Christians the new Negro? Say it ain’t so, Ken!
By switzerblog. Filed in Religious nonsense |
Ken Hutcherson, pastor of the Antioch Church in Kirkland, WA, has extended the reach of his bizarre view of Christianity to World Net Daily with today’s article, titled Christians are the new Negro. Setting aside his odd decision to use a term that he himself has said is offensive, it’s interesting that he’s chosen this view.
Pastor Ken hasn’t been shy about saying that those fighting for their civil rights shouldn’t compare themselves to the civil rights fight of our country’s African Americans – even writing an op-ed in the Seattle Times to that effect. In that piece, he wrote:
The comparison of the plight of the gay community to slavery is a stretch; remember, gays were never called "three-fifths" human, according to the Constitution, and they did not require the Voting Rights Act to gain the same democratic rights as whites.
Now let’s see what he has to say today.
The reason is because there are undeniable similarities. Jim Crow laws were passed to keep me from having my constitutional rights and my rights under the Declaration of Independence of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Even though the Constitution gave me those freedoms, man was smart enough to be able to keep me from living those freedoms by saying I was "separate but equal."
Now, what “Jim Crow laws” are being passed to keep Christians from enjoying their constitutional rights? His example is the Hate Crimes legislation, which provides for harsher penalties if it can be proved that a crime is committed for the sole reason of a person’s race, religion, or (this is the real problem for Ken) sexual preference. So while gays can’t be the new Negro because they were never called “three-fifths” human (fair enough), Christians can be the new Negro because Congress thinks they shouldn’t commit crimes against gay people just because they’re gay. Frankly, the logic here eludes me. Does Ken wish us to follow Uganda’s lead and allow gays to be murdered for being gay? Wait, don’t answer that… So, what other examples does Ken have of his constitutional rights being denied?
Another way secular society is trying to control Christians is by the fallacy of the separation of church and state. That establishment clause was intended to protect the church from the state, not to keep the church from participating in the state. Christians’ ignorance of the meaning of the establishment clause has allowed us to be controlled just like the African Americans were in the 1950s and ’60s.
Okay. This is an example of Christian historicity, where they’ve tried to change the history of the country to reflect a Christian identity. More importantly, this is not actually a “way secular society is trying to control Christians”. The reality is that the establishment clause was in fact a two-way barrier – to ensure the church was not involved in government, nor government in the church. His view of this is simply a fallacy. What else?
If you don’t believe one could be attacked for their stand on Judeo-Christian beliefs alone, take the case of Miss California, Carrie Prejean. Look at her refusal to compromise her Christian values. She has been vilified, demonized and lost her title simply because of her constitutional right to freedom of religion.
Hee-hee. Yeah, her constitutional rights were definitely the problem there…not her refusal to attend events and honor her contract. And definitely not her hypocrisy – I wonder what Christian values she was refusing to compromise when she made her jack-off video for her boyfriend? (btw, I don’t give a shit about her video…but it certainly shines a light on her “I am an agent of God” image) Let’s keep digging!
I’m going to skip his defense of Sarah Palin, because let’s be real here – it ain’t her faith people are picking on, it’s her being stupid, vapid, an empty vessel, hypocritical, unqualified, a quitter…gosh, do I need to go on? I’ll also skip his complaints of pastors in other countries being oppressed, since I hope I don’t have to explain that our constitutional rights don’t carry over to Norway’s citizens…in Norway.
Instead, I’m going to give you a long quote about Christmas – so long, it appears to be the crux of his complaint!
If you don’t think Christians have become the new Negro, just look at Christmas! We are no longer able to celebrate Christmas in schools. Even though as taxpayers, our tax dollars help pay for our broken educational system, we are forced to celebrate winter break and the fabulous "holiday tree!"
How about the wonderful greeting, "Happy Holidays!"? Department stores are afraid to put up signs with the word "Christmas" on them. Don’t mistakenly think this is anything new. Secular society began taking Christ out of Christmas when they started calling it "Xmas" – and we let it happen.
In my wonderful state of Washington just last year, Gov. Christine Gregoire and the state legislators allowed an Atheist Manifesto to be put up right next to the Nativity scene of our Lord Jesus Christ! I have to say straightforward: the state of Washington is the armpit of the United States, and our lovely legislators are supplying the odiferous scent to the armpit.
Because 2008 was such a disaster, this year there will be no Christmas or religious displays in the Capitol rotunda, period. Oh, except they will put up a huge holiday tree.
Can anybody tell me where common sense is? Everyone in the world knows it’s a Christmas tree. This nonsense is all in the name of tolerance toward whom? It’s certainly not toward those of us who hold strong Judeo-Christian values. As Christians, it’s an attack on what we hold dear. But just like the Negroes, Christians should understand they are not equal under the Constitution’s right to freedom of religion.
Let’s be clear about a couple things here. Departments stores saying “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” is just good business – it’s inclusive. And most importantly, it doesn’t prevent Ken, as a Christian, from replying with his own Merry Christmas, or putting up a Christmas tree in his house, or wandering around holding a cross. His rights are not being abridged here. Next, is it odd to anyone else that in a screed complaining about his rights being abridged, he complains about atheists being allowed to put up their own display at a collection of holiday displays? I thought we were talking here about religious freedom…oh wait, he means Christian freedom, not actual religious freedom. And hey, just FYI – Christmas trees aren’t found in the story of Jesus, or anywhere in the Bible – they’re a pagan tradition that were outlawed for religious reasons early in our country’s history!
And then there’s this:
The only difference between Christians and African Americans is that Christians put up with this intolerance while standing behind the false disguise of humility and love. We are obsessed with showing the world our love when our primary job is to tell them the truth.
Ken, your complaints fall on deaf ears not because you’re being oppressed, but because you preach nonsense. You demand intolerance of others, but rail against perceived intolerance against you. You go so far as to claim that tolerance of others is intolerance against you! You wear the collar of the clergy of a church founded upon the very tenets of humility and love, yet call those tenets a false disguise. You focus on sex, sex, sex – the beam in other’s eyes – while ignoring the failure to embrace and love your brother as Jesus teaches you – the beam in your own.
Learn to love your brother as yourself, Ken. Then, we can all break bread around a common table. And I can stop making fun of your stupid ass.
Thursday, April 29th 2010 at 6:02 am |
Carrie Prejean deserves to have her crown. She is beauiful and is also entitled to her own opinion about gays. :-
Saturday, June 5th 2010 at 11:23 am |
She is very beautiful and of course she’s entitled to her own opinion about gays. But the crown isn’t a *right*, it’s a *job*. Once she won, she was employed by the pageant, and she refused to attend the events they needed her to attend. You get fired for that, like it or not. If she’d done her job, she’d have kept her crown.