Hmmm….Interesting

A quote from the May 15, 2007 issue of Christian Century magazine discussing the "consistent ethic of life" teaching of the Catholic Church:

Rosemary Radford Ruether questions whether the "consistent ethic of life" of Catholic moral theory is as consistent as it claims. Current Catholic moral teaching applies an absolutist ethic to abortion, no exceptions allowed, whereas it applies a consequentialist ethic to war that allows for exceptions, makes calculations based on competing interests and ultimately leaves the matter to the conscience of the individual. "Where is the bishop who would say that soldiers who directly massacre noncombatant civilians are excommunicated? Where are the bishops who would suggest that those who manufacture nuclear weapons are excommunicated? Where are the bishops who would suggest that those who manufacture nuclear weapons are excommunicated and should repent by leaving such forms of employment?" she asks. "In short, Catholicism speaks softly and carries no stick when it comes to untimely and unjust death after birth" (Conscience, Spring).

And to her statement I would say, "Don't stop at the Catholic church." Conservative evangelical Protestants have the same issue, where they want to make abortion the sole test as to whether a political candidate is pro-life. Against abortion, which kills a baby? OK. Against the Iraq war, which also kills innocent people? B-a-a-d. Those who parade around in front of the Capitol building or the Supreme Court with orange tape on their mouths are making a courageous, prophetic statement; those who parade around in front of the same buildings protesting the loss of another Iraqi life…and another…and another… well, those people have been taken by the Michael Moore-loving, anti-American radical left.

Yeah, sure.

From the website of Lou Engle, a man who sees prophetic pronouncements in the change he gets at the grocery store:

We are in a Crisis

The Church and the nation are in a crisis! In no uncertain terms, the elections of 2006 showed us that there is no clear moral foundation upon which the nation votes. In this present historic moment, the Church was paralyzed. Tens-of-thousands stayed home and could not vote as if they were drunk with disillusionment.

Only one week before the elections, a major Christian leader was exposed in immorality. Before that, a high-ranking Republican Representative was exposed. After considering these scandals, the ongoing exposures of these Christian leaders, and seeing the outcome of the elections, I felt God shouting that the Church is in danger of losing its moral authority to turn a nation.

"Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord...he who has clean hands and a pure heart," Psalm 24:3-4. The hill of Lord is the place of the throne, and the place of spiritual authority. Only those who have clean hands and a pure heart can stand on that hill and exercise that authority. He is sifting the Republican Party for its refusal to stand for moral principle and for playing political games with its constituents, who in 2004, voted on moral issues.

One of our young women in the Justice House of Prayer in Washington, D.C., had a dream on November 4, 2006, the Sunday before the elections: I was at the house on the farm and made a kind of agreement with a man who was the head of the GOP. In my dream, this GOP man broke the agreement. I went and confronted him, and he got in my face and started yelling at me. He then backed up and I pointed at him and said, "Our God is neither Republican nor Democrat, He will only honor those who are morally righteous and just." He left, slamming the door. (http://www.louengle.com/articles/1)

"I pointed at him and said, 'Our God is neither Republican nor Democrat, He will only honor those who are morally righteous and just.'" Only one problem, Lou. You don't believe that!!! If a Democrat takes the White House in 2008 (as I'm praying he or she will, so our prayers are cancelling each other out), even if that person is morally righteous or just you will oppose them as sure as the day is long. The reason is simple- the conservative evangelical/fundamentalist movement in America is the Republican Party's whore. They are in bed with the party, seduced by power and privilege. And a church which is so closely aligned with one segment of a nation's power brokers no longer possesses the ability or authority to speak prophetically to that nation.

"In no uncertain terms, the elections of 2006 showed us that there is no clear moral foundation upon which the nation votes. In this present historic moment, the Church was paralyzed. Tens-of-thousands stayed home and could not vote as if they were drunk with disillusionment." No, maybe tens of thousands of church members went to the polls, not voting for a Democrat as they were voting against a Republican. Maybe, just maybe, they were tired of their faith being used as a manipulative tool instead of something they hold very dear, something that stands as a rock for them and something they refuse to let you chisel away at.

So who is taking who here?