What Does the Christian Right Want?

[MineralMan]

You should know, whether you're religious or a died-in-the-wool atheist. Why? Because there is a strong movement among the Christian Right that wants to establish a theonomy in the United States. Chrisitian reconstructionists are gaining ground during the Trump administration. They're being appointed to cabinet-level positions by Trump. They're in power and they're seeking more power.

It's not a joke. It's not a far-fetched dystopian nightmare. It's happening as we watch. When you see people surrounding Donald Trump and laying hands on him as they pray, you're seeing this in action. When you see legalistic Christians like Mike Pence and Betsy DeVos, sister of well-known dominionist, Erik Prince, formerly of Blackwater, holding office under Trump, you're seeing the infiltration of Christian reconstructionists into the highest levels of government. Scott Pruitt, too, is part of this movement. Even beleaguered Jeff Sessions is part of this movement.

Need more evidence? Read this report on the Trump Administration's Cabinet Bible Study group and what it is studying:

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/bible-study-leader-wants-trump-cabinet-members-to-use-their-positions-to-spread-christianity/

Learn about Christian reconstructionism, dominionism and the push toward theonomy. You can get some basic information at the link below, which also includes many other links to help you dig deeper:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_reconstructionism

This is the intersection of religion and government, and it's moving in the wrong direction - away from freedom and toward a legalistic fundamentalist Christian-controlled government.

[Thomas Hurt]

1. IMO, We have been heading down this path since the Reagan admin. Christofascist theocracy.

The counterculture choked on its own vomit and the counter-counter culture has been marching on since.

[MineralMan]

2. That's true, and we keep ignoring it.

That's why a discussion of this is long overdue in the Religion Group. It directly affects all of us, and threatens all of us, as Democrats, liberals and progressives. That we do not make it an important part of the discussion is very dangerous.

So, I'm introducing the topic here, in the only group dedicated to discussing religion and its intersection with government. It's an ideal topic for this Group.

I hope we can continue to address this important issue. Since there appears to be a slowdown in posts strictly having to do with religion, with defenders and detractors mostly bickering uselessly, I thought we could begin some sort of real discussion of the impact of religion on our society and our politics.

[NeoGreen]

3. Theocracy (nt)

[NeoGreen]

4. Exhibit A: C. Peter Wagner of NAR

https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=140946482

A Leading Figure In The New Apostolic Reformation

TERRY GROSS, host: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. In August, Texas Governor Rick Perry held a prayer rally called The Response. Several of that rally's organizers and speakers are part of an emerging movement of charismatic Christians called the New Apostolic Reformation, or the NAR. After the rally, Rachel Tabachnick joined us on FRESH AIR to discuss the NAR, which she has reported on for the website Talk2Action.

She said that as part of the NAR's belief in dominionism, they want to take control of the institutions of society and government. She also talked about their belief in demons and their practice of spiritual warfare against demons.

Emphasis added.

Listen to the interview, the guy is (IMHO), a whacko extraordinaire.

GROSS: One of the beliefs that unifies people in the New Apostolic Reformation is a belief in dominion, that God gave humans, through Adam and Eve, the responsibility of dominion. God gave man, quote, "dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." So since you see it as your responsibility of dominion, you've described - or people of the New Apostolic Reformation have described this as taking dominion over the, quote, "seven mountains."

So this means taking over dominion over business, government, media, arts and entertainment, education, family and religion. How are we to interpret that? What does that mean, taking dominion over these seven areas?

WAGNER: Yeah. Well, that's a fair description of where we're coming from, Terry.

[The Genealogist]

5. I know all too well what this means for me

I'm a homosexual. I'll be one of the first on the chopping block if these heinous people get enough power. It will not end with LGBTQ people. They'll go after non-Christians as well. Eventually, after enough people that they consider "undesirable" are eliminated, they'll eventually start going after Christians who aren't a part of their community. This is dangerous stuff, folks, very dangerous.

[MineralMan]

6. Exactly. The only thing holding them back is our Constitutional protections.

Once they gain power, they will scrap those protections and it will be open warfare on everyone who is not aligned with them. That is their plan, and they are patiently working toward implementing that plan. We must stop them and keep stopping them.

If we do not, we will find ourselves no longer able to keep their plans from being implemented. That's guaranteed.

[Act_of_Reparation]

7. Trump has been appointing appellate judges at a fairly incredible rate.

I'll leave it to you imagine the type of person he's appointing. As these jokers will serve for life, we best buckle up 'cause it's gonna be a bumpy fuckin road.

[MineralMan]

8. Yes. That was a consequence that many of us warned about in 2016.

Too many ignored that and voted their "consciences." Now, we're reaping the consequences. It is a damned shame, and one of our own making, I'm afraid. His election should not have occurred, but it did. We could have prevented it, but we did not.

[Act_of_Reparation]

9. I'd say the election was a bit more complicated than that.

But yes, elections have consequences. And this is illustrative of that fact.

[guillaumeb]

10. Some of them want to be in charge. eom