Egalitarianism is a trend of thought that favors equality for all people. Egalitarian doctrines maintain that all humans are equal in fundamental worth or social status, and although there was always a wealthy elite class living in luxury and a disenfranchised class living in poverty, between the end of World War II and the early 1980s, America was on its way to becoming closer to an egalitarian society than at any time in its history. All that ended with the election of B-movie actor Ronald Reagan in 1980 that began America’s march away from egalitarianism and on a path toward oligarchy that, thirty-three years later, is reaching fruition due to Republicans’ success at convincing the masses to give up all their possessions to the rich to get on the path to prosperity.
Crucial to Reagan’s insane trickle down economic theory was the so-called “moral majority” Christian movement whose support continues to enable the Republican transfer of wealth from the poor and middle class to the richest Americans. It is doubtful that what Americans regard as Christians, either then or today, have any knowledge of Jesus Christ’s teachings regarding the rich having no chance of entering the kingdom of heaven, or that he instructed the rich to sell all their possessions and give the proceeds to the poor. If today’s so-called “followers of Christ” had paid attention in Sunday School or read a few verses in three of the Christian bible’s “Gospel Accounts,” so-called Christians would reject Republicans if for no other reason than their preferential treatment of the very people Christ said had about as much hope of getting into Heaven as a camel passing through the eye of a needle.
It is now standard conservative policy for Republicans to condemn Americans as greedy and envious for the mortal sin of expecting to keep what little they have, and over the past five years particularly expect Americans to worship and pay tribute to the rich by giving up basic necessities of life. Jesus never instructed his disciples, and there is nothing in the Gospels, remotely resembling Jesus Christ instructing anyone to revere the rich or kiss the ground they walk on, but Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association thinks that is what Jesus wanted and counselled Americans receiving government services to “kiss the ground beneath the feet of the one percent.”
Fischer, as director of Issues Analysis for the extremist Christian American Family Association (AFA), said on two weeks ago that people who used welfare and other government services needed to “kiss the ground beneath the richest 1 percent of Americans.” Fischer also said Americans who paid into Social Security retirement and Medicare throughout their working lives had no right to collect, or expect to collect, on their benefits when they retire. According to the “follower of Christ,” Americans are laboring under a “myth” that they had a right to collect on their so-called “entitlements” or “earned government benefits” he claimed were socialism.
Fischer, ever the good Christian, scolded the poor and middle class and explained that “rather than the poor, the low income and the middle class being resentful of these rich people, they should be kissing the ground on which they walk! They ought to be given ticker-tape parades once a week in all of our major cities to thank them for funding welfare for everybody.” However, Fischer’s blasphemy against Jesus Christ and apostasy against his teachings did not stop with demanding that the 99% fall down and prostate themselves before the rich. He also railed against the government and “the involuntary transfer of wealth through taxation” he asserted “makes us a socialist country. This is Marxism on display.” In 2012, another Christian extremist, mega-church preacher Rick Warren, said via Twitter that “HALF of America pays NO taxes. Zero, so they’re happy for tax rates to be raised on the other half that DOES pay taxes.” Jesus likely wept.
According to Fischer who adheres to Republican conservatism as if it is a religion, President Obama is guilty of using the Internal Revenue service to “go after the 1 percent;” a claim Republicans imply by defending income inequality and protecting the rich from any tax reform. Fischer and Warren can bemoan and label taxation whatever their bastardized Christianity informs them, but Jesus commanded his followers to “render unto Caesar what is Caesars,” and their Christian bible says “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. Whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.” Even a half-wit bible-thumper from the bible belt can comprehend those simple directions and that Jesus commanded the rich to sell all their possession and give to the poor; instructions that are contrary to conservative Christian ideology demanding the rich be held up as idols.
The state of the conservative movement, and increasingly the Christian conservative movement, has become a religious testament to oligarchy and the philosophy that the masses exist to serve the rich; including giving them all their possessions. Republicans have become so blatantly pro-one-percent that despite their weeping and gnashing of teeth over “crushing deficits” for the past five years, that they had the temerity to blatantly and without apology pass an unfunded $310 billion tax cut for the rich and corporations to increase the deficit they claim is an affront to “our children and grandchildren’s economic future.”
Like the so-called Christian right, Republicans are not even couching their idolatry of the rich and hatred of the poor and middle class they claim are greedy and envious for objecting to conservatives taking from the poor to enrich the wealthy that is the new Christian conservatism. One wonders how long it will be until the Christian conservative movement joins with Republicans to support a law mandating “the poor, low-income, and middle class” fall to their knees, prostrate themselves to the ground, and “kiss the ground beneath the one percent.” At the rate America is rushing toward oligarchy as theocracy, refusing to worship the rich will be akin to apostasy.
Audio engineer and instructor for SAE. Writes op/ed commentary supporting Secular Humanist causes, and exposing suppression of women, the poor, and minorities. An advocate for freedom of religion and particularly, freedom of NO religion.
Born in the South, raised in the Mid-West and California for a well-rounded view of America; it doesn’t look good.
Former minister, lifelong musician, Mahayana Zen-Buddhist.
Jesus said it would be easier for a camel to go through an eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it into The Kingdom of Heaven.
He also thought Sarah Palin’s “joke” about waterboarding as baptism was funny. These Christians demean their own religion worse than most non-Christians ever thought of. If he can’t even respect his own God’s words or holy sacrament, that’s bad. It pisses me off that they want us all to live by their beliefs when they can’t even manage it themselves.
Funny how the New Testament directives are ignored by the religious right. Act, Matthew, Luke all direct the wealthy to sell their goods – all their goods – and give to the poor. Even in the Old Testament that the fundamentalists prefer since it’s tribal, bloody, and doesn’t ask much of them, there are directives mandating economic justice and workers’ rights.
Nowhere does the Bible tell anyone to revere the rich just because they are rich. Only when they are compassionate, kind, and just do they deserve acknowledgement at all.
Too bad the faux Christians don’t know a damned thing about their own faith.
Despite what he says, the man is NOT a Christian, period, end of sentence.
That worked so well in Romania……
What we have here is a monarchy. He wants to be part of the nobility.
The far right has sworn allegiance to the King of Saudi Arabia, in return for the privilege of making us all their underlings and serfs. They get to play Lords and Ladies, we get to admire them. We are the subjects of a oligarchy which bends the knee to their Emperor of oil and wealth.
We kicked England out of her colony for less. But we’re right back under the heel of the leeches.
The worst thing about this is that the Right “uses” the religious cloak as an excuse for their warped agenda. Very, very sacrilegious. They are full of malfeasance and just plain evil people full of hate.
Right wingers are full of s**t, all of the time. I have my mind made up to put them in a box and tape it shut. I don’t even want to hear it, it’s all a crock to deflect on how unschooled they are in the laws of life, in every manner, because if everything is that bad they need to roll up the sidewalk and go home…
Ohy..?
as a commiefornian, who is a union thug, i had to work in so fla the past few weeks. we were in a town with one of these mega churches, it must have held at least 3000, and it was filled to the brim, with fake xtians. if these goobers really wanted to walk in christ’s steps, the first thing would be to cast out these fake golden calve temples, and wash the feet of the poor. but as we know the koch heads only like a few lines of their manual the ‘bible’ and think the rest is just commie socialist nonsense. if the real jesus came back, the first ones he would cast out are these fake jesus types….
Kiss their feet? No. As a poor man, I’d rather kick the asses of the 1% for hiding behind their wealth and attacking the poor and helpless because of that same wealth.
God has His people/children and the devil has his.
His views are not Christian in any way, shape, or form.
These “republican christians” do a great disservice to Almighty God and true Christianity. They cause people to distrust and shune Christianity because of their continued, ungodly behavior towards their fellow man.
If anyone wonders why the young completely reject the church they need to look no further. Can anyone blame them? The church in today’s form will not last. The liars and thieves have taken over.
Doesn’t it say in the Bible that those “Christians” who turn people from God with their actions will burn in a fire seven times hotter?
He also said that what would determine who went to heaven and who went to hell was, quite simply: Did you help those who needed help? Did you feed the hungry, clothe the naked, take in the stranger, tend the sick? Then you will go to heaven. If you didn’t…Hell. Not a word about who donated the most to a megachurch or prayed the loudest on TV or persecuted sinners the most viciously. Just…did you help those who needed help? Matthew 25: 34-46. I’m not a Christian, but I like Jesus. I hate what so many of those who claim to follow him do in his name.
I’m beginning to think that some of those 1%ers don’t believe in God, and if they do, that they are God.
I agree with you completely Churchlady.
Also, instead of always saying, “I’m a Christian,” the RW Cons. & Tea Party types ought to act more like the Christians they always claim to be.
From my experience, everytime I’ve ever met or spoken to a person who self-proclaims to be a Christian, the person has turned out to be highly opinionated, intolerant & bigoted.
You may be interested in king Solomon’s Wisdom for the GOP as an added perspective to this article.
http://rudymartinka.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/king-solomons-wisdom-for-the-gop/
Regards and good will blogging.
I find it ironic that many of these people accuse atheists as being “materialistic.”
They should also remember that the early church actually practiced socialism, as they shared all their possessions. In fact in Acts there is a story about a couple who withheld some of their possessions and God struck them dead.
They are fond of quoting Paul saying that “he who will not work will not eat.” But most people who are not working these days are VICTIMS of the same economy that they blame Obama for. And many more are working but not making enough money.Somehow I doubt Paul would have had a harsh word for them.
There is also a story that Jesus told about a poor and sick man who camped outside of a rich man’s house, hoping for food. He was so pathetic that dogs licked his wounds. The rich man never helped him.When this man died he went to heaven. Guess where the rich man went?
Those that are genuinely good people do not feel the need to boast about it. This is just a political ploy for the T-Pubs. It is not the first time people have used God’s name to gain power.
I believe there is a verse in the Bible where God says “I will vomit you out of my mouth.” Somehow I think that applies.
I agree wholeheartedly. Long ago I learned to be wary of anyone who had the stylized fish on their car – knew they were up to no good if they had to advertise their “christianity.” Of course, the stylized fish is no longer in vogue, so have to listen to them spout their God speak.
Speaking of Romania,. these extremists might do well to remember the
Ceausescu’s last days. As in the song, maybe it’s true that, “Freedom’s
just another word for nothing else to lose.”
What is being advocated is idolatry. The Bible warns repeatedly against idolatry, and those who practiced it in the Wilderness after the escape from Egypt were “scattered” and never allowed to enter the Promised Land.
The Apostle Paul has acknowledged that an idol is nothing in the world (1 Corinthians 8:4). Although he does not say that idols are actually demons, he does say that demonic spirits take advantage of idol worship to deceive and enslave people.
Sounds a lot like what is happening now, doesn’t it?
Jesus only ever got violent with ONE group of people in his entire public life. The Moneychangers (those whose life was focused upon money and its value or worth). Jesus NEVER, not even once, praised material gain over spiritual gain. He never praised the wealthy but instead devoted his public life in service to the poor, the sick, those in prison and the elderly. He spent his life mostly in the company of beggars, lepers, and sinners and NOT among the well-heeled of his society. These so-called Christians are NOT Christian at all, they are the opposite, they are Anti-Christians. Any Christian who FAILS to care for the least among us WILL be denied by Jesus when push comes to shove. Many who do NOT make the claim to BE christian yet who demonstrate great human love for one another WILL be gathered up with the righteous at that time. It does NOT take following a certain dogma to be saved. It takes following the example that was set by Jesus of Nazareth, and loving your fellow people.
Metaphorically, yes.
When Paul stated, “Those who do not work will not eat.” he was addressing a church where the members were so certain of Jesus’ return “any day now.” that they quit working their fields. That was an agrarian society, and if one did not work his or her field there would be no crop, and thus they would not eat. Did Paul mean also the elderly the disabled, the sick, and the weak? Yeah, of course he did. Get grandma out of that wheelchair and put her ol’ butt to work.
To kiss the feet of the one percent is a euphemism for BOOTLICKING IDOLATRY! It was condemned by Jesus! Who these so called Christians love!