[Oe List ...] Palin's "Theology"

[LAURELCG at aol.com]

SARAH PALIN:  God’s Warrior

The Christian Right is electrified  over the nomination of Sarah Palin.  
So far what few have picked up on  is that Palin comes directly out of the 
Christian Dominionist movement which  affirms that followers of Christ have a 
God-given mandate to seize political,  military and economic control of the 
world, claiming victory and embracing a  divinely pre-scripted destiny of 
universal Christian rule.   

To put this in perspective, within the Bible there are two  competing, 
contradictory narratives.  One narrative posits God as a tribal  warrior electing 
one people, while excluding others.  This God commands  ethnic cleansing of the 
enemy, strict codes of public purity, and hierarchical  political order.  God 
is an almighty king. The second narrative is a  repudiation of this.  God, in 
this perspective, is universal and embraces  diversity, compassion, and mercy. 
  All of the nations of the earth  have gifts and graces, and are beloved.   
God is partnering  love.

Palin emerges from the radical Christian extreme that interprets  the Bible, 
and Christian life from the perspective of a tribal god whose purity  demands 
that those who cannot or will not conform must be brought into  obedience. 
Palin is a product of the end-times spirituality that embraces any  means 
necessary to impose righteousness on a people who are fundamentally in  rebellion 
against the holiness of our Creator.  


With George  Bush, the Christian Right got caught up in his messianic 
pretensions.  With  Palin the real deal has arrived.  She is a product of right-wing 
Christian  culture.   She has been formed in the image of the blood thirsty,  
righteous warrior god, who has a seething contempt against the plurality of a  
culture defined as immoral and therefore as enemy to be brought into  
obedience.   

Palin’s contempt for American culture was on  display in her mocking comment, 
“Al-Qaida terrorists still plot to inflict  catastrophic harm on America ... 
he's (Obama) worried that someone won't read  them their rights.”    Never 
mind that it is these civil rights  that most clearly define American idealism 
and democracy, never mind that civil  rights are an affirmation of equality, and 
a limit to the power of the  State.  In Palin’s faith-based world, such focus 
on civil rights are  secondary to the righteous zeal of one who will continue 
the messianic madness  that believes we possess the capacity to rid the world 
of evil.

Indeed,  the culture war is back full throttle.   Palin has the capacity to 
win  the hearts and atrophied minds of both small town working class America, 
as well  as the growing phenomenon of young urban professionals who are 
increasingly  attracted to conservative sanctuaries like the 10,000 member Mars Hill 
Church.  


Christian fascism is alive and well.   In a world that has  spun out of 
control the appeal to a “strong man” is powerfully seductive.   And coming from 
the lips of a sexy, spitfire, stealth candidate, I worry that  such an appeal 
will win the day.



Rev. Rich Lang is the Pastor of  Trinity United Methodist in Ballard.  He can 
be reached through  www.tumseattle.org



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