At the CNN/Tea Party GOP Presidential debate on 12 Sep 2011, a
hypothetical question was asked of the GOP contenders whether the
hospital should treat a person over 6 months in coma if he had decided
against health insurance.
Before Ron Paul could answer, there was a loud cry from the tea party
supporter - "Let them die", followed by a resounding shouts, clapping in
agreement. I am reminded of the religious bible believing Jews who
shouted "crucify Him" when given a chance to release Jesus rather than
the thief. In both instances, the self righteous religious people of
faith were only thinking about themselves and with moral indignation
demanded the most harshes punishment by the law. No grace was shown even
to the person in coma.
Ron Paul said in his days the people had responsibility for their own
health care, and the churches took the tab. Very few churches run large
hospitals with free services. For a person in coma they probably would
extend their life support services for years if you were a Bishop or
Cardinal, but for all others they would leave it to "God's will".
When Miss Thio, the ex-NMP, from the Anglican Church in Singapore said
that legalising homosexuality would lead to a slippery slope of
immorality, the real slippery slope is when religion is based on the
letter of the OT/NT laws showing no love, grace nor mercy. The
lawlessness here is within the relgious community causing harm in their
hypocrisy and self righteousness. This was shown later when they tried
to take over Aware through a well planned coup.
If they killed Jesus using the OT laws when He was innocent, surely the
weak and the marginalised although innocent will always be the scapegoat
of the religious majority. Adding to the insult, is the frequent claim
by the Christian Right that they were the victims, but when we look
closely we see them holding the gun in their hand ready to fire against
the defenceless gay minorities. There is a mass religious delusion of
their own "Christian" morality.
In Germany during world war two, it was not pagans who killed 6 million
Jews. It was the Catholics/Presbyterian, people of religious faith, yet
their lives filled with so much pain and anger that they needed to find
the Jews as a scapegoat. Germany paid a heavy price for the lost in
World War 1, with a huge resentment against the outcasts. There was such
a self righteous moral indignation, that it consumes us and brings us to
a danger of committing a grave sin.
Mega church pastors such as Pastor Kong thought that lawlessness is
immorality without having a strict set of laws. This immorality in the
bible is however not related to gays, it is the worship of foreign gods
and deities. The ten commandments is not so much a law, but putting the
God of Israel first. In Ex 34:14 it says there "you shall worship no
other God ,,," and the first two commandments is not only about loving
God per say but not aligning ourselves to other gods. We have gone after
many other gods - the gods of power and money.
Being a people of God does not come by the law, it comes by
knowing and understanding God's love, grace, and mercy in Christ Jesus.
The law brings us to despair forcing us to repent and turn to God
because we could not save ourselves. It is not an end by itself. It
leads us to seeking repentance in Christ Jesus. It leads us not arrogant
religious self righteousness but be humbled and to walk alongside with
the poor, the outcasts and the marginalised in Jesus' time.
The tea party movement seems to have little to do with Jesus although it
is associated with the Christian right. Their dogmatic call for smaller
Government is the rallying cry by the conservatives yet they had sepnt
all the money in the bank in two big wars. Financial deregulation which
allowed the packaging of high risk loans into safe securities all came
under the conservative reign. Big businesses and big wars led us to a
financial disaster and not big government. There is great hypocrisy and
denial in the tea party.
The tea party are the more wealthier and affluent Americans and so any
cut in welfare and health spending doesn't effect them. However, in the
latest stats released on 13 Sep 2011,
America's poverty rate has risen to 15.1% or
46.2 million in 2010 (from 14.3% in 2009).
There are 52 million (and additional 73 million
have difficulties paying) without health insurance largely due to
umemployment. Obama's health insurance extends coverage to these
people.
They are laughing and jeering at the death of people who could not
afford health care with a righteous indignation that they deserved it!
True Christianity is about displaying God's love, grace and mercy for
which there is no law because it cannot be contained and it is
boundless. When our religion is based on religious laws, it kills and we
become moral and self righteous targeting the weak and the have-nots.
The tea party didn't come overnight. Since the early 90s, the
Christian Right have used gays as a wedge issue to command block voting
and to gain political power. As a result, the have sown the law in the
land, the law of judgement and hypocrisy. Lawlessness is now coming into
the land with the religious, the rich and powerful insisting that the
poor bear the brunt of the pain and suffering.
(Acts 2:44 NKJV) Now all who believed were together, and had all things
in common,
(Acts 2:45 NKJV) and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them
among all, as anyone had need.
Strictly, the tea party ain't wrong either. A nation should not spend
money it doesn't have, and rack up a total debt of 15 trillion many
times over what it spends every year of 3.5 trillion. The debt is
growing at 1.5 trillion/year. It's not that America doesn't have money -
it is hoarded by the rich and big businesses.
The answer lies with the rich and powerful rather than the weak. It is
about coming back to the core of the Christian Faith of kinship and
sharing our wealth and possessions. Our anti-gay crusades have sown hate
and judgement and America needs to repent, to change course to one of
love. Christ is our example "as I have loved you". It is a call to love
one another, even to the extent to help pay for the medical bills of one
in coma.
If we want to see Jesus, our hearts must be opened to Him, a heart that
is softened and shows love, grace and mercy, for Christ is the
personification of God's love to us.
(John 13:34 NKJV) "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
(John 13:35 NKJV) "By this all will know that you are My disciples, if
you have love for one another."