The film, Religulous, opens on Friday all across America. No doubt, the Fundamentalists, panties tied in knots, will be boycotting, praying and demonstrating in front of theaters. How dare Bill Maher make a move about religion! What about the principle of separation of Church and Humor?
Funny stuff; always funny when those oh-so righteous fundamentalist Christians begin to speak [in forked tongues].
The humor quickly fades, however, when these righteous folks begin to mix their religious beliefs with politics. They stubbornly and unabashedly believe that they have every right to drop their load of dung into the political pool, noting some mysterious 'higher authority' to do so. Even more hilarious [if dung can be categorized as such] is the fact that many believe that this nation was founded on 'Judeo-Christian' principles. Historical accuracy is not an important trait with the religious-right.
In 2004, Ohio was the victim of their zealous ploy with the help of fellow Republican and 'social conservative' Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell. Blackwell played a dual role in that election, officially as Chief Elections Official of Ohio as well as honorary co-chair of the "Committee to re-elect George W. Bush".
Blackwell was charged with allegations of conflict of interest and voter disenfranchisement which led to the filing of sixteen related lawsuits naming Blackwell. The Bush/Cheney ticket owes its existence to Kenneth Blackwell and his skulduggery.
As I posted a week ago, many evangelical churches throughout America openly preached the support of John McCain in open defiance of IRS regulations. To be sure, these Ohio Evangelicals will be at the polls this November. At least this time around, they won't have an active 'friend' in the Secretary of State's office as they did 4 years ago.
Jesus doesn't belong in the polling place. Deuteronomy and the string of 'abominations' do not belong in the Constitution nor on state law books. Were zealots like these fundamentalists to have their own way, American law and culture would become that of the Sadducees-a strict interpretation of Mosaic Law. What I find most interesting and ironic is the fact that Jesus himself often quarreled and debated these Sadducees, trying to make them understand a more flexible, less strict interpretation of those harsh laws. Odd how that today's Evangelical Christians reflect the Sadducees' point of view rather than the reflections of Jesus.
Freedom from religion is what the Constitution demands. A worthy mandate given the history of the world and most especially, Europe . Keep Christ in Church where he belongs.
