The Face of Dan Patrick’s Texas
From the Dallas Morning News.
Protesters lined both sides of Elm Street on Friday, in dueling downtown demonstrations over plans to house unaccompanied Central American children in Dallas County.
At their peak, the crowds together swelled to about 100 people. The two groups gathered to voice support for, and opposition to, a plan to establish temporary shelters in the county for thousands of children now being detained at the border.
Here is the Christian side of the argument.
How loving and reasonable.
@Mark: so according to you, SHE’s “bashing. Why don’t you go back to your original comment and read it already? you were the one being hateful and unkind; I called you out on it. Sorry you didn’t like it. And it WAS anti-social: this is a community of persons who deplore the state of things, frequently in a mocking or humorous tone, and your anti-Catholic, anti-Christian post was not in that spirit. It was mean and disparaging. “Questioning beliefs” was not even in it. So while you can express your (venomous, in my view) opinion of the Catholic Church and us Catholics, who are only automatons of the hierarchy after all, any time you like, you had better have your facts straight. And you are out on the hierarchy, period. Nobody is stricter than those goobers about who is part of the ecclesia and who is part of the laity.
I specifically said THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST. I did not say “the New Testament” and I’m sure Paul had lots of things to say about what HE considered “sins of the flesh”; he also said that married people should live as though they were single – make of that what you will.
I specifically refrained from calling you a bigot (I can play semantics too, you know): I pointed out that it looked likely that you were heading in that direction. Re-read your post with an open mind and think it over.
No, I didn’t “bash” these people, although it’s very tempting. I think they are being misled by their leaders, which is what I expressed. Furthermore, Jesus himself said “not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven” but I always presume that might be talking about me. I subscribe to my religion because it helps ME act more like the person I want to be. It reminds me not be completely self-absorbed and think everybody else has it as good as I do, or would if they just acted more like me (snort!) and to continue to argue for justice and fair treatment for people who are different or have no voice. That’s how I got into this stupid little crucible with YOU, you were VERY unkind and unjust in your original post. Go back and read it. Again. The later ones, meh…no amount of justification or quibbling about what I said will change what you posted.
Back to the topic: I think these people are being unkind and ungenerous to a bunch of little people who are a long way from home, very frightened and have nothing. If Catholic Charities has reached out to help them, more power to them. It reflects well on the current Bishop of Dallas Fort Worth that their group is doing something for these poor little kids; he is certainly a step up from the last model.
You want to know my idea of a REAL Christian? Francis of Assisi and John Vianney are the first two that spring to mind. Therese of Lisieux and Helen of Norway(?) are two more. They walked away from wealth and ease to spend their lives serving other people, usually the poor and broken; they lived their creed.
1@aggieland liz, let’s be done with this.
First, don’t be coy. You called me bigot. You wouldn’t have raised the word if you didn’t mean to imply I was a bigot. Own your words.
Have I called you any names? No.
You seem to think that I got upset because you “called me out” on my words. Hardly. I stand by my words. You said that my initial post was “VERY unkind and unjust.” Not very, but VERY! Ohhhh. I assume that you found me unkind because I wasn’t sufficiently deferential and reverential to your beloved Catholic Church. I assume you call me unjust because I had the temerity to point out that the Church is an organization of pedophiles and those that aid and abet and protect them.
My words are in fact unkind. I don’t believe in showing kindness to people who rape children. I find it interesting to note that you seem more offended by my unkind words about your Church than you are about the fact that so many of your Catholic leadership rape children (among many other crimes).
As to my words being unjust, well, facts are facts, Liz. And the fact is that the leadership of the Catholic Church is polluted with pedophiles and the men up and down the power structure, all the way to the very top, have condoned and supported this systemic rape of children. You may not like it when I am so blunt, but those are the facts, Liz.
If you find the truth hateful, well, that can’t be helped.
You seem to think that I should draw some distinction between your Catholic ecclesia and your Catholic laity. Sorry, but no. Your support, with your butt in the pew and your bucks in the collection plate and your time and energy is what supports the ecclesia in their crimes. You don’t get a free pass on that.
I continue to believe that any organization associated with the pedophiles of the Catholic Church (such as Catholic Charities) has no business being anywhere near children. Particularly not on my dime.
If you think that standing up for children’s right not to be sexually molested makes me a bigot, then I will wear that badge proudly.
I too think that these immigrant children need all the help they can get. I just don’t think that turning them over to an organization that associates with known pedophiles is the answer. We obviously disagree on that point.
As to me giving a rats behind about who you think are “REAL” Christians … um, NO. Which was my main point all along. I am so tired of people wringing their hands and pointing and saying, “but THOSE people aren’t REAL Christians.” Whoever ‘those’ people happen to be today. I don’t know why you, aggieland liz, think you are somehow the arbiter of who is and who isn’t a REAL Christian. As far as I am concerned, if you call yourself a follower of Christ, then you are a Christian. Simple as that.
If you don’t like that hate is the face of modern American (and increasingly international) Christianity today, then do something about it. It is your problem, not mine. I’m not Christian.
Too many millions have already died in the silly theological internecine wars you Christians love so much trying to decide what it is to be a REAL follower of Christ.
2Guatemala in particular, is 30% catholic, and the rest are protestant, or nothing in particular. Please tell me why the catholic churches in that country, along with some other latin american countries, are not taking care of their own? When these children are surrounded by churches in their own countries, why is it necessary all of a sudden to come to another country for help? I guess I’m just not understanding something here. As an atheist, I’m not even going to get into the differences in religions. As a gay man who is shunned by just about every religion in the world, it’s no wonder I’m an atheist.
3There’s a mayor in Syracuse, NY, who’d like them to get sent way up there:
http://hotair.com/archives/2014/07/19/syracuse-ny-mayor-to-obama-send-those-immigrant-kids-up-here/
IMO, religion has nothing to do with this. They’re effin’ REFUGEES (sorry, Momma). I guess we’ve moved into a world not unlike the one in ‘Children of Men,’ where they’re Fugees.
4Have really enjoyed this thread – as a Gay man of faith, Raised and victimized by Southern Baptist in my youth, Having found my way to (Note I don’t say – back to) a God of My understanding that is loving and “Fearfully and wonderfully” made me the way I am, understand the pain demonstrated in this thread. I also understand that there are a lot of good people, who are humble and work quietly for good instead of Mammon, who are invisible as far as the Press is concerned. These Children have been in my prayers daily, as have these awful Bitsy’s and Muffy’s who seem to be so threatened by a passel of children who are willing to go through hell to survive while they probably have 21-40 year old do-nothing sons sleepin in their basements. The Mathew 25 Project was/Is a good thing, cause whether I agree with their backing, board, Disastrous past or not, they jumped in the breach right away. When JJ posted that each backpack would have in it, in Spanish, “You are loved” I literally wept. I also wept last night when my Texas Baptist Minister brother told me their Little bitty Church In Eagle Lake had sent 1K(Which is a lot of money for a small church) to folks on the ground at the border to deal with immediate needs of these children…..As Humble as he is- I’ll say it, I was just damn proud of him and his….
5Litlhorn … ((((HUGS)))) …
6Litlhorn–
7I try to stay away from all religious talk–it’s a tricky path.
What is called for is love. For everyone. For myself, that I see hate on drawn faces, when I KNOW that that kind of fear demonstrated is a call for love…so I need help to love there.
For all who are in this, and we all ARE, we need love, to help us through. For the children, who are here and need to be helped. LOVE in it’s final form, called life is what is needed here. I have always believed that evil is live spelled backwards, so it is that which goes against life. The only remedy for it is love, which transcends space and time. And that’s what is needed here.
Those two remind me of chimps in a zoo…except for the fact that chimps are more intelligent.
8@Mark Johnson
You’re right. Churches that are different, and denominations thar are different, need to speak up more. Many have. It’s kind of like good news, though–not much news coverage unless there’s lots of screaming and threats of violence.
If you’re ever in Battle Creek, MI, on a Sumday morning, First Congregational Church would love to have you visit. Or look for a Congregational Church in your area; you might find a whole bunch of people who are very much in agreement with many of your opinions, or who would at least understand where you’re coming from.
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