Mike Huckabee’s Religious Authoritarianism: Authoritarian, Vertical Politics

By Austin Cline

Many expressed concern that Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee was more of a Christian Nationalist than he let on. His claim that Christians must win America for Christ was highly suggestive, and his desire to amend the Constitution to align it with ‘God’s standards’ was worse. There are also less explicit ways to communicate authoritarian and theocratic principles to those who are in the know, for example with Mike Huckabee’s rhetoric about ‘vertical politics.’

Mike Huckabee revealed some interesting views while delivering a sermon in a church:

“When we become believers, it’s as if we have signed up to be part of God’s Army, to be soldiers for Christ,” Huckabee told the enthusiastic audience. …Huckabee mixed homespun jokes into his sermon and added a more religious tone than in his political speeches, not just quoting from the Bible but citing specific verses and talking about the serious side of faith.

“When you give yourself to Christ, some relationships have to go,” he said. “It’s no longer your life; you’ve signed it over.” Likening service to God to service in the military, Huckabee said “there is suffering in the conditioning for battle” and “you obey the orders.”

Source: The Washington Post

A person’s life is no longer their own? Christians have to “obey the orders” in some “battle”? This makes more sense in light of his statement in the New Hampshire debate that Americans are “tired of everything being horizontal — left, right, liberal, conservative, Democrat, Republican. They’re looking for vertical leadership that leads up, not down.”

What did Huckabee mean by “horizontal” and “vertical” leadership? These are code words: horizontal leadership means limited authority among equals while vertical leadership means an authoritarian system with one or few absolute leaders at the top while the rest “obey the orders” they are given because their lives do not belong to themselves anymore.

Read the whole thing here: About.com

 

“C Street” Cabal of Anti-Democracy Fundamentalist Senators and Reps Wouldn’t Turn Over Child Rapist Among Them to Police?

By Mark Karlin

Kudos to Rachel Maddow for latching on to the captivating and chilling story about not just the lascivious and potentially illegal activities of some of the “C Street” Family, but — more importantly — focusing on their belief that they are chosen by God to lead and infiltrate our governnment.

The low-key author, Jeff Sharlet, of “The Family:The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power” is a credible chronicler of this cabal that is like a dagger in democracy. He writes:

Family leaders consider their political network to be Christ’s avant garde, an elite that transcends not just conventional morality but also earthly laws regulating lobbying. In the Family’s early days, they debated registering as “a lobby for God’s Kingdom.” Instead, founder Abraham Vereide decided that the group could be more effective by working personally with politicians. “The more invisible you can make your organization,” Vereide’s successor, current leader Doug Coe preaches, “the more influence you can have.” That’s true — which is why we have laws requiring lobbyists to identify themselves as such.

But David Coe, Doug Coe’s son and heir apparent, calls himself simply a friend to men such as John Ensign, whom he guided through the coverup of his affair. I met the younger Coe when I lived for several weeks as a member of the Family. He’s a surprising source of counsel, spiritual or otherwise. Attempting to explain what it means to be chosen for leadership like King David was — or Mark Sanford, according to his own estimate — he asked a young man who’d put himself, body and soul, under the Family’s authority, “Let’s say I hear you raped three little girls. What would I think of you?” The man guessed that Coe would probably think that he was a monster. “No,” answered Coe, “I wouldn’t.” Why? Because, as a member of the Family, he’s among what Family leaders refer to as the “new chosen.” If you’re chosen, the normal rules don’t apply.

Yes, you read that right, the son of Doug Coe, the “spiritual leader” of the Family and his heir apparent, would consider a Family member raping a child a test of the member’s choseness and to be resolved inside of the fellowship, without reporting it to the law authorities, it appears.

This is how dangerous they are. They apparently believe even child rape is something that God wants them to keep secret amongst themselves!

Source: Buzz Flash

 

Jimmy Carter Leaves Church Over Treatment of Women

After more than 60 years together, Jimmy Carter has announced himself at odds with the Southern Baptist Church — and he’s decided it’s time they go their separate ways. Via Feministing, the former president called the decision “unavoidable” after church leaders prohibited women from being ordained and insisted women be “subservient to their husbands.” Said Carter in an essay in The Age:

At its most repugnant, the belief that women must be subjugated to the wishes of men excuses slavery, violence, forced prostitution, genital mutilation and national laws that omit rape as a crime. But it also costs many millions of girls and women control over their own bodies and lives, and continues to deny them fair access to education, health, employment and influence within their own communities.

The truth is that male religious leaders have had — and still have — an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world.

Source: Politics Daily

 

White House Meeting Marks New Milestone for Nontheists

June 1, 2009 - The nontheist movement reached a new milestone when the Secular Coalition for America had its first individual meeting with White House officials last week. Although the Secular Coalition had met with White House officials before, this meeting was significant as it was the first private meeting focused solely on nontheists’ interests.

Read the rest of this post at: Secular Coalition for America

 

Ireland Makes Blasphemy Illegal | Paliban Daily

Ireland Makes Blasphemy Illegal

As part of a revision to defamation legislation, the Dail (Irish Parliament) passed legislation creating a new crime of blasphemy. Update: The bill went to the Seanad on Friday, July 10, passing by a single vote. This attack on free speech, debated for several months in Europe, has gone largely unnoticed in the American press.

• Atheists can be prosecuted for saying that God is imaginary. That causes outrage.
• Pagans can be prosecuted for saying they left Christianity because God is violent and bloodthirsty, promotes genocide, and permits slavery.
• Christians can be prosecuted for saying that Allah is a moon god, or for drawing a picture of Mohammed, or for saying that Islam is a violent religion which breeds terrorists.
• Jews can be prosecuted for saying Jesus isn’t the Messiah.

Source: palibandaily.com