The Politics of the Cross Resurrected

Then he [Jesus] said to them all, ‘If any want to ...

2012-04-30T10:29:01.134-04:00

Then he [Jesus] said to them all, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves?

Dan, I do not expect ever to live up to your expec...

2012-04-29T23:08:02.470-04:00

Dan,
I do not expect ever to live up to your expectations. You have such high standards.

Craig, But surely you understanding the differenc...

2012-04-29T20:22:51.569-04:00

Craig,

But surely you understanding the difference between marriage and cohabiting or living common law? Most of the people I know who choose to cohabit do so because they have some rather negative feelings about marriage and much of what it signifies.

So you can't base your understanding of what will result from gay marriages from statistics regarding those who cohabit. The gay people I know who have married fought rather hard to do so -- that is to say, they tend to have exactly the opposite view on marriage than what I have seen in those who cohabit. Given this, at least for the next little while, I would expect to discover statistics that show more lasting success in gay marriages than in traditional Christian marriages (just like, on a related note, the gay folks whom I know who have fought to be able to adopt children are phenomenal parents and I expect their kids to do much better than most kids I knew who grew up in Christian homes).

And, look, if you want to say that same-sex marriage is a "parody of marriage" I expect you to be able to back that up with some hard evidence, instead of just drifting into vague tangential rants about fishes and birds and Rousseau and Marx.

2012-04-29T16:28:17.007-04:00

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When a man and woman indulge in fornication or adu...

2012-04-28T17:44:34.040-04:00

When a man and woman indulge in fornication or adultery they are not despising God's created order. Abusing it perhaps but not despising it. Homosexual activity is a different order of transgression. Sexual lust can of course be gratified in a variety of ways and Christians should not make the mistake of assuming that genuine love is not possible in the context of homosexual activities. It is mainly a matter of deception, probably demonic to a degree, and those who are enthralled by it will resist even violently, the attempts to disillusion them. A careful reading of Romans 1 reveals not so much a judgement upon the individuals who participate in deviancy as an indictment upon a society which has allowed "tolerance" to proceed to its logical conclusion.

That being said, I would like to note to any other...

2012-04-28T15:56:27.549-04:00

That being said, I would like to note to any other commentors and readers that though I do not agree with homosexuality, I also do not agree with hatred towards homosexuals. For example, I have a dear close family member who is gay. I love him and his partner who is a wonderfully sweet man. They know I don't agree with their relationship but and they obviously don't agree with my opnion, but we can still love each other aside from that. Furthermore, my own personal approach to addressing what I believe to be actions that are morally damaging to them, I handle with private prayer for them, rather than in-your-face-type-preaching, which I know would only drive them away.

end rant.

Hey Dr. Carter. After reading this post I feel ash...

2012-04-28T15:51:09.768-04:00

Hey Dr. Carter.
After reading this post I feel ashamed and liberated at the same time. Lately, knowing that this firestorm against X'ianty is coming I've wondered whether if its not just best to keep my head down. However, hearing someone like Savage come out and explicitly 'bully' anyone who believes in the Bible makes me feel like the issue is FINALLY coming to a head - that its not just about pro-gays, but more about anti-X'ians, and it is time to stand up for what we believe as X'ians. It's wild to me how threatening it is to be a X'ian in Canada now, but I can no longer hide my head in the sand.

Are you in the US or Canada?

2012-04-28T12:22:26.316-04:00

Are you in the US or Canada?

"BTW, it has been government policy for decad...

2012-04-28T00:11:04.088-04:00

"BTW, it has been government policy for decades now to treat cohabiting couples as if they were married - with regard to tax law etc." Where do you get that idea? I help people with their taxes every year, and all the software treats cohabiting couples as Filing Single.

Wrong, because same-sex "marriage" is no...

2012-04-27T22:00:32.521-04:00

Wrong, because same-sex "marriage" is not marriage, but a parody of marriage. You can call a fish a bird all you like and even make a law punishing anyone who calls it a fish in public. You can have marches, Youtube video campaigns, ribbon of any color days, Human Rights Commissions enforcing the government line - it doesn't matter. Reality is stubborn and all the anger and pouting in the world does not change the way God designed humanity. Rousseau and Marx were just plain wrong: human nature is not infinitely malleable.

BTW, it has been government policy for decades now to treat cohabiting couples as if they were married - with regard to tax law etc. But social scientific data show that outcomes for children with cohabiting parents are basically the same as those in single-parent homes, while outcomes for children living with both biological parents married to each other are vastly superior. Take any measure of human well-being you like and the pattern is clear. [Source: Charles Murry, Coming Apart: The State of White America 1960-2010 (Random House, 2012).]

If being unmarried is bad for women and children t...

2012-04-27T20:49:45.853-04:00

If being unmarried is bad for women and children then all the more reason to embrace and try to accelerate the general acceptance of gay marriages, right?

Hi Craig, I've been thinking more about this,...

2012-04-25T11:32:12.551-04:00

Hi Craig,

I've been thinking more about this, and I find this whole focus upon "tolerance" to be puzzling. In my own thinking and writing, I can't remember using that word. Mostly, I think, because those who tend to employ it -- on both sides in this particular discussion -- tend to be pretty actively involved in acting in death-dealing ways towards others.

Like "human" rights, "tolerance" is all too often a part of defending the privilege and class-interests of a particularly influential subgroup. Whether liberals or conservatives throw the word around -- you or those you are trying to argue against -- it seems to me neither party cares much or at all about people who are poor and oppressed (rather, they care about people who are privileged but still experience some form of discrimination despite that privilege -- i.e. in the basis of sexuality or religion). Hence, the rhetoric of tolerance tends to mask an underlying and death-dealing intolerance. Perhaps, in this regard, a movement from tolerance towards solidarity may be advisable.

Furthermore, tolerance itself still seems to depend upon maintaining barriers and boundaries between people -- barriers and boundaries that all too often led to the dehumanization of the other and acts of violence against the other. In this regard, a deliberate movement into empathy over tolerance may be advisable (even though, it should be noted, social services are currently hollowing out the concept and language of empathy).

That said, even if you reject my thoughts on solidarity and empathy, wouldn't Hauerwas (and others) suggest that you are surrendering this struggle from the start by allowing the language and concepts of the secular state to form the basis of your own defense?

Hi Craig, Has your family considered home school ...

2012-04-24T23:57:28.531-04:00

Hi Craig,

Has your family considered home school or some alternate form of schooling? I have all sorts of (other) problems with the public education system and am definitely weighing the options as my kids will be in school before too long.

That said, I'm not sure who you think "my side" is (I am not, after all, a secular Liberal, nor am I one to invest much energy into trying to create change by means of state-based institutions) but if you want to know some of the scriptural foundations for my views on the matter I lay them out in these two posts:

http://poserorprophet.wordpress.com/2008/04/30/gay-marriage-why-arguments-based-upon-the-order-of-creation-in-gen-1-2-are-faulty/

http://poserorprophet.wordpress.com/2008/06/19/a-supranatural-sexuality-further-problems-for-those-who-argue-from-nature/

I invite you to share your thoughts on the content of those posts.

Dan, Yes, I think it is like fornication. It shou...

2012-04-24T20:55:23.312-04:00

Dan,
Yes, I think it is like fornication. It should not be illegal, but very generally and highly disapproved of by a healthy and moral society.

As for my supposed preoccupation on homosexuality, that is entirely a defensive reaction to the sexual revolution fanatics jamming it down the throats of society in general. First, they want to indoctrinate K-8 schoolchildren in the joys of sexual deviance and then they accuse anyone who objects of being "obsessed" with homosexuality. I have a little granddaughter who will be starting school in Ontario in a few years and I don't want her to be abused by adults who are preoccupied with self-justification and gaining social approval for deviant behaviour. I would be happy to live and let live; why is your side not willing to do the same?

Pardon the typo in the first comment. Ignore the ...

2012-04-24T20:41:08.849-04:00

Pardon the typo in the first comment. Ignore the first mention of homosexuality from the opening sentence of the main paragraph.

Hi Craig, Yet homosexuality you do not explain wh...

2012-04-24T20:39:53.756-04:00

Hi Craig,

Yet homosexuality you do not explain what form of "sexual deviance" you think "homosexuality is. It's obviously not like rape or child pornography (in that both of those things involve violence and forcing sex upon those who either explicitly do not consent or are unable to give informed consent). Does that mean, in your opinion, it falls into the same cluster as fornication -- something you do not consider morally right and desire to drive it underground, but you don't want to infringe on civil liberties to the extent of engaging in investigations and arrests? I have trouble imagining that this is your position because you focus upon homosexuality so much. After all, how many posts have you written -- and with such passion -- on the topic of fornication? Furthermore, when I asked you to explain how your position is one that is opposed to engaging in acts of violence against homosexuals, you refused to respond and deleted my comments. So is homosexuality, in your opinion, a third kind of "sexual deviance" which you do not explain in this post prior to continuing your campaign against it?

Seeking understanding,

Dan

2012-04-19T20:07:22.735-04:00

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2012-04-18T20:11:36.682-04:00

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2012-04-18T18:13:36.591-04:00

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Dar, The reality is that anybody who opposes ...

2012-04-07T14:45:32.132-04:00

Dar,
The reality is that anybody who opposes Limbaugh and Palin is helping the Left achieve what they want. The Left's attacks on them are much more vociferous than on "middle of the road" "I can see both sides" kinds of moderates. There is a very good reason for that. They are all that stand between us and dictatorship, whether we like it or not. Personally, I think Palin is pretty normal compared to the scum who attack her like Bill Maher.

Good post except for that part about praising Limb...

2012-04-03T04:58:55.107-04:00

Good post except for that part about praising Limbaugh and Palin.

They are ass fascist as Maher, because they to believe that power trumps morality.

The difference is that they believe in power over morality on behalf of some vague fantasy version of America, whole the Left wants it on behalf of Marxist ideology.

How absolutely heartbreaking.

2012-03-27T09:25:24.853-04:00

How absolutely heartbreaking.