Posted on 09/24/2008 9:09:48 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Pentecostals number between 10-30 million in the United States depending on how you define the term and make up one quarter of all Christians worldwide. They are a subset of the larger evangelical movement that numbers about 102 million people in the United States. ABC News recently published this article on the type of churches Sarah Palin has attended at one time or anther.
What Does Palin’s Faith Mean For US?
As America gets a crash course in Sarah Palin, the question has been raised of how her two decades as a member of the Assemblies of God church in Wasilla has shaped her personality. If elected, Sarah Palin would become the most powerful Pentecostal in U.S. history. So how has this church shaped her as a leader?
Shaped her personality? You’ll never hear that asked of Barack Obama after sitting under the spiritual mentorship of the good Rev. Wright for twenty-three years.
What is interesting about this is that my father (a minister now for forty years) was an Assemblies of God pastor for seven years and was also a pastor for many years with Church on the Rock International. That is the ‘non-denominational’ church referred to in the article that Sarah Palin now attends. Church on the Rock is an association of churches, not a denomination, so they can technically be spoken of as ‘non-denominational’.
My maternal grandfather (a minister, pastor, and preacher for some sixty years) was also an Assemblies of God pastor for many of those years and then later was an ordained minister with the Independent Assemblies of God for about the last twenty-five years of his life. My great-grandfather and step great-grandfather were also Assembly of God pastors.
I guess all of that makes Sarah Palin one of “my people”. I can safely say that I have far more insight into the personal theology, belief system and Christian world view of Governor Sarah Palin than the entire staff of ABC News could ever hope to have.
Despite the sensationalism in the ABC article, the Assemblies are actually considered pretty mild and tame for “Pentecostals” and I wouldn’t have the slightest trepidation of putting someone with that belief system in a position of authority. If anything, a few more people who strive to be honest, moral, and forthright and who have humbled themselves before God might be just the thing our increasingly corrupt system of government needs.
What ABC is trying to say is that since Sarah Palin is a Bible believing Christian that somehow makes her scary, or dangerous or ‘other’ and therefore she should be rejected in favor of the secularist who attended a radical, black liberation theology church and whose pastor, and Obama’s spiritual mentor for most of his adult life, is known for his anti-white, anti-American and pro-terrorist stances, rants and raves. This also means that Palin is probably not a “baby-whacker” or willing to personally officiate at lesbian weddings, obviously making her ‘not a feminist’ and her and her family worthy only of being the subject of unending slander, character assassination and rumormongering.
Sounds fair, doesn’t it? I absolutely detest the media. It is sad to see a nation that has now apparently declared secularism to be its national religion while rejecting, ridiculing and mocking the Faith that this nation and its concepts and laws was founded upon. The road is not always an easy one for those who have chosen to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Behind all of the smears of Governor Palin’s religion and Christians in general is the accusation that they are not “open minded”. I believe we should all be “open minded” in all things. But that has nothing to do with swallowing whole anything and everything presented to us without at least exercising a semblance of personal judgment, logic, common sense and principle. Suspending all notions of judgment and right and wrong is not synonymous with ‘tolerance’ or ideological maturity, but merely an amoral, easy way out where there is no right and wrong, only different. There is still a place for morals and values, principle and self-restraint, personal responsibility and self-control, as well as respect for yourself and for God.
Refusing to embrace the sudden, faddish redefinition of marriage, utopian socialism or sex education for kindergartners or cheerleading promiscuity and worshipping the creation instead of the Creator is hardly “pushing your religion” on everyone else. It certainly isn’t ‘scary’ and cause enough for the shapers of public opinion to resort to wailing and gnashing of teeth because a possible Pentecostal is running for high office.
Not advocating decadence and cultural pollution should not be a cause for suspicion, innuendos or sly media hit pieces but for praise, encouragement and admiration. We should thank those who are worked to preserve principle and decency no matter which way the winds of political popularity or public opinion may be blowing. Believing in Christ and traditional Judeo-Christian values is not a badge of shame, but should be a badge of honor in a world that increasingly calls good evil and evil good. If anything, it is the religion of secularism that is insisting on pushing its own twisted agenda and “values” (or lack thereof) on the American people.
I wonder why we never hear horror stories about Bammie and his religion.
Did anyone see the remake of “Cape Fear”? They literally made the villain a pentacostal superhuman monster. I thought it was one of the best horror movies I’ve ever seen (which isn’t saying much), until the current pulled it under at the end when DeNiro started talking to God and speaking in tongues.
We handed it over to the Feminists like Ms. Palin.
I would like to see ABC run such a series on the religion of Barack Obama. Dig into the churches he has attended, and let us know how those churches and denominations have shaped him and his world view.
If we’re saying that we should be concerned about a candidate’s religious beliefs and church attendance, then we also need to look into Obama’s religion. We need to go back to the Trinity Church and talk about what their ideology is. Fair is fair, isn’t it, Charlie Gibson and ABC News?????????
“I wonder why we never hear horror stories about Bammie and his religion.”
Because Obama’s religion is Marxist. I know, it’s confusing, considering Marx hated religion. But the apostles shard all their property, don’t you know. And Jesus was a commie; he gave wine and fish away for free.
Watch the original, way scarier.
I didn't think that counted if you personally chose to give away the results of your work on your own volition. ;)
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
This is what happened to our country:
http://www.uhuh.com/nwo/communism/comgoals.htm
We must continue to fight the Red.
I wonder why we have never heard the press talking about the religion (if any) of Dodd, Frank, Hagel etc etc. They didn’t seem too concerned about Clinton’s religion.
“I didn’t think that counted if you personally chose to give away the results of your work on your own volition. ;)”
The Bible story is a reactionary cover-up. Recent historical research has discovered that Jesus and his band of community organizers mounted a protest against the price-gouging of local fishmongers and wineries. A class action lawsuit was settled out of court when the lawyers for the defendents agreed to give away fish and wine for a day.
Shoot, even if they weren't mild and tame, I'd rather have a snake-handler in office than an atheistic secularist. So long as they have access to medical care, of course.
I’m voting for Sarah!
Are you for or against SP ?
Because I find your comment disgusting.
Huh? Please explain to us what that means?
Very good read, thanks for posting it.
Feminism is Socialism. In 1960 we didn’t have Feminism.
You asked.
You don’t remember Rev. Jeremiah Wright?
Heh heh heh. I do. The “national media” doesn’t.
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