>How Christian can one really be who doesn't have respect for others?<
Please. This instance presented no disrespect to the young lady who made the request, but rather showed disregard for the bogus rule behind the request, a rule that applied to the school and not to the people in the audience. Many of those folks likely either did not know the young lady who made the request, or thought highly of her. Indeed she herself perhaps wanted the prayer, and it would not surprise me at all to find that she said it also. So this issue of disrespect for the young lady will not fly.
What those folks did was very Christian. They simply disregarded an oppressive rule that applied to the school but that did not apply to them, a rule that attempted to proscribe their corporately honouring their God at a time they had traditionally chosen to honour Him. America has a rich history of such things. Indeed at one time this country's state and federal governments in many ways openly supported general Christian Protestantism while establishing no state religion or Church (They did not establish Anglicanism or Catholicism or Presbyterianism or Judaism, but they did support a general Judeo/Christian ethic, sometimes blatantly and at all times supported by the Constitution). Thousands and thousands of American children across this great country once learned to read by use of Bibles or other texts heavily influenced by the Bible such as the McGuffy Eclectic Readers. Thousands and thousands of American children once learned The Battle Hymn of the American Republic in public school:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord,
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fate-ful lightning of His terrible swift sword--
His truth is marching on.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never sound retreat,
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgement seat;
O be swift my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;
As He died to make men holy, let us live to make men free,
While God is marching on.
Glory! Glory, hallelujah!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
The words of that hymn, my friend, are flatly Christian, and they were sang not only by American children, but by American men of war, all sponsored by your American government. This sort of thing abounds in our history. It is everywhere, from Jamestowne of 1607 the inhabitants of which claimed a desire to convert the "heathen" Indians to Christianity, to the rise and near victory of modern athiest heathens. If the historical influence is not flatly Christian, it is certainly flatly Judeo-Christian, flatly referencing the Jewish/Christian God.
This is not to say America was a "Christian Nation" as Israel was a Jewish Nation. And one can certainly point to private statements by some of the Founding Fathers that seem against public religion (though publicly these men had great difficulty and fear of speaking their thoughts - grin) But rather it means Americans at one time and in sundry ways often bowed, generally and publicly, before the God of Israel. And this God once influenced virtually all areas of this country, being veritably encouraged by our government. Even our court rooms, Congress and Supreme Court posted the Law of Jehovah for all to see. Inscriptions on many of our public buildings even today make reference to Him.
And now bit by bit, Americans have been turned away from Him. Whereas in times past Americans would have had little problem referencing God on a public building or in an American court, today such a thing is considered evil.
Well fine. It had to happen anyway. Nevertheless the folks in Maryland broke no law, and did nothing dishonourable. Instead of remaining oppressed by godless liberals (grin), they stood up and did the right thing. They for a time kept their history intact. Next year to be sure the liberals will attempt to head them off. They need to begin right now thinking of ways to counter the heathens. (Of course they will not, and the heathens will destroy yet another great tradition).
Surely the memory of God will eventually be erased from all American memory, and correspondingly America will find itself saddled increasingly with Bill Clintons and Columbines (Oh, certainly people will "pray" to a meaningless godlet in times of tragedy, but will not publicly refer to even this silly god concerning other areas of their lives). But at least for today, the people of Maryland repulsed them.
Is anyone offended by my remarks? You should not be. I was not referring to anyone here personally. And my remarks were written honestly with no particular person in mind. You folks should believe as you do, and I will continue to believe the truth. (grin) In the meantime, we can get along.
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Man I discovered a very excellent sport. SNOWBOARDING. I saw a video on it! DANG! It looks like fun. Gotta get me one of them things. Anyone know how difficult it is to get around on it? I simply must learn how. If you have any tips on what to get and what not to get - I am all ears. (grin)
Gotta run... |
