In the past few decades, we have seen the deleterious influence of the Christian Right in America, promoted in the 1970s and 1980s and beyond by the likes of the late Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson.
They and other preachers have utilized their influence to attempt to dominate American politics, and promote a right wing agenda that promotes intolerance and hate.
This includes opposition to women’s rights to control their own bodies (misogyny); opposition to gay rights and gay marriage; the repudiation of science for the teachings of the Bible; the rewriting of American history to make it seem that the Founding Fathers wanted a national religion and a theocracy to govern us; advocacy of war overseas against Islamic civilization; promotion of nativism on the issue of immigration; belief that school prayer will somehow change America in their direction; and attempts to legislate morality limits through control of government.
Originally known as the Moral Majority and Christian Coalition, many of these preachers have become super rich and gained the following of millions who have stopped using their brains, and just accept the unethical, hypocritical utterances of charismatic figures.
Despite this, there is now evidence that more Americans, particularly the young and disaffected, have abandoned organized religion and its narrow minded tenets. The Pew Research Center describes this group as the “Nones”, and they are 22.8 percent of US adults, up from 16.7 percent in 2007. Meanwhile, those who identify as Christian have declined nationally from 78 to 71 percent, including not only evangelicals but also Catholics and mainline Protestants and Mormons. There has also been growing disillusionment with the Catholic Church, mainline Protestant sects, and the Mormon Church.
The “Nones” outnumber Catholics (20.8 percent) and mainline Protestants (14.7 percent), demonstrating a constant decline in adults who identify as being Christians. “Nones” include those who have no religious affiliation, as well as those who say they are Atheists and Agnostics.
Evangelical Protestants still are the largest group at 25.8 percent, but they have declined, and it is clear that the “Nones” will eventually surpass them in the adult population of America over the next couple of decades, as many of the Evangelicals are older and will die off over time, as young Americans reject their divisive ideology!
A lot of my friends are now attending non-denominational churches.
“and attempts to legislate morality limits through control of government.” You mean to say that government does not take morality in account when legislating???? This phrase is confusing…
I wonder how many of the 71% of Christians are followers of Falwell and Robertson? I am Catholic, my wife Jewish/Israeli, and am I part of a divisive ideology? Do I promote hate and racism? This post comes through as if all Christians are stopped using their brains. It also comes through as if Christianity is against science when science was saved centuries ago by precisely Christianity.
Max, I am talking about RIGHT WING Christianity of the evangelical type, such as Falwell in the past and Robertson and many others today promote their hateful agenda, and influence people in the South and Midwest.
I am not referring to mainline Protestants, Catholics in general, and nondenominational groups.
Legislating morality does not work, as those who preach it are the biggest sinners, whether pastors or politicians, have you noticed?
Right wing evangelicals reject science, and argue the earth is six thousand years old, and deny evolution, and have a creationist museum in Kentucky.
You are correct that the Catholic Church at times promoted science, although the Popes persecuted scientists such as Galileo.
But don’t we as a society legislate against crime and thus impose certain moral values on society, on ourselves? Do we not prosecute pedophiles, contrary to some countries that have a different set of “moral” values? In essence my problem is that sometimes, just because some want to re-define marriage, they practically go to the other extreme of eliminating all moral values from legislating. We have laws against prostitution, why? Because it is morally unacceptable. And I am not talking about pimps and organized sex trafficking but single women who just wish to work as prostitutes, minding their own business and not hurting anyone. Yet, society sees it as morally unacceptable behavior and criminalizes it. So I believe morality always has been and is taken in consideration when making legislative choices. Why we even legislate against incest and marriage between brothers sister etc. is prohibited. All those are moral values and judgment society as whole through its representative make, don’t you think?
Max, I would agree with what you say, based on how you are portraying it, but there is a lot of hypocrisy in the execution of legislation and enforcement, which tends to hurt the poor more than those with assets and “friends”, allowing them to avoid prosecution.
What is terrible is when moral values are promoted by people who do not follow them, causing cynicism about government and politics.
“but there is a lot of hypocrisy in the execution of legislation and enforcement, which tends to hurt the poor more than those with assets and “friendsâ€, allowing them to avoid prosecution.” ????? You lost me there.
Yes, Max, I have lost you there, as you say, because you think people with assets and “friends” are treated the same under the law.
You are dense to reality, and very satisfied with justice as it is, because you have things going well for you.
At the same time, I have things going well for myself, but I am not so cocky and self assured that I forget or fail to realize how difficult life is for others in this society.
I am appreciative of good fortune, but always concerned about others, as “There but for the grace of God go I!”
Stunning how without even knowing my life story you make judgments. And aggressive judgments I may add. I any event what does your attack on me, or the justice system have anything to do with the fact that as a society, both at state and even federal level, when we legislate we do it based on moral values? Which I believe was my question. You seem to imply that morality has no place in our legislative agenda. Now you seem to say that because justice is not “fair”, that those with “assets” have justice while the poor do not, then morality should never be taken into consideration when legislating. That’s baffling and incoherent if I may say so.
I am not incoherent, and no reason for you to be baffled.
The point is you are not poor, and I am not poor, and I can conclude that, I believe, to be correct. I did not mean to be overly aggressive, and I apologize for that, if you feel that I was.
But until one understands poverty, one cannot but feel it is unjust, particularly when so many in that state are children, who have no control over their lives.
If we make a consumer society, and yet have fights over miniscule amounts of food stamps, then indeed we have a system where those who “have” have no concern as long as they get their desires met.
But we are not islands, but part of a society, and we need to care about others less fortunate.
Hopefully, things are clearer now!
Morality DOES play a role, but it should be the same for rich and poor!
Believe me, I understand poverty very well, and I am not talking about what it is to be poor in America. The poor in America have no clue what real poverty is, and that is a good thing. Now I do hope there are less “poor in America” , everyone wishes that. The question seems to be how to achieve that. And by my personal experience of living abroad for many years, both in Europe and South America, only free market capitalist America gives those at the bottom not only an opportunity to rise up the ladder, but , and this is the most important thing, also in the MEANTIME ,while one is struggling to rise up, you have a decent life. And by that I mean a better life than the overwhelming majority of the rest of the world so called “middle class”.
Oh believe me, Max, I am full aware that poverty in America is not anything like it is in the rest of the world.
But that is not good enough is my point.