Liberal or conservative: Well, WWJD?

[Stuckinthebush]

Hello???!!!!! This was in today's Birmingham News. Shocked is too light of a word for what I experienced when I read it. Enjoy.

http://www.al.com/search/index.ssf?/base/opinion/1091958356119330.xml?birminghamnews?ocom


Liberal or conservative: Well, WWJD?
Sunday, August 08, 2004
GERALD W. JOHNSON

No terms are thrown around more loosely or more pejoratively today than "liberal" and "conservative." Preachers, politicians and citizens engage in a kind of political and religious profiling almost totally devoid of substance.

Conservative is equated with what is right, godly, moral, religious and politically on the right - Republican. A caller to a radio talk show when asked if he was a liberal or a conservative, replied, "Oh, I am a conservative; God doesn't like liberals."

Liberal is equated with what is wrong, ungodly, immoral, irreligious and politically on the left - Democrat.

{snip}

It seems to me, however, that a reading of the New Testament clearly shows that Jesus, the model for us Christians, as well as others, was a social, economic, political and religious liberal, maybe radical, but certainly not conservative.

{snip}

So, what would Jesus do? The WWJD bracelet that some wear today asks the right question. The right answer is, I believe, He would enjoy people, tell them what they can be and care about their needs. He would be for Social Security for the elderly. For health care and education for all. And an environmentalist. He would be for justice in our courts and fairness in our taxes. He would know the difference between church and state and would promote the universal church while affirming the state. He would be for a good return on investments and even more so for good use of the returns.

[GreyPilgrim]

1. Wow

I'm impressed that it even appeared on AL.com. Wonder if the freeps in the Hardball Politics section of that site noticed this? :)

[Stuckinthebush]

4. Ain't that the truth, GreyPilgrim

After reading it, I ran to the computer just knowing that al.com wouldn't have it linked.

There was also an article in the paper today that discusses how Bush will need a miracle to pull off the election.

An interesting day in the Bham News!

[Aunt Anti-bush]

8. Hi Grey Pilgrim!

Welcome to DU!

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. Love Your Neighbor As Yourself

Jesus's second commandment, tells it all. When one looks at the conservative agenda, which is based on cynical distrust of people, it makes it highly unlikely that Jesus would follow it.

[monchie]

3. Do unto others...

...as you would have done unto yourself. Sounds to me like the liberal philosophy boiled down into one sentence.

And it's certainly different to the right-wing philosophy, which can be boiled down into "Screw unto others before they screw unto you."

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. Dead Radicals

About Jesus:

"A religious conservative is a fanatic about a dead radical."

[Union Thug]

6. Two Thumbs UP! Waaay UP! /eom

[Aunt Anti-bush]

7. That article deserves a big kick!

:kick:

[struggle4progress]

9. "Men reject their prophets and slay them but love their martyrs and ...

... honor those whom they have slain." Fyodor Dostoyevsky