Posted on 12/15/2004 11:31:58 AM PST by reagankid
I had the recent displeasure of appearing before the local chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, many if not most of whose members appeared to me to be committed atheists.
The forum was supposed to consider "A candidate's religion. When does it matter?" But the discussion quickly disintegrated into an ugly attack on religion by the godless majority in the room.
By the time the evening was over, I knew how the Christians felt when they were fed to the lions.
Now, I'm no holy roller. I do not expect everyone to share my religious faith. I respect the right of others not to believe in a supreme being.
But what offends me is the contempt that the atheist minority has for the overwhelming majority of us who do believe in God. What angers me is that the atheist minority is waging an unholy war against God, against religion, in communities throughout the once-fair land.
Indeed, California, the modern day Babylon, is ground zero in the war on religion.
In San Diego, for instance, atheists are trying to remove a cross that has stood atop publicly owned Mount Soledad for a half-century, a memorial to those who fought in this nation's service in the two World Wars and the Korean War.
The next thing we know, the ungodly element will demand that crosses and other religious symbols be removed from the graves of the war dead buried at military cemeteries in San Diego administered by the federal government.
Meanwhile, up the road in Los Angeles, the county's Board of Supervisors voted recently to remove a tiny cross from the county seal. The supervisors just didn't think it appropriate for the government to officially endorse religion.
Of course, if they follow their all-too-politically-correct thinking to its illogical conclusion, then they need to change the name of the county. For the reference to "Angeles" obviously has religious overtones.
Then there's the Sacramento atheist who sued the Elk Grove Unified School District on grounds that it was imposing religion upon his daughter (to which he had no custody rights) by having students recite the Pledge of Allegiance, including the phrase, "One nation under God."
It so happens that the same litigious atheist had previously pursued an unsuccessful lawsuit seeking to have the phrase "in God we trust" removed from the nation's currency.
The Christmas season brings out the very worst in the atheist element and their unholy allies, like Americans United for Separation of Church and State, like the American Civil Liberties Union.
Not only have they bullied public entities into forgoing Christmas trees, banning nativity scenes, eschewing Christmas carols, they have made similar anti-Christmas inroads with private entities.
Indeed, Target is not allowing the Salvation Army to set up outside its stores this holiday season. Nor will it allow any references to Christmas in its stores.
Well, they'll never get another dollar from yours truly. And neither will Sears and other retailers who've chosen to side with the anti-Christian minority in this country over the 85 percent of us, according to polls, who consider ourselves Christians.
And the hostility to Christianity, the antipathy for Christmas, is not confined to the merchant community. It also is rampant throughout the popular culture.
Indeed, once again this year, Time and Newsweek have featured Christmas-themed cover stories (which are always among their best-selling issues).
But the covers are just a facade. Go on the Internet. Download the Newsweek Christmas story (it will appear on MSNBC's Web site). Scroll to the bottom of the article headlined: "Religion: The Birth of Jesus."
That's where you'll see what the editors and writers really think about the Christmas story, about Christianity in general. Page 4: "An Outlandish Message." Page 6: "Dubious on Almost Every Score." Page 7: "A Religion of Perplexing Contradictions."
It's the same thing in Hollywood. The studios no longer make movies like "King of Kings," the "Greatest Story Ever Told" or "Jesus of Nazareth."
Instead, they make films like "Dogma," in which Jesus is sacrilegiously portrayed as some sort of cartoonish figure – "Buddy Christ" – winking and giving a Bill Clinton-like thumbs-up.
I accept that a minority of Americans do not believe that Jesus was the son of the God. I accept that a smaller minority of Americans do not believe in God, period.
All I ask is that nonbelievers stop trying to impose their will upon the majority of us who believe, as the Apostle John wrote two millennia ago, that "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Perkins can be reached via e-mail at joseph.perkins@uniontrib.com.
AMEN!
> I knew how the Christians felt when they were fed to the lions.
Wow. What a hero. What a selfless martyr. He sat through a meeting with people who disagreed with him.
The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God "They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds;There is no one who does good.
I agree. I think it took a little more guts to be a Christian in the Roman Empire in the first century.
One of the things that has always for me pointed to the fact that Jesus is Lord and God was the reaction I would see from unbelievers. It was just further evidence of how much power there was in His name, the very mention of His name and people would become infuriated. I was naive and child like in my faith when I was young, just embraced it simply, no scripture was quoted, no theological discussions, just the mention that I loved Him and it would cause people to fume and get all bent out of shape. I remember hearing how even the demons would tremble at the mention of His name, so to me is was just further evidence that, indeed He had to be, must be, and surely WAS the Lord of the Universe.
In contrast, I wish you abundance of joy in celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ this season.
Merry Christmas!
What do you expect at a meeting of 'Americans United for Separation of Church and State'??
May the Lord bless you and your family throughout these difficult times we live in.
How true ...good point.
He told us "we would be hated because they hate Him". When I hear some hatred pointed towards Christians or myself, I point out that their hatred is towards Jesus and that that is anti Christ.
...and your point is??
It sounded like you were surprised to meet opposition.
I can handle it if someone gets angry about it, but what truly gets to me is the ridicule.
I did not attend the seminar nor did I write the article.
OK, in that case, what did the author expect?
> It was just further evidence of how much power there was in His name, the very mention of His name and people would become infuriated.
Which name... Allah? Mention that, people go nuts.
We need to stand up all across the country and DEMAND that the governments STOP UNCONSTITUITIONALlY PROMOTING THE RELIGION OF ATHEISM, to the total exclusion of Christianity!
> I think it took a little more guts to be a Christian in the Roman Empire in the first century.
And imagine how much guts it took to be a pagan in the Holy Roman Empire. Would I have had the courage of Raud the Strong, Eyvind Kinnrifi, Oliver the Martyr, Gudrod of Gudbrandsdal, Thorleif the Wise, Iron Skegge? I often doubt it.
Although being a Christian or Jew in Saudi Arabia today wouldn't be much fun either!
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