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Oct. 24, 2005 Americans today go to work, learn and live amidst a burgeoning new revolution. This revolution does not find its roots in a party-incited class war or sudden revelation about our system of government, but from the pews and pulpits in every state, county, city and parish. The United States, it seems, is engulfed in an old-fashioned religious revival. If only the messengers would get it right. The rapid increase in religious discourse entering our daily lives is staggering, and there are as many viewpoints on the subject as there are men and women of faith to speak them. Rev. Pat Robertson preaches about a stricter, more conservative society, while men like Rev. Jim Wallis write and speak about using the Bible to enhance the crusade for what Wallis calls a "good society." Even politicians from both parties seem to have wrapped themselves in the cloth. The problem is, though, that no one seems to be saying what needs to be said. Conservative Republican Sen. Rick Santorum often takes to the Senate floor to quote scripture in his ideological fight against homosexuality and abortion, speaking as if he were under a revival tent in rural Iowa. However, on the subject of poverty and its possible cures, Santorum remains mostly mute. The same goes for nearly every member of the so-called "Religious Right." According to research done by the Sojourner?s Institute, a religious organization that focuses on helping America's most impoverished, one in every sixteen lines of the Bible makes reference to the poor, while one in every five lines of the Gospel of Matthew discusses the topic. This fact alone makes the poor and poverty the most referenced subject in the Bible, well ahead of homosexuals or any of the "traditional values" touted by so many on Capitol Hill. The Bible holds many examples of Jesus eating with and living among the poor and the lepers - outcasts of society comparable to AIDS victims today. Perhaps the clearest statement of Jesus? position on the poor and outcast comes when he says, "As you have treated the least of these among you, so have you treated me." You just don?t seem to hear that line of compassion coming from anywhere in Washington. A national budget that slashes after-school program funding, under-funds the No Child Left Behind Act, reduces payments from Medicare and Medicaid and puts an increased burden on the middle class while enacting a continual policy of tax cuts for the top 10% does not seem to be in line with the teachings and beliefs of Jesus. In Washington, politicians are increasingly accepting a version of religion that leaves out those who are most in need while bending to self-interest and lobbying power. That is not right. When politicians wear religion on their sleeves, they hold the obligation of carrying with them all tenets of that religion. The Bible cannot be selectively followed and ignored in areas where the teachings of Jesus do not mesh well with the policies of party politics. We must learn that there is nothing wrong with compassion for the poor, "the least of these," the outcasts who have the smallest voice in the machinations of our great nation. Isn't it time politicians started looking at the tax cuts they propose and asking that simple question, "What would Jesus do"? ------------ About the author: Max Burns is an 18 year old moderate Democrat and student at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va, where he is a Government and International Relations major. He is a political columnist for the George Mason Broadside and author of the novel Alcardia, as well as several short stories. Email: centristdonkey@gmail.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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