mine. We will find out for certain what’s in store for us on the day of our death, and not one minute before.
Furthermore, the priest who tried to kiss me was episcopal not catholic. I have not condemned any religion either. What I said is that I don’t believe in religion, and I don’t go to church. I’m not going to tithe, and I’m not going to be around priests. Sorry, but that is all.
Whether YOU think I cause indirect harm means nothing to me.
It's my choice, exclusively.
I obviously struck a nerve with you. I suspect that there is some unresolved conflict in your past that my conversation has awoken. I won't take it personally. I will however suggest that you either go get some counseling or get back on your meds. The sad thing is that your anger is making you look like a member of the loony left, and I sincerely doubt that.
LOL! Good Luck. :^)
Excellent post with great citations. Interesting to note that many claim America to be a Christian-founded country, but “Christ” is found no where in our Declaration or Constitution. The word “Creator” is used, but sounds rather generic. It could be read as an effective way to convey the abstract concept of “inalienable rights” to those more familiar with Judeo-Christian concepts than to advanced political concepts. Great topic with many great replies.
The problem really is that most of christianity has lost it’s power and salt. The church has mostly failed to show people how to go within and be still, as the bible speaks of. THat place where there is the silent but moving holy spirit. So of course some people will turn sort of the other direction, because many christians are very weak. fhu.com teaches a wonderful silent prayer that allows people to become real and strong...changed my life so much. I can say that now I am truly a real christian and no longer have the compulsion to sin. It just has left me...still have weknesses to overcome, but sinning is done...thank God!
That nerve is that I'll not tolerate "movements" or "philosophies" telling me what my rights are, or what I can, or cannot, do when I harm nobody.
And no, I'm not a homo and I'm as far to the right on the political spectrum as anyone can be.
And yes, I'm an absolutist.
For instance: Assume, for the sake of argument, I decided to grow pot exclusively for my own consumption...or decided to distill whiskey for my own consumption...or decided to screw some homo (YUK!).
Why the h e double hockey sticks would it be ANYONE's business besides my own?
“but partial birth abortion is a real heart breaker for me!”
That’s because you have a heart inclined towards good (and therfore God)!
Blessings
Mel
Yes my Creator has shown me “supernatural” events twice in my years. The first was a “revelation of scripture” and the second was “100% healing in three days” from a chronic illness. I know that God exists but I do not understand him.
"A “right” is a moral principle defining and sanctioning a man’s freedom of action in a social context. There is only one fundamental right (all the others are its consequences or corollaries): a man’s right to his own life. Life is a process of self- sustaining and self-generated action; the right to life means the right to engage in self-sustaining and self-generated action-which means: the freedom to take all the actions required by the nature of a rational being for the support, the furtherance, the fulfillment and the enjoyment of his own life. (Such is the meaning of the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.)
...
The Declaration of Independence stated that men “are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” Whether one believes that man is the product of a Creator or of nature, the issue of man’s origin does not alter the fact that he is an entity of a specific kind—a rational being—that he cannot function successfully under coercion, and that rights are a necessary condition of his particular mode of survival." Ayn Rand - Man's Rights
An atheist, and she did not argue that rights come from man. She states that they are a fact of nature.
"But where does nature come from?" "But where does God come from?" - Here we go. ;-)
Speaking of nature, the following is a good essay and should explain why it is wrong to call Rand an libertarian... The Nature of Government
If you all agree that the initiation of physical force is wrong, then you all have something in common.
What is H E double hockey sticks?
You cannot find the words “Separation of Church and State” in any of the founding documents.
Freedom of religion and not freedom from religion.
The initiation of physical force. Who was the initiator again?
I think you can be politically conservative and an atheist.
I don’t think we need to do anything special to court atheists.
Conservatism makes sense. Liberalism doesn’t. An intellectually honest atheist would be conservative.
Unfortunately, the government tells us what our rights are. You and I have more in common than you probably realize when it comes to putting individual rights at a higher priority than the rights of a government. And by the way, I personally want no authority over anyone.
The movement or philosophy that I follow is written in the Bible. There are a few things -- very few -- written in the Bible that should pertain to society. These things were mostly considered by our founding fathers. The rest of what is in the Bible is between me and God. I share it (or better put, explain it) with others when asked. But I could never force the Biblical spiritual movement or philosophy on anyone. It doesn't work by force.
That problem has always been, when someone else says, "I do not wish to associate with X." X being the pot-head, the drunk, the sexual deviant, etc. It is one thing for you to sit in your home and ruin your life, it is quite another for you to enter another man's neighborhood, home, or business.
It is then that the argument goes from, "You can't tell me what I can or cannot do," to, "I'm telling you what you can or cannot do," bringing the litany of "discrimination" laws. You must accept potheads, you must accept drunks, you must accept perverts, and if you don't, you will be in trouble.
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