Religion's only real commodity, after all, is its moral authority. Lose that, and we lose our credibility. Lose credibility, and we might as well close up shop.But he fails to explain why religions need to commoditize Moral Authority and/or how that is tied to credibility.
[ op cit ]
Especially when he asserts
As a former "the Bible says it, I believe it, that settles it" kind of guy, I am sympathetic with any Christian who accepts the Bible at face value. But here's the catch. Leviticus is filled with laws imposing the death penalty for everything from eating catfish to sassing your parents. If you accept one as the absolute, unequivocal word of God, you must accept them all.But I think the part I really like is
For many of gay America's loudest critics, the results are unthinkable. First, no more football. At least not without gloves. Handling a pig skin is an abomination. Second, no more Saturday games even if you can get a new ball. Violating the Sabbath is a capital offense according to Leviticus. For the over-40 crowd, approaching the altar of God with a defect in your sight is taboo, but you'll have plenty of company because those menstruating or with disabilities are also barred.
The truth is that mainstream religion has moved beyond animal sacrifice, slavery and the host of primitive rituals described in Leviticus centuries ago. Selectively hanging onto these ancient proscriptions for gays and lesbians exclusively is unfair according to anybody's standard of ethics. We lawyers call it "selective enforcement," and in civil affairs it's illegal.
( op cit (emphasis mine) )
Oliver "Buzz" Thomas is a Baptist minister and author of an upcoming book, 10 Things Your Minister Wants to Tell You (But Can't Because He Needs the Job).Now that may well be a book worth reading!!!
But let us pause and ask ourselves if WE as Americans really want to give up on Animal Sacrifice, especially when we have things like ThatIraqiThingiePooh to prove to the world that we Religiously Believe in Human Sacrifice so that we can bath our plastic dash board jesus in fresh blood!!!!
Do we really want to abandon slavery!!! The very hallmark of the Southern Baptist Conference, and with it the central thesis of the 'biblical inerrancy' movement in the USofA!!! Made all the more Holier and More Glorious with the "lost cause" basis for the SBC after the resconstruction phase, as america learned the importance of the Southernization of Christianity....
It is not for light and transient reasons that I have asked IF americans can be christians!!!! Especially given the interesting nationalization of christianity tha we have watched over the last fourty years since LBJ noted, upon signing the Civil Rights Act, that 'we have lost the south for a generation'. The tragedy is that it is not clear that back in 1964 if 'the south' was at all interested In BEING Found, since it's cheap grace had already 'saved' it....
So should 'moral authority' even be required??? Even now???
Clearly the 2006 electoral results should not bother the forward progress of the nationalization of religion in the Grand Southern Form!!! Since it will not at all be difficult to explain that the defeat is just more of the same old 'lost cause' that has been a central tenant, probably more so than the bible itself, of the National Religion!!! That this is God's Chastisement for allowing Gays, HomoZexuals, Liberals, Intellectuals, Persons With Personal Oaths Of Honor, and Persons who would Raise Up A mere national constitution Above The Divinely Revealed Divine Will!!!
But IF 'moral authority' is a part of the 'religious experience' - and it is NOT the State Authority, with the power to torture anyone, anywhere, then does it not raise itself up as an opposition to the State - and as we have all learned since 09/11/2001, such can only mean that it is just one more form of Terrorism sponsored by Gays, HomoZexuals, Liberals, Intellectuals, Persons With Personal Oaths Of Honor, and Persons who would Raise Up A mere national constitution Above The Divinely Revealed Divine Will!!!
At which point, there can ONLY be the National Religion definining the Will And Power of the State!!! As the Divine Revelation Reveals!!!
Which as we have also noted, does not at all require any form of credibility. Merely Power!!!
I mean, do americans actually believe that we invaded Iraq to find the WMDs? Or that we invaded Iraq to bring Democracy??? or which ever is the new excuse before we finally arrive, as we always must, at the "true truth" that is so much truthier, that this has always been about the Holy Crusade Against Iranian Flying Saucers!!! So that we can cleans the dark blotch of the Iranian Occupation Of The American Embassy!!! Back in the Dark Days when the preacher from plains was unwilling to be a true believer in the True Nuclear Power Of Jesus as the True National Religion!!!!
Thus we arrive at that happy moment when we can rest assured that there is no reason for credibility, or any form of moral authority, that does not derive itself from the Torture Chambers and Death Camps of the State!!!!
All Hail Great Leader!!! For Great Leader Will Win the Name The 2007 National Day Of Torture Campaign!!!! For Great Leader Understands the Importance of Torture as a true tenant of the True National Religion!!!!