It's tragic that so many of our Congressmen and women are Christians. It really is. Because if they weren't Christians, there would at least be some political excuse for why so many of our Christian Republican Congresspeople are refusing to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and find shelter for the poor.
They are Christians though, or so they tell us. If they weren't Christians then they probably wouldn't have been elected because Americans insist that Johnny and Jane Politic are best friends with Jesus. If Johnny Politic weren't a Christian, then he would have no moral compass or ethical barometer. His lack of morality would lead the country to rack and ruin, leaving churches penniless and houses of ill repute full of aimless charlatans.
Thankfully that hasn't happened. Johnny and Jane Politic have kept the churches stacked with cash and the bellies of the poor empty. Yup, just like Jesus would have wanted.
Our Christian Congresspeople must be reading a different Bible than I, probably an abridged version -- the one that leaves out the parable of the Rich Merchant and the Rich Man (Luke 12:13-21; Matthew 19:24), the Woman with Two Coins (Mark 12:41-44), the Beatitudes (Matthew 5), and the passage that tell us where we can find Jesus amongst us (Matthew 25:31-36) It would seem that our Christian Republican Congresspeople are doing everything they can to make sure Baby Jesus cries.
It's fucking ridiculous.
The awkward thing with American politics that in order to be in office, you must be a Christian. Being a Christian is like an E-Z Pass for morality. It lets everyone at the gate know that you've passed the morals and ethics examine. You've got Jesus on your side so there's no way you would do something morally reprehensible, such as taking $30 billion away from feeding the poor or stonewalling legislation that would give millions access to basic and affordable health care. Because doing something like that would assume that you have some sort of callous towards the well being of others. It would suggest that they are a little hazy about what morality might be. It would suggest that our good Christian Congressmen and Congresswomen actually have no idea what Jesus preached or who Jesus spent all of his time with or who Jesus saw himself as(again, see Matthew 25:31-36; or, the Gospel message in general).
But our Republican Congresspeople are "good" Christians; the ones who would never want to see the Baby Jesus cry. Why then does it seem that they are trying their damnedest to make it hell on earth for the poor and oppressed in our society? More importantly, why is this perceived to be the good Christian thing to do? What happened to the Christian theology and the popular Christian leader who condemned greed, avarice, and power-mongering? Why is it that this liberal, Christian-agnostic (that's me if you're wondering) and every other liberal Christian and/or liberal atheist/agnostic that I know, seem more Christ-like in our attitudes towards the poor, hungry, naked than our elected Republican officials who, given the chance, remind us how much they love, respect, and need Jesus? It's runs completely counter to the popular understanding of who is and isn't moral in our society.
The least of these in our society -- the ones Jesus told us to love the most -- are seeing more fists than they ever see open hands. They are maligned, ignored, and blamed for every one of our problems. This needs to change.
It's time we start re-examining our theology and its role in politics. Popular Christianity in America has sadly become the perfect example of how not to follow Christ. Is it any wonder then that Christianity is dwindling in our society? I mean, really: who wants to be associated with the group of people who are the ostensible perpetrators of the most immoral political maneuvers this side of Watergate?
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If you're more upset that I used the word "fuck" or that I am Christian-agnostic than you are about the fact that people are literally starving to death in America, then you definitely need to re-evaluate your priorities.