 |
| Heather Heyer |
Political left and right is one thing. Moral right and wrong is another.
I came to this conclusion after reading a social media post where someone had shared an article (from a non-news source) making a supposed point that the person who killed Heather Heyer and injured another 19 demonstrators had been, at one time, a democrat. As if this somehow excused their actions. (Heather, by the way, was a remarkable young woman who had a very clear sense of social justice and morality.)
In response to that post ,another person felt compelled to share a similar non-news source story claiming that one of the organizers of the neo-Nazi, white supremacist gathering in Charlottesville had at one time been a liberal. As if to justify people joining together to shout things like: "Blood and Soil," (a Nazi slogan), "You will not replace us," and "Jews will not replace us."
What does it say about America when we seek to excuse blatantly immoral behavior by claiming a person's prior political affiliation has anything to do with present action?
It's the same kind of thinking that claims that, since "God is a republican," as long as a candidate tepidly alludes they are pro-life, the rest of their behavior (i.e. lying, cheating and pandering to racist ideology) is somehow ok.
Using this kind of damaged logic, a person could almost understand the point that the 45th made on the campaign trail boasting: "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters."
The inability to discern moral behavior results in the 45th's Counselor saying that his (then) Press Secretary offered "alternative facts," while grossly over-estimating the size of the inauguration crowd. (The counselor makes the statement about 1:52 minutes into the video link above.)
You could argue that deliberately over-inflating the size of a crowd is no huge moral issue. But on the other hand, it does stand as a significant marker to the beginning of a slippery slope that the 45th's administration has been headed down ever since.
One that led to the 45th refusing to denounce neo-Nazis and white supremacists after the Charlottesville demonstration. Then, after mounting pressure, correcting his initial statement two days later. Then a day after that, going back to his original remarks.
This type of moral ambiguity is resulting in a president who cannot lead us because he seems to be unable to lead himself.
Witness the number of individuals in the 45th's administration who have resigned, been fired, or left since January. They include:
Steve Bannon, Chief Strategist
Anthony Scaramucci, WH Director of Communications
Reince Priebus, Chief of Staff
Michael Flynn, Dir. National Security Council
Sean Spicer, WH Director of Communications
Walter Shaub, Director of Gov't Ethics
Mike Dubke, Dir. of Communications
James Comey, Director, FBI
Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to 45th
And in the wake of the 45th's response to Charlottesville, several members of the White House Manufacturing Council resigned. In fact, Richard Trumka, one of those members, offered to pray for the president. Ultimately the 45th made the decision to disband the group because of the number of members leaving it. The United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racism also weighed in, calling the president's response after Charlottesville "the failure at the highest political level of the United States of America to unequivocally reject and condemn" racist violence.
Meanwhile the Trump International Hotel (located 5 blocks away from the White House along Pennsylvania Avenue), has earned the Trump Organization over $2 million during the first four months of the 45th's administration. A lawsuit was filed against the Trump Organization in January claiming it has violated the Constitution by allowing its hotels and other businesses to accept payments from foreign governments. Recall that rather than divest himself from the Trump family businesses, the 45th merely handed over leadership of the businesses to his sons. One of whom is under suspicion of trying to collude with the Russians to rig the most recent presidential election.
As Hurricane Harvey hit Corpus Christi, the 45th seized the moment to pardon former Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona. The infamous "Sheriff Joe" was convicted of routinely profiling and harassing Latinos as part of efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants. Arpaio was also a strong supporter of the 45th's leadership in the "birther" movement, claiming former President Obama was not born in the US. In his pardon, the 45th thanked Arpaio for "years of admirable service to our nation," albeit illegal.
It all goes back to being guided by the moral thing to do - not what's politically expedient.
As you would expect, the Bible is very clear about morality. Numerous times there's mention of not using "false" or rigged scales in conducting transactions. (See Leviticus 19:36, Deuteronomy 25:13 for examples.)
Practically all faith traditions, including Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and Christian, have a high regard for honesty. For instance, in Jewish faith, honesty is equated with truth which is equated with righteousness (meaning actively pursuing the qualities of God's character, like truth, humility, mercy and grace.)
As if to underscore this fact, four rabbinical groups , representing 4,000 rabbis and their congregations across the US, recently joined together to announce they will not be participating in a traditional conference call with the White House in advance of the high holy days. In part, their statement reads: "We have concluded that President Trump’s statements during and after the tragic events in Charlottesville are so lacking in moral leadership and empathy for the victims of racial and religious hatred that we cannot organize such a call this year."
It turns out, God isn't really interested in "alt facts."
Honesty matters.
Truth matters.
And it's not dependent upon a political viewpoint.
-------
If you're looking for an excellent, comprehensive historical perspective of the white evangelical church's response to racism, please see Dr. Timothy Gombis article via the Cornerstone University website.
Using this kind of damaged logic, a person could almost understand the point that the 45th made on the campaign trail boasting: "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters."
You could argue that deliberately over-inflating the size of a crowd is no huge moral issue. But on the other hand, it does stand as a significant marker to the beginning of a slippery slope that the 45th's administration has been headed down ever since.
One that led to the 45th refusing to denounce neo-Nazis and white supremacists after the Charlottesville demonstration. Then, after mounting pressure, correcting his initial statement two days later. Then a day after that, going back to his original remarks.
This type of moral ambiguity is resulting in a president who cannot lead us because he seems to be unable to lead himself.
Witness the number of individuals in the 45th's administration who have resigned, been fired, or left since January. They include:
Steve Bannon, Chief Strategist
Anthony Scaramucci, WH Director of Communications
Reince Priebus, Chief of Staff
Michael Flynn, Dir. National Security Council
Sean Spicer, WH Director of Communications
Walter Shaub, Director of Gov't Ethics
Mike Dubke, Dir. of Communications
James Comey, Director, FBI
Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to 45th
And in the wake of the 45th's response to Charlottesville, several members of the White House Manufacturing Council resigned. In fact, Richard Trumka, one of those members, offered to pray for the president. Ultimately the 45th made the decision to disband the group because of the number of members leaving it. The United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racism also weighed in, calling the president's response after Charlottesville "the failure at the highest political level of the United States of America to unequivocally reject and condemn" racist violence.
Meanwhile the Trump International Hotel (located 5 blocks away from the White House along Pennsylvania Avenue), has earned the Trump Organization over $2 million during the first four months of the 45th's administration. A lawsuit was filed against the Trump Organization in January claiming it has violated the Constitution by allowing its hotels and other businesses to accept payments from foreign governments. Recall that rather than divest himself from the Trump family businesses, the 45th merely handed over leadership of the businesses to his sons. One of whom is under suspicion of trying to collude with the Russians to rig the most recent presidential election.
As Hurricane Harvey hit Corpus Christi, the 45th seized the moment to pardon former Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona. The infamous "Sheriff Joe" was convicted of routinely profiling and harassing Latinos as part of efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants. Arpaio was also a strong supporter of the 45th's leadership in the "birther" movement, claiming former President Obama was not born in the US. In his pardon, the 45th thanked Arpaio for "years of admirable service to our nation," albeit illegal.
It all goes back to being guided by the moral thing to do - not what's politically expedient.
 |
| Neo-Nazi Demonstrators in Charlottesville |
Practically all faith traditions, including Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and Christian, have a high regard for honesty. For instance, in Jewish faith, honesty is equated with truth which is equated with righteousness (meaning actively pursuing the qualities of God's character, like truth, humility, mercy and grace.)
As if to underscore this fact, four rabbinical groups , representing 4,000 rabbis and their congregations across the US, recently joined together to announce they will not be participating in a traditional conference call with the White House in advance of the high holy days. In part, their statement reads: "We have concluded that President Trump’s statements during and after the tragic events in Charlottesville are so lacking in moral leadership and empathy for the victims of racial and religious hatred that we cannot organize such a call this year."
It turns out, God isn't really interested in "alt facts."
Honesty matters.
Truth matters.
And it's not dependent upon a political viewpoint.
-------
If you're looking for an excellent, comprehensive historical perspective of the white evangelical church's response to racism, please see Dr. Timothy Gombis article via the Cornerstone University website.
Photo Credits:
Top - New York Times
Middle - Intellectual takeout
Lower - Cyprus Weekly
Top - New York Times
Middle - Intellectual takeout
Lower - Cyprus Weekly
No comments:
Post a Comment