UPDATE: Intended Fred Phelps Picket
Evaporates
"Virtuous" Vultures Circle Aurora, Colorado.
The largest mass shooting in American History has wreaked havoc upon the
American psyche, but perhaps the source of the most anxiety is coming from the
pulpit: not since 9-11 have we seen such an outpouring of accusatory broadcasts
and sermons. The onslaught was so huge and intense, it has taken as many days
for it to sink in as the tragedy itself.
Of course, tragedies like Aurora provide a stellar platform for the self-righteous:
they feed on them, reveling in making Americans feel as guilty as possible
while glorying in their misery. They usually come out with a field team of
what's been termed as God's Ambulance Chasers - those who anticipate disasters
when they can rain Bibles onto the heads of disaster victims*, place digital
speakers strategically among victims (as was done in Haiti), or call for prayer
over a heathen people.**
Right now, a phenomenon worse than God's Ambulance Chasers is taking place:
"Virtuous" Vultures are circling Aurora Colorado ... and the rest of
the nation. The term, of course, is an intended contradiction in terms (much
like the Christian Right itself), these vultures being anything but virtuous -
but touting themselves as such. As vultures, they pick over what they consider
a dead society, tearing at the flesh of humanity by placing the blame on
individuals and groups - like Obama and gays - all the while feeding their own
righteous arrogance.
These are not venial (forgivable) vultures:
denigrating man for your own gain (whether it be material or spiritual) is
unforgivable, because no matter what evil some men have done, the rest of
humanity deserves love and respect.
Solace From The Few, Condemnation From The Many
On Sunday, it [Mississippi Avenue Baptist Church of Aurora, Colo.]
was packed to capacity -- as were churches of other denominations throughout
this shattered Colorado town -- with worshippers seeking solace, and answers.
President Barack Obama was on Sunday touring Colorado to console
the families of the victims.
Around the country, Christian congregations were praying for the
solace of the victims and their families, but "socially conservative"
leaders and clergy were pointing contemptuous fingers at the rest of the
nation: in sermons across the country, a Hell-less,
God-less, Gay-accepting, Socialist-embracing America was to blame. And the
hyphenated terms don't stop there: hell-fire dominates the Christian Right's landscape and it will be
featured heavily in the future to effect as much guilt, shame, and misery as
possible.
Below are just some of the parts of sermons and responses to the
tragedy. (Warning: disturbing views that are tactless and patently absurd may
cause physical illness).
Fred Jackson, the American Family Association's news director,
while discussing the Colorado movie theater shooting today said that liberal
Christian churches and liberal media helped contribute to violent incidents by
supposedly de-emphasizing the
fear of God and the Bible.
And continued to attack other Christians:
"The AFA Journal
has been dealing with denominations that no longer believe in the God of the
Bible, they no longer believe that Jesus is the only way of salvation, they
teach that God is OK with homosexuality, this is just increasing more and
more."
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