Re: “Beck digs deeper on Obama’s beliefs” (TNT, 8-30).
I find it hard to understand Glenn Beck saying, “People aren’t recognizing (President Obama’s) version of Christianity” when many Christians do not recognize the faith to which Beck belongs (Mormonism) as being Christian. Those who share different theologies within a particular religion are not the same as those who come from different religions all together.
My hope is that the American public will see through the personal attacks on our president and address their efforts to properly channeling criticisms of all our public servants based on policy and job performance. Confusing one’s understanding of a person’s religious beliefs with professional practice does little to focus us all on our country’s tasks at hand: creating jobs, promoting peace, and securing our children’s economic and educational futures.
If we are going to focus on job performance, I’d say the president is in just as much trouble if not more.
I find it hard to understand Glenn Beck saying,
Drink more koolaid Kendall, it seems to be the only way to understand what that drunk says.
Did I miss the writer’s credentials. Is he a Father (Catholic)? Is he writing as an individual or on behalf of his congregation? Unclear what the point is other than to stir up definitions of Christian beliefs. Who decides what is the “proper” Christian belief? Catholics, Protestants, Baptist? The irony is Sharpton criticized Beck for speaking at the Lincoln Memorial as if it was a sacred place, such Blasphemy. Yet, when the 911 families protested the Mosque as being a sacred place the mass Media ignored it and said the families were over sensitive. So which is it? Sacred or not.
BeerBoy Sumner etal are scared to death of Beck and by extention the truth. The only recourse for them is to demonize and try tominimize the effect he is having on the national conscience. It will get 100 times worse once Nov rolls around and they are relegated back to obscurity that these socialist/marxists deserve. A very minor footnote in the history of this once great and soon to be great again nation.
That is the problem. religion and politics are intertwined together with these people (moral majority) thereby imposing religion based policy on all.
Can’t refute what is said and can only attack the person that said it.
Typical right wing hypocrites.
If Beck were moslem you libs would not even be talking about him and this letter would have never been submitted.
“If we are going to focus on job performance, I’d say the president is in just as much trouble if not more.”
If he’s graded on a relative scale he’ll do fine, especially compared to his predecessor.
“Yet, when the 911 families protested the Mosque as being a sacred place the mass Media ignored it and said the families were over sensitive.”
How did the mass media ignore it, yet not ignore it enough to reveal that the families were over sensitive? Its the same old drumbeat from the right-wing.., Pulling only what they want from news so they can continue playing their “poor me” cards.
“A very minor footnote in the history of this once great and soon to be great again nation.”
Yup, it sure was doing great when Obama took the controls. Can’t wait to get back to those grand times.
Why is the religion of the President even at question here? Was our Nation founded upon the principles of “Freedom of Religion”, or was I sick that day in Civics class?
The President’s religious beliefs, just as mine and every other writer here, are NOBODY ELSE’S BUISNESS BUT HIS OWN. It is yet ONE MORE irrelevent topic of conversation, brought up by small-minded people that don’t have a REAL issue to discuss.
The next thing we know, someone with a brain the size of a carbunkle, will point out that the President is light-complected, has a caucasian ancestor and, therefore does NOT “qualify” as being black.
Idiots!
“The next thing we know, someone with a brain the size of a carbunkle, will point out that the President is light-complected, has a caucasian ancestor and, therefore does NOT “qualify” as being black.”
LOL, hate to tell you, papa, but you just did.
Why is the religion of the President even at question here?
Because the right needs a boogie man to fear and hate, and the President is a Democrat, black and has a strange name.
If he were none of those things they would find something to hate him for, but as always they go for the low hanging fruit.
The right is not only psychically lazy, but intellectually lazy as well.
The morality of the person running our country is very relevant. His specific religion, or lack thereof isn’t. BUT, when a man or woman spends 20 years attending a race-baiting, hate filled church(seriously youtube Jeremiah Wright), then chooses not to join a church when he moves into the White House, but says he is a “christian”, people wonder. Just as Glen Beck answers a question when interviewed about Obama’s faith, so did Eugene Robinson. Eugene himself(on Chris Matthew show a few days ago) said it is his opinion that if Obama had joined whatever church he chose to, Eugene doesn’t think the questions would be as widespread. Jeremiah Wrights “church” is a thinly veiled attack dog on our country and its principles. Much like “reverends” Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. They are not men of the cloth, but politicians hiding behind the curtain of the cloth. Who cares what religion he is or isn’t? I don’t. As the writer pointed out, Christian has many faces. Catholics and their worship of the Virgin Mary? Mormons and their belief that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and his gold tablets changed what God gave us in the bible(little update/tweaking)? Christianity has many faces. This is just a wacko attempt from the left to marginalize Glen Beck. They are realizing he is more centrist than they would like to believe this country is. America is awakening. Obama, thank you for wakening a slumbering giant. A few years ago, we were willing to work, pay our taxes, shake our head at the entitlement society we were becoming. No more
The cow’s already left the barn on this one, Father. Far too many already hang on every word uttered by this “entertainer”.
Very well said tmell. Folks are completely missing the real point here, and it’s intentional for some as Beck is any easy target.
The president’s religion IS his own business, but remember it was Obama himself who called Jeremiah Wright his spiritual mentor. I’ll bet those are words he wish he could get back. Although, his adoring fans were perfectly willing to late that all slide.
Not so much the last 18-month debacle of his presidency. Slumbering giant indeed tmell.
The real point here is to slander the president, sozo, and it’s quite transparent.
If you believe that the President’s religion is his own business, then why do you continue to make it yours, out the other side of your mouth?
Have you ever heard a lawyer in court say to the judge….”Your Honor, HE opened the door to this subject?” Meaning of course that because HE opened the door, everyone’s free to walk through it.
One of Obama’s first glaring errors was to claim Wright as his mentor. It was a bonehead move politically, one I’m sure he regrets.
Because he did open that door however, people tuned in to find out what the right Rev was all about, only to discover he’s the worst sort of hate monger, the photo negative of the head of the Klan, both posing as Christians btw.
It’s Barry and Michelle’s shame to have claimed this jerk as their avuncular inspiration. If you, or they, are unhappy with the outcome, that’s your issue.
Hey – wasn’t it just a couple days ago when everybody was saying President Obama was a muslim? Now those commenting are again talking about the ‘terrible’ Jeremiah Wright. OK, righties, which is it? Is the president a bible-thumping, off-the-wall Christian who follows an equally off-the-wall reverand, or is he a muslim? Or maybe a third choice of a regular Christian who chooses to worship in his own ways just like thousands and thousands of citizens who believe in the Christian faith but choose not to belong to any one church.
You can’t have it both ways. Oh wait a minute, of course you can, you’re the republi-CONS.
Very clearly, sozo, you are happy with that outcome; gleefully happy.
So much so, that you’ll pin every word that Wright has ever said on Obama; the very thing that you distance yourself from when defending your version of Christianity. Maybe Obama feels the same way that you do about his religious beliefs. Maybe he focuses on the good and is able to distance himself from the negativity.
Do unto others, as………. (Oh never mind)
Look Polago, you would have every right to question my integrity if you found out that for 20 years I sat under the tutelage of the Klan and claimed their grand Poopah to be my mentor … and then suddenly, when I realized it was politically unwise to do so, tossed him under the bus.
Why can you not see the disparity here. Twenty years is a long time for an astute, Harvard-educated lawyer to sit in the pew and be unaware of the nastiness of the pastor, the man you chose to baptize your kids.
The president was either going to church just for appearances, or he was an idiot OR he bought what Wright was selling.
You are not so naive as to believe he was indifferent or apathetic to this jerk’s theology, if you can even call it that.
You don’t know what went on for those 20 years, sozo. All you know is what a viral video plays over and over. I don’t know either.
I’ve seen the benefit of the doubt meted out liberally by many on the right but they continue to hold Obama’s feet to the fire on this issue.
Obama didn’t utter those words, Rev Wright did. But you gleefully play pin-that-tail-on-the-donkey, over and over and over again, as does Beck (the entertainer).
Your reasons are obvious, as are Becks. I doubt this will be the last time you, or he will play the Rev Wright card.
Gotta love Beck comparing universities to Mao’s forced re-education centers.
Nope, we ‘mericuns don’t need us none of that fancy learnin’ when we got us some TV and radio wit’ Glenn Beck teachin’ us the truth real good like!
I think my point has been more than by the 2 usual far right christain nuts whining about……well what they are told to whine about.
The letter writer’s point is reinforced by the amount of attention focused on Obama’s religious beliefs in these comments. That’s not going to change anytime soon if Beck has anything to say about it.
Check out the history of Wright’s church, Polago…though perhaps you are a big Farakhan fan?
That you all are so willing to overlook this bond between Wright and the Obamas says way more about you than it does about anyone else.
And btw at least have the integrity to admit that if the Bush family been involved in a church that preached racism and hatred, you and your pals would have been all over it. If you day you wouldn’t have, I don’t believe you.
You know what, bBoy, we actually DON’T need the “fancy lernun” that seems to be featured at many so-called universities these days. But of course you will not be able to see what I mean given your disability.
Your snotty condescension is noted, btw. And you wonder why people use labels like “elitist” and “arrogant snob.”
sozo says, “Check out the history of Wright’s church, Polago…though perhaps you are a big Farakhan fan?”
Yup! You don’t know what went on for those 20 years, sozo. All you know is what a viral video plays over and over.
———-
“That you all are so willing to overlook this bond between Wright and the Obamas says way more about you than it does about anyone else.”
What does it say about me, sozo?
What does it say about you, that you keep bringing this up time after time after time, sozo? That you have a short memory?
Obama didn’t utter those words, Rev Wright did. But you gleefully play pin-that-tail-on-the-donkey, over and over and over again, as does Beck (the entertainer).
————–
“And btw at least have the integrity to admit that if the Bush family been involved in a church that preached racism and hatred, you and your pals would have been all over it. If you day you wouldn’t have, I don’t believe you.”
Is that how you justify your bad behavior, sozo?
You won’t believe me unless I give you the answer you want? Is that what you call integrity?
I’m simply in awe of your obtuseness, Polago.
Here’s what it says about me that I bring it up, or react to it being brought up:
It matters. You can pretend it doesn’t matter, but it does. It matters to whom our president turns for spiritual counsel because wisdom and discernment abide in this realm. You know, that which transcends the literal and the concrete?
Remember the reaction to Nancy Reagan seeking the advice of a spiritualist or a medium or whatever she was? Our view of her was altered by this for a good reason. It caused us to question her emotional intelligence if nothing else.
As for your continued insistence that all I know about Wright is contained in those viral bits , let’s just say for a minute that that IS all I know, which is not the case … are you seriously suggesting that those bytes are not ENOUGH to question the integrity and decency of this “pastor?”
What I think this says about you is that you have a blind spot here and don’t seem to realize it. Or you’re stubborn.
Finally, I mentioned the double standard w/re to how you’d be reacting were this President Bush’s church ONLY to point out that double standard, one that you seem to embrace.
Clearly you are entrenched in your defense of this aspect of the shaping of our president’s values and nothing will work to dig you out. That’s fine, but don’t expect me to abide down in that hole with you.
Oh wait, there is this possibility, and it only makes Obama look worse. Let’s say for a minute that he doesn’t buy the Wright philosophy of “hate Whitey ‘(he DID after all toss Jeremiah under the bus without hesitation) —
what does that suggest? That his “spiritual life” is perhaps simply a ruse that he uses for political gain. Ah, that’s much better, isn’t it?
P.S. Integrity is when people say what they mean and mean what they say — and they don’t cave into empty arguments just to make nice.
Those who cannot plainly articulate their beliefs…haven’t studied them
Those who hide their beliefs…don’t deserve them
Those who deny their beliefs…never had them
sozo – sorry but I see no value in prideful ignorance.
sozo says:
August 31, 2010 at 4:31 pm
“It really doesn’t matter what others think as to whether or not the president is a Christian does it? I mean since when do others get to decide what our religion is.”
Now sozo says,
“It matters. You can pretend it doesn’t matter, but it does. It matters to whom our president turns for spiritual counsel because wisdom and discernment abide in this realm. You know, that which transcends the literal and the concrete?”
It’s not important what you think about me, either, sozo. This is about Back and his obsession with Obama’s religious beliefs.
Polago, the first comment was made in response to someone presuming to know what label the president chooses for self-identification. He can call himself a Mormon or a Buddhist and there’s no point in arguing.
Regardless of the label he chooses for himself, however, one can draw conclusions about him based on who his “spiritual directors” are, and again, though you don’t want to deal with this…HE, Barrack –and his wife Michelle, CHOSE to attend to the teachings of Jeremiah Wright.
Wright calls himself a Christian. I can’t take that away from him. What he calls himself is HIS business and it’s between him and God.
But it is perfectly reasonable for the voters to question the source of their president’s “wisdom.”
And bBoy, perhaps your words should be directed at the mirror? You’ve shown remarkable recalcitrance in recent days; one cannot help but wonder if pride hasn’t gotten the better of you.
For the record, my refusal to bend on this one (though we are all guilty of pride and wanting to win the argument) is rooted in a belief that we do not know who this president really is. He seems to be a chameleon, changing color as the season changes (as in election season).
What you see is not necessarily what you get with Barrack Obama, in my opinion.
Sounds to me like your more interested in discrediting Obama, sozo. You always have been.
Pure and simple.
Obama’s doing a fine job of that on his own, Polago. He doesn’t need my help.
Polago, in a way you’re right. I’ve been frustrated since 2008 when I watched people I thought to be sharp, critical thinkers fall in love with a character, a character created by handlers; someone who could play a president despite the fact that he had no credentials for actually BEING the president. One by one I saw people fall for this fictional fellow and I couldn’t believe it.
I’d like to think that had I been wrong, I’d have had the decency to admit it, but I wasn’t wrong. As I said, we don’t even know the real Barack Obama; for all I know HE doesn’t know the real Barack Obama, but I wish him no ill. I just wish he would get voted out of office.
And for the record, I have no idea who from the opposite side of the spectrum I would put IN the Oval Office at this point. Like many here, I think politics in DC is so corrupt at this point, it’s hard to imagine anyone with both the intelligence AND the wisdom necessary ANd, of course the integrity, to right this ship and get it sailing on course again.
sozo – you keep bringing up Jeremiah Wright as your black boogeyman du jour.
How much of his actual output have you studied as compared to what others have told you about him?
BeerBoy, Please stop with the pointless references to justify President Obama attending a Church with a hateful minister who openly displayed his hate of Whites, Jews, America, throug his sermons many times.
Obama sat in his pew week after week listening to these sermons right up till he was questioned by reporters about Wright.
Then when press started finding out about this hateful ministerf and his wild sermons, Obama grabed his gym shoes and Michelle and ran as fast as his legs would go to dis-avow any attachment to the miserable hateful minister.
By the way, you don’t need to be a professor to know what this hate filled minister was preaching, all you would have had to do is listen to his sermons.
Another well known T.V. star Opra Winfrey living on the south side of Chicago went to The Rev. Wrights Church it was reported only once, she was said to feel unconfortable after hearing his yelling and screaming sermon.
I am from the south side of Chicago and have many friends and family who live there, everyone that lives in the neighborhood knows about The rev. Wright so I have to believe after twenty years of listening to his preaching that Obama and family knew and agreed with his sermons of hate.
Wright is not MY black boogeyman, and his race has little to do with my opinion of him except in that he uses it to justify his hatefulness towards people of my race.
HIs church honored Louis Farakhan who is on record accordingly:
According to this socially conscious giant, “the white man” is the “anti-Christ.”
He opines of Caucasians:
White people are potential humans … they haven’t evolved yet.
He’s also called whites “vicious beasts” and “the skunks of the planet.”
While I have not sat in the pews of Wright’s church, his history AND his histrionics are well-documented.
Further, I understand that Obama’s Audacity of Hope (the title) was inspired by a Wright sermon, but we are supposed to believe that the president didn’t notice the politics of his spiritual mentor?
I don’t care of J. Wright is pink or plaid, the guy stinks and he has little interest in peace and harmony.
Citing bits of this speech by Obama wouldn’t do it justice.
Read it all here at…. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_More_Perfect_Union_%28speech%29
sozo – if his sermons are well-documented then it would be easy for you to present a cogent argument. I haven’t seen one yet.
From a NOT Fox reporter:
An ABC News review of dozens of Rev. Wright’s sermons, offered for sale by the church, found repeated denunciations of the U.S. based on what he described as his reading of the Gospels and the treatment of black Americans.
“The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing ‘God Bless America.’ No, no, no, God damn America, that’s in the Bible for killing innocent people,” he said in a 2003 sermon. “God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme.”
In addition to damning America, he told his congregation on the Sunday after Sept. 11, 2001 that the United States had brought on al Qaeda’s attacks because of its own terrorism.”
Perhaps you agree with the Reverend, bBoy, which is fine. But when a pastor uses the gospel to create racial strife and promote victimhood, I’m going to question his motives.
Righteous leaders have all questioned America’s choices, especially when it comes to greed, and they are right to do so. But Wright and his cohorts turned this into something else altogether and if you can’t smell this stinky fish, you’re plugging your nose.
the Bush family been involved in a church that preached racism and hatred,
They have been, it’s called ‘the republican party’.
I’ve been frustrated since 2008 when I watched people I thought to be sharp, critical thinkers fall in love with a character, a character created by handlers; someone who could play a president despite the fact that he had no credentials for actually BEING the president. One by one I saw people fall for this fictional fellow and I couldn’t believe it.
It wasn’t 2008 it was 2000 and he turned out to be your hero and an absolute failure.