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Lifestyles Left and Right
Men of Action
In one of the many great lines in the movie The Princess Bride, Wesley stands before Prince Humperdinks' six-fingered military guru -- his shoulder mangled and bloody from the Fire Swamp -- and quips with a smirk before he's whisked to the dungeon: "We are men of action. Lies do not become us."
If only that could be said of religious activists shuffling around Washington today. While they're certainly not known for lies, they could do well by being more action-oriented when it comes to lobbying their conservative causes. Yesterday on the National Day of Prayer, several legislators along with prominent religious leaders like Dr. James Dobson and Gary Bauer, helped reintroduce a resolution that names the first week of May "Religious History Week." The "Spiritual Heritage Resolution" was first introduced in 2007 and describes how politics and religion have intersected since America's birth and throughout her short history.
The timing is significant. The country now has a socially liberal president who prefers golfing to church on Sundays and may ignore America's religious heritage. Indeed, in a news release by bill co-sponsor Rep. Randy Forbes' (R-VA) office, the bill was brought back to life for that reason. "Recently, President Barack Obama claimed while in Turkey that "we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation, or a Jewish nation...," Newsweek stated that this is "The End of Christian America," and a Pew study reported that the percentage of people who say they are unaffiliated with any particular faith has doubled in recent years."
Still, a resolution that seeks to confirm America's religious heritage or our love of apple pie does little to spur results for the causes conservative Christians hold dear. Even its very format -- a resolution, not a bill -- is like admitting you've struck out before going up to bat. By definition, resolutions are "often statements of policy, belief or appreciation, and not always enactments of statutes or ordinances."
Translation: they're more talk than action. While such resolutions are far from the most harmful things are government is doing right now, it's not exactly helpful either. The country's religious heritage can best be affirmed by deeds, not words.
Two hundred years ago, William Wilberforce sponsored legislation that went far beyond words. The man of faith and activism repeatedly offered his fellow members of Parliament a chance to vote on his bill and abolish the profitable, commonplace, but inhumane slave trade. After twenty years, they finally took him up on it. Wilberforce's body has long turned to dust but his example remains relevant even today. It may have been easier to just sponsor a resolution encouraging his fellow legislators to admit slavery was cruel -- but not nearly as effective in the long run.
The late Congressman Henry Hyde followed in Wilberforce's footsteps and lived like a man of action. He sponsored the Hyde Amendment, passed in 1976 and again revised in 1993, which bans public funding of abortions through Medicaid. The National Right to Life Committee estimated that the Hyde Amendment has prevented at least one million abortions. When Hyde's son accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom on his father's behalf, President George W. Bush said Hyde "was a gallant champion of the weak and forgotten, and a fearless defender of life in all seasons." Such accolades don't come from sponsoring passive resolutions in light of the bolder alternative.
Some legislators today are carrying the torch towards more aggressive legislation. In January, Senator David Vitter (R-LA) introduced the Abortion Non-Discrimination Act of 2009 -- which, if passed, would amend the Public Health Service Act to include a clause that a health entity can refuse to provide cover or pay for abortions on moral grounds without fear of discrimination from federal, state or local governments that financially support the institution.
Again, in January, fellow Rep. Clifford Stearns (R-FL) introduced the Informed Choice Act, which the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to nonprofit community based pregnancy help medical clinics for the purchase of ultrasound equipment. It then describes a list of duties each grantee must perform such as informing the patient of the age of the fetus. Some sources say a pregnant woman who sees her baby via ultrasound is twice as likely to choose life for her child. Even this small piece of legislation could promote one of the many causes of religious conservatives in a tangible, more effective way than a resolution that does nothing but take up paper.
Given the liberal makeup up of Congress, most -- probably all -- of these bills will fail this session. But then, some bills, like Wilberforce's, take longer than others. Isn't one constructive piece every twenty years worth more than twenty resolutions annually?
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Gwen| 5.8.09 @ 9:40AM
You are right on Nicole! Were there more Wilburforces in our political scene. Better yet, were we all Wilburforces!
Michael L. Hauschild| 5.8.09 @ 10:10AM
Man of Action? Henry Hyde flip flopped on the semi-auto firearm issue virtually assuring the passage of the "Assault Rifle" ban, currently sunsetted, but now being touted by the new administration. At that time I was competing in the Division of Civilian Marksmanship Program and he "banned" the civilian version of the particular firearm I fired in the matches. One of the most ironic aspects of this was the parking lot at the Van Meter Range in Iowa where I competed was full of Purple Heart license plates.
Flipflopper (R) or liar (D) make no difference to me. Pox on those who infringe.
fundamentalist| 5.8.09 @ 1:16PM
I disagree. I am a religious conservative and I don't think we should use the state to further our goals. We have the power of the Word, the Truth and the Holy Spirit on our side. Resorting to legislation is nothing but an admission that those three have failed. And if those fail, what makes us think the law will be more powerful?
Abortion is an easy issue. It seems to be a no brainer for legislation. But we have failed for 40 years to get such legislation while abortions are down as a result of mere preaching.
If conservatives would stick with just the abortion issue, I might could support that, but look what a mess of the world we have made with our anti-drug policy. Drug use is rampant and worse then ever while that demand is destroying Mexico, Columbia, Bolivia and Venezuela.
Conservative Christians can't handle political power. One victory leads us to hunger for more and gives us the fevered delusion that we can establish the Kingdom on earth now. Better to eschew temptation and stick to what we do best--preaching--and let God take care of the results. If that doesn't work, God has built into society terrible consequences for disobedience and no legislation will stop it.
Alan Brooks| 5.8.09 @ 8:41PM
fundie,
we have to arrest drug kingpins.
down with libertarians!
this isn't heaven? then drug enforcement will always be a mess.
Pingback| 5.8.09 @ 9:03PM
Topics about Alliance-of-freedom | Men of Action links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
AAlan Brooks| 5.8.09 @ 9:11PM
we have to err on the side of conservative govt-- not libertarianism.
decency comes first; freedom is second.
Dave Lincoln| 5.9.09 @ 9:46AM
I understand your view, Fundamentalist, especially your point about the useless and unconstitutional drug war. However, if more secular-minded people don't fight this battle for you, you may be really limited in your ability to pray, much less preach, at all within 15 years.
What are you gonna do then, preacher? Forget Praise the Lord, pass the ammo at that point. The ammo and your guns will have been confiscated, and you'll get a bullet through the back of your head if you dare to get on your knees to pray. Turning the other cheek is fine, but American freedom-lovers have turned their cheeks more than 7 times 70 times. It's time to put some buckshot into the socialists' cheeks now.
Seymour Kleerly| 5.9.09 @ 7:04PM
The reason religion is dying in the US. is because it has been a leading force in the Conservative Republican movement. Since it's followers will believe absolutly anything , not just religious myths and superstition, religion has proven to be anti-intellectual. War, Greed, intolerence, racism, anti-science, all halmarks of the Religious Right, would be despised by Christ.
Dave Lincoln| 5.9.09 @ 9:39PM
Bad spelling (including even your own damn name!) would also be despised by Christ, Mr. Kreepy, not to mention your false witnessing w.r.t. Conservatives. With a sick mind like yours, you better damn well hope your name is really Robert Johnson* , and that, though eternally damned, you are at least a good guitarist. So, play them blues, Robert or STFU!
* He sold his soul to the devil so he could play guitar, in case you don't know about this either, ya moron.
ds80| 5.10.09 @ 7:52AM
"Seymour Kleerly" bearing false witness. If I were you, Seymour, I'd be very afraid. There is a God and he aint you. And you even go so far as to presume to speak for Christ. Well, have fun riding your science into perdition.
Religion hasn't died anywhere. Conservatives have kept its practice alive.
Daisy| 5.11.09 @ 3:50AM
Seymour doesn't see very clearly. Atheists such as: Mao, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, Castro, etc., were responsible for the hideous suffering and slaughter of millions upon millions of innocent people in the twentieth century alone. No admirers of Christ in that bunch of atheists--all were hateful, intolerant liberals like Seenothing Kleerly.
Alan Brooks| 5.12.09 @ 2:38AM
My ass kinda itches... any of you wanna scratch it for me?
Alan Brooks| 5.12.09 @ 2:38AM
My ass kinda itches... any of you wanna scratch it for me?
Richard Baker| 5.15.09 @ 12:23AM
To Alan Brooks:
It is better to be thought a fool then to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
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