- Let me state at the outset that the following observations
and criticisms do not apply to real Christians, or to all churches. The
Riverside Church in New York, for instance, has a long history of radical
activism on the side of social justice. Unfortunately, these churches comprise,
I believe, a small minority of the whole. I have no desire to offend those
of you who have taken courageous stands against injustice and war-those
of you who have thrown your bodies onto the levers and controls of the
machine and tried to make it stop. You have my utmost respect and my sincere
gratitude. It is to the make believe Christians and the vast majority of
churches that I address the following comments.
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- As a child I was forced to regularly attend church and
Sunday school. This represents my parent's early attempts to Christianize
me to and make me respectable to the mainstream of society. Even then I
resisted being forced to accept something that I did not believe in. I
behaved so badly that my Sunday school teacher told my parents not to bring
me back. My efforts to get myself exiled from the church paid handsome
dividends. Thus ended my brief encounter with Christianity in particular
and with organized religion in general. The rest of my family has remained
regular church goers. I have gone in another direction. The result is that
we share radically different political ideologies. Thus we find ourselves
in radically different places.
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- During the journey from childhood to manhood, I have
often contemplated the role of Christianity in the path that America was
taking. Let me state clearly that in my humble opinion organized religion
has nothing to do with real Christianity-I mean the actual teachings of
Christ. Through a spectacular failure of courage and a will to be accepted
into the mainstream of corporate America, the example of Jesus Christ has
been trivialized and blasphemed by its chief practioneers. The church has
allowed itself to become so prostituted that it bears little resemblance
to the radical teachings of Christ of Nazareth. It has allowed itself not
only to be marginalized by corporate America-it has become an apologist,
an enabler, for the corporate state and all it represents.
-
- One would think that any Christian would willingly concede
the point that Jesus Christ did not devote any energy to advancing the
corrupt agenda of the rich and powerful. Indeed, Christ devoted his life
to serving the poor, the oppressed, and the disenfranchised. Christ despised
the obscene accumulation and unequal distribution of wealth. This of course
put him in opposition to those in power, which eventually led to his crucifixion.
It is the very same forces that put Dr. Martin Luther King in formal opposition
to more contemporary power brokers, with the result that he was killed
by an assassin's bullet. It takes more than bullets to kill a man. It takes
more than nails and bullets to bury truth. In both cases, those in power
killed the messenger; but the message continues to resonate loud and clear;
and it is more relevant than ever in these most dangerous of times.
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- Had the church not abdicated its moral responsibility
of enacting the philosophy of Christ, the history of America would be very
different; and our place in the world would also be changed. If the church
believed in and taught the factual doctrines of Christ it would be a very
radical institution, a far cry from the bastion of conservatism that we
see today. It would actively organize against war. It would fill the streets
with passionate people who demonstrate against the evils of war. It would
take a strong stand against overt aggression, materialism, obscene wealth,
imperialism, corporate crime, colonialism, and the unequal distribution
of wealth. It would minister its massive resources to end poverty. It would
denounce presidents who espouse Christian values; but who act like the
anti-Christ. Rather than prop up false idols like George Bush and the so
called 'Christian Right,' it would denounce them as the blasphemers they
are. It would demand truth and accountability. It would require both moral
and physical effort from its members. It would require opposition to the
power brokers in government. It would demand of them that they fight tyranny,
as Dr. King did, and put themselves in harm's way. It might even require
that some of them be crucified or assassinated. That is demanding a lot
of them. But we all know what happened to Christ; and many of us witnessed
the assassination of Dr. King. Thus it seems to me that being a Christian-a
real Christian-would mean giving up one's comfort and confronting injustice
wherever you find it. It requires taking a moral stand and doing something
about injustice.
-
- Real Christians would not tolerate presidents who make
war on defenseless people based upon lies and innuendo. Bush and his imperialist
polices should be openly and powerfully denounced from every pulpit in
every church in the United States, every day. But they are not. In fact,
just the opposite occurs. Bush and his minions are cheered on by the apostates,
the dogs of war and poverty. Rather than acting as a counter friction to
the machine, the church acts like a cheer leader for grotesque acts of
atrocity against the world. By allying itself with fraudulent ideologues
like the 'Christian Right,' the church has itself become the anti-Christ.
Being Christian, it seems to me, requires asking of oneself in times of
crises, 'What would Christ do?' But this is a question that makes those
who call themselves Christians uncomfortable. It is the kind of question
that demands everything of them. It is the kind of question that makes
it hard to look at oneself in the mirror.
-
- I am not advocating that those who call themselves Christians
go forth and get themselves killed. But I do want them to stop aiding and
abetting the enemy. What I am advocating is that they examine their professed
faith and compare it to the radical actions of Christ. They must force
themselves to see the blatant disconnect between what they say and what
they do. All of us are hypocrites to various degrees. Certainly, I am painfully
aware of my own shortcomings. But it is hard to imagine that America could
have become the depraved, violent cancer that it is today had the church
done a better job promoting the teachings of its professed spiritual leader.
For so many to call themselves Christian, while advocating violence, is
laughable. It is certainly absurd. To be a Christian requires enormous
self sacrifice in service to the poor. It requires commitment to non violent
solutions. And so it necessarily demands fierce opposition to the vast
majority of U.S. policies. Like anyone with a sense of social justice,
Christians would find themselves constantly swimming against the current
of popular American culture. It is not easy. It is wearisome work. It demands
everything of you. The current is as swift and dangerous as it is deep.
It requires courage to take the leap.
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- Because of Christianity's stunning failure to take a
strong and controversial stance against war, millions of innocent people
have been terrorized by the government of the United States. Poverty flourishes
around the globe while the church cozies up to the rich and powerful; and
often accumulates obscene wealth, tax free. How would Christ react to this?
-
- The situation has so degenerated that pompous asses posing
as Christians like Pat Robertson can openly call for the assassination
of popular, democratically elected leaders such as Hugo Chavez in Venezuela,
and Aristeed in Haiti-men who have acted on behalf of their people with
compassion and charity. Their loyalty is to the poor, not to the multi-national
corporations who would ravage and pillage the world and divide the profits
among themselves. Isn't it a strange irony that Chavez and Aristeed is
more Christ like than most who call themselves Christian? Jerry Falwell
is another name that comes readily to mind in this connection. When these
fools speak and spew words of hatred and death, they should be immediately
and powerfully denounced from every pulpit in the land. They should be
held accountable and exposed as the dangerous frauds they are. They should
be excommunicated and denounced as heretics. But we do not see this happening.
Another absurdity, another mediocrity, is allowed to stand until it becomes
a part of the culture.
- _____
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- Charles Sullivan is a furniture maker, photographer,
and free lance writer living in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia.
He can be reached at earthdog@highstream.net.
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- http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10483.htm
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