Drastic Times

According to an article in the Kansas City Star, Pastor Steven Anderson of the Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Arizona, has been praying for the death of President Obama. In a sermon titled "Why I Hate Obama," Anderson admits that he prays for the president's demise (see the accompanying video - skip to 320 if you don't want to see the introduction). Says Anderson, "If you want to know how I'd like to see Obama die, I'd like him to die of natural causes," said Anderson. "I don't want him to be a martyr, we don't need another holiday. I'd like to see him die, like Ted Kennedy, of brain cancer."

Anderson's message of hatred may have not had the effect that he had intended, for he and his congregation have since received death threats. Yet despite the threats, Anderson's congregation clings to his message.

"If (Obama) thinks the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are obsolete, it would be better if (Obama) wasn't here," said parishioner Renee Houlihan.

Parishioner Christopher Broughton, commenting on Anderson's anti-Obama sermon, said, "I concur, I think we'd be better off if God would send (Obama) where he's going now instead of later," said Broughton. "(Obama) is destroying our country." Broughton, who claims that he moved near Anderson's church because he believed in its message, brought an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle outside Obama's speech to the VFW in Phoenix in August.

Not only are Anderson's followers carrying guns to political events, they've now taken to toting their guns back and forth to church to protect themselves from the death threats. Anderson's reaction to all of this was, "Guns are a great deterrent. We haven't had any violence because people know if they come down here swinging a baseball bat, we're ready to protect ourselves."

The US Secret Service claims that they're aware of Anderson's comments, and that an appropriate follow-up will be conducted. Personally, I believe that Anderson is instigating violence, if not murder, and should be locked up for the remainder of Obama's term - possibly longer. This is a dangerous man, inciting the weak-minded to commit an assassination by having them believe that God has ordained it. However, given the narrow-mindedness and violent nature of Anderson's congregation, I would imagine that the Secret Service is reluctant to act unnecessarily.

To go off on a small tangent here, I really think that Pastor Anderson has put the US Government in a rather interesting predicament. Obviously, it's illegal to ask anyone to kill the President of the United States. Anyone who requests such an act of another will be arrested, assuming I would imagine, that the person who is requested to perform the killing is real and capable of such an act. Although I don't know of a precedent, I would imagine however, that should someone simply speak into the air and ask an imaginary being to kill a president, the Secret Service may decline to get involved.

As for God, to those who believe in him he is quite capable of killing. The Bible credits him with over two million killed, and that doesn't even could the Great Deluge, Sodom and Gomorrah, plagues and other unique killing methods that he has supposedly used in the past. Therefore the question is, does the US Government believe God to be real?

Although the US Government claims to be secular, it has certainly done much to indicate its belief in God. Consider the following:

1. Our money says, "In God We Trust."

2. Our Pledge of Allegiance to our flag contains the words, "One Nation Under God."

3. The third verse of our national anthem says, "And this be our motto: 'In God is our trust.'"

4. the words, "Laus Deo" (Latin for "Praise Be To God") are engraved on the Washington Monument, along with several other references to God and Scripture.

5. The US Supreme Court made the statement, "This is a Christian Nation," in its decision in Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States, 1892.

There are other examples as well, including many quotes by our founding fathers and other politicians through Lincoln, Truman, Roosevelt and up to Reagan which not only indicate a personal belief in God, but stating that America is a Christian nation. For example:

1. "Without God there could be no American form of government, nor an American way of life. Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first, the most basic, expression of Americanism. Thus, the founding fathers of America saw it, and thus with God's help, it will continue to be."
- Dwight D. Eisenhower

2. "America was born a Christian nation."
- Woodrow Wilson, President

3. "This is a Christian nation."
- Harry Truman, President

And so, if America believes in God, who is capable of killing, then America is obligated to arrest Pastor Anderson for asking God to kill the president. I think that those Americans who believe that America is a Christian nation should demand that Anderson be arrested, for if America takes no action, this would in essence indicate that America denies God's existence.

And for those who don't believe that America is a Christian nation, Anderson's arrest should be demanded nonetheless because he's a manipulative and hateful lunatic.

Four children have been sent home this week from Gainesville Schools for being in violation of the school district's dress code. All of the children involved had been wearing shirts with an anti-Muslim statement, according to an article in the Gainesville Sun.

On their front, the T-shirts had a verse from the Gospel of John: "Jesus answered I am the way and the truth and the life; no one goes to the Father except through me," and this statement, "I stand in trust with Dove Outreach Center." The message "Islam is of the Devil" is on the back of the shirt.

One of the children involved, a 15 year old girl from Gainesville High School, said the decision to wear the shirt had been hers, and not her parents. She said the "devil" statement was aimed at Islam's beliefs and not its followers. She said, "The people are fine. The people are people. They can be saved like anyone else."

It's interesting what this girl had hoped that the believers of Islam could be saved from. Could they be saved from the hatred that her church was trying to spread? A more important question would be whether children who are members of the Dove Outreach Center could be saved from the narrow-minded teachings of their own church.

Although the child was trying to protect her parents in saying the decision was her own, her father showed that he was by no means above ignorant statements of his own, saying that society has grown "so tolerant of being tolerant" that free speech is eroding. In selectively protecting those parts of the Constitution that benefited him at the moment, this student's father apparently forgot that America not only has freedom of speech, but freedom of religion as well.

Some of the blame for the ignorance of the Dove Outreach Center's congregation must be placed with the church's Senior Pastor, Dr. Terry Jones, who said, to him, spreading the church's message was "even more important than education itself." When interviewed about an anti-Muslim sign in front of his church, Dr. Jones said, "The purpose of the sign is to expose Islam for what it is. It is a violent and oppressive religion that is trying to masquerade itself as a religion of peace."

It's my opinion that all organized religions are oppressive. While Islam may have had its share of violence and hypocrisy, Christianity is far from innocent itself. In fact, messages of hatred such as those of the Dove Outreach Center and the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, may place Christianity on the top of the hypocritical list.

Fortunately, the general population of Gainesville does not agree with the Dove Outreach Center's message of hatred, and according to an examiner.com article, they came out in droves to protest the sign.
People of all faiths and backgrounds came out with their own signs such as, "Who Would Jesus Hate?" "Love Thy Neighbor," and "God is Great. Love not Hate." The protesters have pledged to stay there until the sign comes down.

Pastor Eve MacMaster, of the Emmanuel Mennonite Church, said of the crowd of protesters, "I am blessed by these good people. They're great. Secularist, Muslim, Jewish, Christian whatever. This confirms my belief that this is a pretty good place to live."