Why Bush is a Deluded Religious Zealot

[J Williams]

I’d like to share three paragraphs from a book I recently read. This comes after a discussion about the myth of the “end times” and a “final war.”

“But even worse, false beliefs are leading some zealots who have a propensity for violence to believe that they should try to help start the ‘final world war’ (or at least feed the fires of existing conflict and violence so that it will turn into the final war), believing that it will bring on the Christ’s ‘second coming’ and the ‘end of this world.’ In fact, some preachers on the Christian Right even helped George W. Bush to beat the war drums for the war on Iraq by claiming that it would fulfill the prophecy of the ‘sixth angel’ who ‘poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates...’ (Revelation 16:12)”

“You see, even though it’s not well known, Bush subscribes to the doctrine of ‘end times’ (eschatology), known as ‘dominionism.’ It is the eschatology through which Bush has come to see himself as an agent of God. As journalist Bob Woodward has said sarcastically, ‘The president was casting his mission and that of the country in the grand vision of God’s Master Plan.’ And in Woodward’s more recent book The Plan of Attack, he reveals Bush’s immense pride in his belief that he’s ‘doing God’s will’ by waging war.”

“Like so many religious zealots today, Bush thinks his mission is to be a ‘holy warrior for God,’ unwittingly becoming not entirely unlike Osama bin Laden, who also thinks he is a ‘holy warrior for God (Allah).’ And while that is not to compare them in terms of their actions or goals, it is simply to say that neither of them realize that they have been misguided and suffer from different degrees of egocentric delusion. Both of them assume they know what God’s will is. Both of them think it means judging and killing the evil enemy. And both kill in the name of God/Allah, ignoring what the Bible and the Qur’an say about preemptive, offensive, indiscriminate killing, and ignoring what Jesus said about not judging, and loving even our enemies.”

Those are direct quotes from a book titled What IS the World Coming To? (ISBN: 059531998X) It fully exposes Bush and the Religious Right.

To read the introduction, there is a browse feature at: http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_de...n=0-595-31998-X

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. Thanks for the link! I will

check it out. (on edit: it doesn't seem to work)

--------------------------------------------------------------
And God told His children: "I love you. Play nice."

Would Jesus love a liberal? You bet!
http://www.geocities.com/greenpartyvoter/liberalchristians.htm

[wryter2000]

2. Welcome to DU

:hi:

[coloradodem2005]

3. Scary scary stuff.

I always thought of Bush as a "bad Christian" but this is beyond the pale.

[BootinUp]

4. One quick point... thats spelled "Zell-ot"

Ok, I'll read the rest now. ;)

[Blecht]

5. Correct link

http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=059531998X

For those who are into this kind of thing ...

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

6. Thank you for this!

Bush is a nominal Methodist. I was raised in that church, and I can assure you that there wasn't an emphasis on "end times" when I was a member. In fact, the stress on end times seems to be a strange outgrowth of some of the evangelical sects. I know Bush doesn't know history; if he did, he would know there have been hundreds of deluded people who have thought they were doing "God's Work" in the "end times".

[J Williams]

10. A nominal Methodist, yes, but ....

One of Bush's main advisors since he was governor of Texas is a right-wing conservative evangelical who influenced Bush very heavily. In fact, that's why Bush has considered himself an "agent of God" ever since.

[FloridaPat]

7. There have been thousands of these clowns throughout history

in most of the religions. Some get control of countries and armies and some don't. We got real lucky didn't we?

[salin]

8. Except I don't buy Bush's "religiosity"

seems to be exploitative/opportunistic in nature - not very real... the "fuck Saddam we are taking him out" doesn't quite jibe with the religious posturing, nor do his policies - if he were really a "believer" (ala the extreme evangelical image he tries to project) - the whole stem cell thing wouldn't have been a compromise - there would have been NO funding and a complete ban. Had it been real there wouldn't have been initial hemming and hawing per the gay marriage issue. His moves are strictly politically calculated.

However I do believe that he believes that he was "chosen" to be president by God given the unusual election/selection and the events of 911 - I think that these have given him some kind of bizzarre belief that he is now free to do whatever he pleases, Christian in nature or not (more often not - given his awful stewardship of God's creations)... so there is some religious zealousness there - but not in a faith sense (end times or not) but in a grand rationalization megalomaniacal sense.

[J Williams]

11. His "religiosity" is as just sincere as ...

Bush's "religiosity is just as sincere as Pat Robertson's and Jerry Falwell's. They sincerely believe they serve God, just as Osama bin Laden sincerely believes he serves God (Allah).

The point is they all unwittingly suffer from egocentric delusion, and they all betray their religion.

[salin]

12. Falwell, perhaps, but not Robertson

again, Robertson's actions betray his postured Christianity.

One doesn't deal in financing death - be it for diamonds or gold - in the pursuit of ever increasing wealth if one sincerely believes one is acting in accordance with God.

One Christian publication (Christianity Today - not a left leaning publication as far as I can tell) did an expose in which a pilot who flew a number (19?) of missions for Robertson - ostensibly carrying relief aid to an impoverished African nation, tells of noting that one of the cargos accidently exposed was ARMS - not aid. Robertson was delivering arms in exchange for interest in, I believe Gold, (there are also stories about his involvement in the bloody diamond trae in another african country - so I might be conflating the two stories). The trips were financed by donors through his TV show who were giving "humanitarian aid"... the proceeds went to Pat. Not any way for old Pat to rationalize this - on the one hand there is the stealing from this followers, on another hand there is a great deal of greed, and on the third hand there are actions that promote death and murder - three comandments broken at once. No real "religiousity" from Pat. He is a scammer through and through.

[salin]

13. Yet another example demonstrating Robertson's fraudulent

Christianity:

This isn't Robertson's first foray into the world of African dictators and diamond mines. Depite recent condemnations of Zaire (now Congo)'s late strongman, Mobutu Sese Seko, Robertson cut a deal with Mobutu's dying regime in 1994. As Bob Drury and Aram Roston reported for GQ, Robertson was so enthusiastic about his new diamonds-and-timber business that he diverted cargo planes intended to help alleviate the crisis brought on by Rwanda's genocide to his mines in Zaire.

"According to an investigation by the Virginia attorney general's office, Robertson employed airplanes from one of his charitable, not-for-profit organizations, Operation Blessing, to improperly ferry supplies in and out of his diamond camps. The attorney general's investigation found that while Robertson was appealing for donations to Operation Blessing to aid the victims of the Rwandan genocide on The 700 Club, Operation Blessing's fleet of aircraft was in fact flying a total of forty-four hours for the charity while logging 272 hours for Robertson's for-profit African Development Company.

Virginia law-enforcement officials declined to prosecute when Robertson -- who had contributed $35,000 to the attorney general's election campaign -- agreed to reimburse Operation Blessing for the flight time."

Given Robertson's history, it seems likely that he will defend Taylor -- a "sincere" Christian (despite the crimes against humanity charges) who just happens to have a lot of gold -- to the end. All of which leaves just one question, Drury and Roston write. http://www.motherjones.com/cgi-bin/print_article.pl?url=http://www.motherjones.com/news/dailymojo/2003/07/we_477_05.html (scroll to end of article)

[Skidmore]

9. * is an addict who has replaced his substance abuse

addictions with an equally obsessive pursuit of a belief system and physical exercise.

[skygazer]

14. I don't for a minute believe he's a religious zealot

I believe he's taking advantage of a radical wing of his party to further an agenda that the neo conservatives have had for a long time. By couching these aims in religious terminology, he gains the support of the true zealots while at the same time he keeps the religous talk on a moderate enough scale so that many mainstream Christians think of him as a spiritual man. It has the added bonus of making anyone who disagrees with him look "unChristian". There are a lot of mainstream religious people out there who are concerned about the perceived lessening of religious values - he's using that to his advantage.

But does he really believe it? I don't think so. I don't think he believes in anything except power and money.

[J Williams]

15. You could be right, but ....

If you're right, it would mean Bush is a great actor, and a very cunning man. If you've seen him deliver a stump speech, you know what I mean.

I really don't think he's acting. But then, it may explain the kind of awkward smirk and shifty demeanor he has when actually interviewed one-on-one and put on the spot. Then again, that may only be how he appears when he's being condescending and arrogant.

Whatever the case, he is playing right into the hands of the right-wing conservative fundamentalists and evangelicals, whether it's because he's actually sincere or simply deceptive.