Burning Bridges Over Glenn Beck

ReviewAtlas.com ^ | September 1, 2010 | Jim Bennett

[greyfoxx39]

I’ve entitled this column “Burning Bridges over Beck” only because the original title, “How to Lose Conservative Friends and Alienate Readers While Drawing a Line in the Sand on the Banks of the Rubicon” was, as the Mrs. put it, “a bit verbose.”          
Let’s get down to it.

Glenn Beck is an influential figure; no one can deny that he has made considerable advances for the conservative movement.

I have never watched his television program, so most of what I know about him I have learned by watching the response to him. That response is very impressive.
The rally in Washington this past weekend proved that he certainly has a unique gift for inspiring and mobilizing people. It is a gift I envy.

I also have to admit that the hilarious fits of sputtering, frothy-mouthed panic that he invariably elicits from the Left have brought me many a chuckle. I appreciate him for that too.

I clearly can’t deny that he is one of the most efficacious figures among Conservatives. Something has happened of late, though, and it’s something that concerns me deeply. Glenn Beck is increasingly holding himself out as a religious figure. Now, I happen to be someone who treasures my own freedom to express my spiritual beliefs in the public realm, so I celebrate his own right to do the same. This is America, so by all means have at it, sir.

But my concern is for my Evangelical brethren who not only accept him as a political spokesperson but ALSO embrace him as a legitimate Christian leader. Glenn Beck must not be given such legitimacy among such a people. As a Mormon, he is an adherent to teachings that fly wildly in the face of Biblical Christian orthodoxy.

This, however, is but a symptom. The diagnosis is a particularly virulent strain of Spiritual Discernment Deficiency. Though it affects only one demographic – Christians who should know better — it has three causes.

The first cause is biblical illiteracy. Modern American believers have little knowledge of the scriptures, ergo they have no understanding of the vast doctrinal chasm that separates what the Bible teaches from what Mormons believe. Of course, the LDS (Latter-day Saints) juggernaut is more than happy to help that along through a remarkable public relations effort aimed at presenting themselves as just one of several “Christian” denominations. Even the most cursory comparison of Mormonism to the Bible, however, shows that this could not possibly be the case. The LDS Church preaches a different Christ, a different scripture and a different church.

The second cause is patriotic idolatry. Informed patriotism and ardor for conservative political activism are both fine ideals in my book, ideals to which I myself aspire. Yet when our passion for these begins to rival our zeal for the purity of the Gospel, then we have lost our way. If Evangelicals accept Glenn Beck as a spiritual leader because of the perceived “good he is doing for this country,” then the line which divides things spiritual and eternal from things earthly and temporal has been dangerously compromised.

Believer, ask yourself: Are you first a citizen of Heaven or are you first a citizen of this republic?

The third cause of this Spiritual Discernment Deficiency is religio-political pragmatism. Many conservative Christ-followers so want to excoriate President Obama as a Christian poseur that they’re willing to exalt Glenn Beck as a Christian paragon by default. I don’t presume to judge the heart of either man, but the followers of Jesus Christ should be every bit as skeptical of the heretical pronouncements of Beck’s Mormon “prophets” as they are of the Marxist liberation theology taught to President Obama by his chosen mentors, Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Father Michael Phleger.

I pray for President Obama. I also pray for Glenn Beck.

That’s the diagnosis. But what’s the prescription? First, read your Bible every day and seek the Holy Spirit’s counsel in this and all things. Know what you believe and why you believe it. Accept the Bible as authoritative. Second, you may also want to pick up a copy of "When Salt Lake City Calls," an eye-opening book by Rocky Hulse, and visit Steve Dealy, the missionary who directs the Christian Visitors Center in Nauvoo.

Some will undoubtedly conclude that I’m only giving liberals what they want most: Right-wing infighting. Perhaps I am, but Beck abandoned Social Conservatives like me with his recent announcement that he has “bigger fish to fry” than speaking out on “culture war” issues like so-called same-sex marriage. In a stunning display of short-sightedness, he quoted Thomas Jefferson: “If it neither breaks my leg nor picks my pocket, what difference is it to me?”

Great googly-moogly.

[glorgau]

+2

[Joe 6-pack]

"Watch the show a few times—give up an hour or two—then judge. the old anti-Mormonism used to take down Mitt Romney will not work with Beck. He is a different kind of person."

I would if I had a TV. As it is, I listen to his radio show daily, and have read most of Beck's books. I think I have pretty good bead on where he's coming from.

[caww]

I surely noticed the opening prayer being posed to ‘gods’?
In fact I made a point to listen more carefully to see if indeed I had heard rightly...I did and was very concerned...who are the Gods they were calling on?...The Islam God...the LDS Gods....just who.

This was more than disturbing but I truly don't think many picked up on this...but it is apparent. Unfortunately when people get together in mass as this, the feel good element can override the actual words being spoken for most have already been geared up for a “great experience”.

[MozarkDawg]

"noticed the opening prayer being posed to 'gods'? Watching the taped replay it is much more obvious"

---

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47V-dpiLM78&feature=related

That is not what I heard and I have replayed and replayed.

People are getting all bent out of shape for no reason whatsover. An earlier thread implied that it was GLENN who was offering prayer to gods when in fact the prayer is offered by Pastor Paul Jayle (sp?), the direct descendent of those who came over on the Mayflower.

What people are hearing and misinterpreting as gods is no more than the mic and the manner the man speaks, preaches. Please, folks, try listening to this with an objective and not the suspicious ear, the man is calling to God each and every time he says His name, it is simply slurring and the mic emphasizing it. It sounds much more like Godtz than gods, it stretches out in a couple of spots. You can tell for certain that my interpretation is correct and that you truly have no reason to infer or believe the man was praying to gods if you only listen to how he pronounces "the shedding of innocent bloodtz" -- the "d" ending pronounced in exactly the same manner as the "d" ending of God. Relax here, I really cannot ask it any more strenuously please.

[MozarkDawg]

What really concerns me is a “religious” comedian he had on his show tonight who was making jokes about scaring kids and watching them “Pee themselves” or some other equally charming phrase. Yeah, I get that it was supposed to be funny. It wasn’t. It was disgusting. And even though I’m just starting to peek at Glenn, I was somehow mortified to see him smiling at it.

As one who suffers from disfigurment that has caused fright from children myself, I can tell you that this was the man's method of mocking HIMSELF. He does not truly scare them at all, he's joking about how it feels to have a small child look upon your physical self and exhibit horror ... the first time it happens, you are hurt and scared your own self. I can assure you Dave does NOT say "Boo!" and send children off running when they look at him in fear. Glenn and the rest of those in attendence that night knew full well what was going on, I'm very sorry you could not comprehend this from the little bit you saw -- perhaps you missed the detail on just who Dave is and how his visage came to be the way it is today.

[MozarkDawg]

He sets himself up as a “religious leader”, not I.

No, he sets himself up as acknowledging he has a public platform, a microphone and uses it to ask people of all faiths to return to God in order to save our country. He is not a leader, he is not asking anyone to follow him. He is not telling people to ask that God be on their side, he is in fact begging people to be on God's side.

[Tennessee Nana]

Maybe from the intelligence of your higher life form than us mere mortal humans, you can explain who “King Benjamin” was ???

Glenn Beck did intentionally mention this mythical character...

and even the mormon blogs have it recorded and commented on...

Since there is no King Benjamin in the Christian Bible how are the attendees and other hearers of the Glenn Beck religious sermon to interpret this ???

There is no “d” at the end of King Benjamin to guide us ...

On this one how can we “tell for certain that (your) interpretation is correct and that (we) truly have no reason to infer” Beck was pushing unBiblical mormon beliefs onto us ???

Enlighten us O interpreting genius

[RnMomof7]

He actually does TEACH mormonism on his show,and my greatest concern is he does not identify it but teaches it as actual historic truth

[MozarkDawg]

He often speaks of the US Constitution as if it were divinely inspired and the Founding Fathers as if they were prophets from God.

You completely misinterpret what Glenn expounds on -- when Jefferson wrote "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor" did you think he meant that it was all happenstance or that those men came up with their ideas and ideals all by themselves?

[RnMomof7]

I too watch Beck regularly , I love it when he beats up the liberal with humor

BUT the more I watch the more concern I have for this faux religious revival .

Mormonism is neatly woven into history..and history itself is a bit bent ad twisted..Whitfield has nothing t do with the constitution..he is no where near a “founder”

[MozarkDawg]

On this one how can we “tell for certain that (your) interpretation is correct and that (we) truly have no reason to infer” Beck was pushing unBiblical mormon beliefs onto us ???

Since other people are reading this, I will actually post a reply to your constantly nasty and sarcastic self -- as one who purports to be of some kind of Christian belief, you surely do not demonstrate it in any way, shape or form on these threads.

My simple answe to you is that BECK is not the one offering the prayer with the mispronunciantion you and the rest seem to think you hear. I repeat again, only listen to how another word with a "d" ending is heard with his manner of preaching and the microphone.

Last reply you EVER get from me, regardless. I hope other FReepers will understand and recognize why.

[Tennessee Nana]

your constantly nasty and sarcastic self
___________________________________________________

WOW

Toss a stone over a fence indeed...

However kid my post was not about the d in god...

It was about the fact (and it must be a fact since mormons themselves have commented on it and not just us supposed hard of hearing Christians)

the fact that Beck mentioned a King Benjamin who is not mentioned in the Christian bible but is in Jey Smith’s fiction he called the book of mormon...

Is there some reason why you will not comment on King Benjamin but instead choose to malign me ???

I’m merely the messenger...I dont like to fall on any swords...

And “other FReepers will understand and recognize why” you wont reply...

Just as I do...

What is there to say about an imaginary character formed in the conniving anti-Biblical mind of Joey Smith and picked up and believed by the deceived mind of Glenn Beck ???

[BlueMoose]

This is "scenario fulfillment ".

When someone sees or hears what what he/she expects to see/hear.

A person thinks they see/hear if it agrees with their pre-existing ideas.

[Tennessee Nana]

A person thinks they see/hear if it agrees with their pre-existing ideas.
_______________________________________

Like Joey Smith did when he was 17, or was it 16 or was it 15...

Lets go for 14...

[Religion Moderator]

Do not make this thread "about" individual Freepers. That is also a form of "making it personal."

Discuss the issues all you want, but do not make it personal.

[MozarkDawg]

Duly noted — it was the snide tone in refernce to myself that baited me into responding as I did. I assure you, it shall not happen again.

[Tennessee Nana]

Wheres a mention of the Christian leaders who were around the American Revolution ???

Or those during Joey Smiths time ???

Too much warning against mormonism and/or the tenets of mormonism for Becks taste ???

Joey Smith never lauded the Christian ministers of his time...had denounced them all...

BTW Heres an interesting bit about a contempory of Joey Smiths,... Charles Finney (1792-1875)...

Charles Finney was converted to Christianity in Adams, Jefferson County, NY in 1821 when Joey Smith was 15 Adams was only about 100 miles from Palmyra and Finney preached all over that western NY area. News of Finney would have reached the Smith household. BTW Finney was a Presbyterian

Finneys story was well known there is a suggestion that Joey Smith stole parts of it for himself....Finney went into the woods to seek God...Hmmmmmmmmmmmm Maybe Joey Smiths confusion about his age at the time was merely a lack of knowing what year Finney had his “grove” experience.. It was 1821, Joey...

http://www.matthew548.com/Finney3.html

Finney (1792-1875) was a third degree Master Mason, but he left Freemasonry in 1824.. “I soon found that I was completely converted from Freemasonry to Christ, and that I could have no fellowship with any of the proceedings of the lodge, Its oaths appeared to me to be monstrously profane and barbarous.” (Hankins, Barry, The Second Great Awakening and the Transcendentalists, 2004)

He personally felt that he had been deceived into making an oath that conflicted with Christianity in that he had been promised that Freemasonry would not conflict with his religious or civil obligation. In his estimation, the oath of Master Mason did conflict with those obligations (Garth Rosell and Richard Dupuis, eds, The Memoirs of Charles G. Finney, The Complete Restored Text, 1989)

WOW pity Joey Smith had not got up to that page in his plagiarism...

Beck quotes American writers why not Mark Twain...

Twains Roughing it comes to mind...

And the conservative politicians of that time...

Beck lauds Abraham Lincoln now but the mormons during the 1850-60s didnt..

The 1856 platform of the new Republican Party felt the tenets of mormonism were as bad as slavery...

they called slavery and polygamy the “twin towers of barbarism”

If it wasnt for the Civil War, Lincoln would have sent in the US Army to arrest them for unlawful habitation as well as murder, robbery, cattle rustling and rioting and declaring war on the US government...

and then there was that murder attempt on Gov Boggs...

Oh noez...

[MHGinTN]

Did you listen to the pronunciation of God at point 6:43 in the prayer, the clear "d" ending, then contrast that to what follows in most pronunciations of God after that point? ... not all but most after 6:43.

You are proving your own assertion regarding hearing what you want or not hearing what you don't want to hear.

Elsie, do you know the hmtl coding to use when posting a peice of video so it plays on the thread? It might help these folks to hear the real video recording rather than have just the spin.

[DaughterofEve]

Thanks for responding thoughtfully.I hear what you’re saying, and of course I never thought the guy went around doing those things! I thought the first part of his joke was funny, i.e., “it doesn’t help when I go (scary noise )”...I just thought the followup “joke” was vulgar, past the limits on a show promoting Godliness. “Put away perversity from your mouth”, etc. Decades of classic humor have been produced without such references.
That’s all, folks!

[MozarkDawg]

I appreciate your reply as well, and will add that I understand what you’re feeling about the vulgarity, how that would come across, yes, especially at that particular kind of event. Thank you for your further comment.