Radical  Religiou$  Right  Watch

 News to help you fill in the missing pieces

The Radical Religious Right
is a coalition of religious and  political groups 
seeking by various means to weaken or remove the separation of church and state 
and establish their version of Christianity as the national religion.

      “First they ignore you, then they ridicule you,  
               then they fight you, then you win.”

— Mahatma Gandhi

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Only the writers are responsible for the content; ideas presented are not 
necessarily those of the Pagan Institute, CUUPS-TwinCities, the UUA, or the Goddess.  

Supremes to rule on Establishment Clause
in Hein v Freedom from Religion Foundation

Just How Many “Secretive Clubs” Does The Right Have?
March 22, 2007

Neo-cons and RRRs in the GOP’s right-wing base are unsatisfied with any GOP presidential frontrunners.  As the New York Times reported in February 2007:

A group of influential Christian conservatives and their allies emerged from a private meeting at a Florida resort this month dissatisfied with the Republican presidential field and uncertain where to turn.

The event was a meeting of the Council for National Policy, a secretive club whose few hundred members include Dr. James C. Dobson of Focus on the Family, the Rev. Jerry Falwell of Liberty University and Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform. Although little known outside the conservative movement, the council has become a pivotal stop for Republican presidential primary hopefuls, including George W. Bush on the eve of his 1999 primary campaign.

But in a stark shift from the group’s influence under President Bush, the group risks relegation to the margins. Many of the conservatives who attended the event, held at the beginning of the month at the Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island, Fla., said they were dismayed at the absence of a champion to carry their banner in the next election.

Now, the Boston Globe reports that the secretive far right-wing "Arlington Group," is interviewing potential GOD presidential candidates:

Leaders of a secretive coalition that includes some of the most influential social conservatives in the nation are interviewing presidential candidates in hopes of flexing political muscle and reframing the Republican primaries in 2008.

Over the past few months, members of the executive committee of the so-called Arlington Group have questioned several declared and potential White House hopefuls with the intention of settling on a single candidate, according to Arlington Group members and Republican operatives familiar with the discussions.

…

Leaders of the group have interviewed Huckabee, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, US Representative Duncan Hunter of California, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who hasn't entered the race but may later this year. It's not clear which other candidates have been or will be interviewed. The group has not yet questioned Romney, Senator John McCain of Arizona, or former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, according to those campaigns.

While the Arlington Group cannot endorse candidates itself, its high-profile and influential members certainly can:

Continue reading "Just How Many “Secretive Clubs” Does The Right Have?" Permalink

Subjects: Politics, Religious Right, Right Wing,
Groups: Arlington Group, Focus on the Family, Family Research Council,
People: James Dobson, Tony Perkins

Religious Right News Briefs from www.rightwingwatch.org

The Religious Right:   Pushing A Deadly Addiction

by Carolyn Baker 

05/16/05 "ICH" - - In recent article, I promised readers that I would address the mindset of the religious right as an addiction. In order to do so with accuracy and clarity, it is first necessary to define addiction and clarify the terms, Christian fundamentalism and Dominionism.

According to www.dictionary.com, an addiction is “being abnormally tolerant to and dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming (especially alcohol or narcotic drugs) [syn: dependence, dependency, habituation] 2: an abnormally strong craving 3: (Roman law) under Roman law addiction was the justification for slavery"

For over seventy years, Twelve-Step programs have addressed issues of addiction not only to substances such as alcohol, drugs, and food, but to behaviors such as compulsive gambling, shopping, and even working. After a number of responses to my last article from former fundamentalist Christians, I began investigating Twelve-Step groups which address issues of religious compulsion and spiritual abuse. One group I discovered was Fundamentalists Anonymous (F.A.) and its Twelve Steps.  (http://www.geocities.com/church_of_hank/fundamentalists_anonymous.html)

However, before I examine those steps, I would like to further define the terrorist and tyrannical aspects of Christian fundamentalism.

As many readers drew to my attention in response to my last article, Christian fundamentalism and Dominionism are not necessarily synonymous. According to Merriam-Webster, Christian fundamentalism is: “a movement in 20th century Protestantism emphasizing the literally interpreted Bible as fundamental to Christian life and teaching b : the beliefs of this movement c : adherence to such beliefs. 2 : a movement or attitude stressing strict and literal adherence to a set of basic principles.”

Katherine Yurica (www.yuricareport.com) defines Dominionism as “the conversion of America to a theocracy by taking over the American Judiciary.” I would add that the conquest might begin with the judiciary, but the Dominionist agenda has targeted all aspects of government and society for the establishment of a theocracy.

For my purposes, the distinction between fundamentalist Christianity and Dominionism is incidental because what is most important to understand is that any religion, philosophy, or belief system can be addictive, fear-based, and terrorizing, and if it is used to justify changing the Constitution of the United States and creating a society in which the laws of that system are also fear-based and terrorizing, then regardless of the label, fundamentalist or Dominionist, that system is both terrorist and tyrannical. Whether one wishes to debate the differences between fundamentalist Christianity and Dominionism or not, both systems are about domination, power, control, right/wrong; win/lose. Moreover, as in my last article, I am reiterating that terrorism and tyranny, like the word addiction, have much broader definitions than crashing planes into buildings, establishing a superior race, or forcing women to cover their faces.

My focus here is on fundamentalist Christianity and Dominionism as religious systems which complement and support tyrannical political systems, specifically, fascism. I am well aware that not all fundamentalist Christians, and certainly not all folks who call themselves evangelicals, are of the Dominionist variety. Many are hard-working individuals who pay their bills and follow the rules and attempt to live the teachings of Jesus. I respect those individuals and consider them a mitigating force amid the onslaughts of the religious right.

For an in-depth analysis of religious right corruption and tyranny, I highly recommend the recent article “The Christian Mafia” (http://www.insider-magazine.com/ChristianMafia.htm) by investigative journalist, Wayne Madsen.

Additionally, my intention in this article is to explore the addictive features of these systems which ultimately result not in spiritual well being but spiritual abuse.
 

Spiritual abuse is the manipulation, exploitation, and mistreatment-- mentally, emotionally, or physically of another individual or masses of individuals, in the name of promoting spiritual principles or values. As we have seen from the rampant sexual abuse of children in the Roman Catholic Church, spiritual abuse can open the door to every other kind of abuse. And just as a plethora of Catholic priests for two thousand years have used their position of authority and piety to abuse children, countless children in fundamentalist Christian homes have been beaten, raped, molested, shamed, and emotionally devastated in the name of “children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.” I suspect that in the not-too-distant future, we may see revelations of child abuse in fundamentalist Christian homes and churches break into the light of day that could pale by comparison the abuse scandal of the Roman Catholic Church. For the fundamentalist Christian, children too, born into “original sin”, are to be dominated and made into subservient born-again believers as soon as possible.

Also, before turning to the Twelve Steps of Fundamentalists Anonymous., I want to emphasize that religious intoxication is an ancient theme in human history. In fact, Carl Jung would have called it an archetype—a universal theme imbedded in the human psyche that is found in all eras and cultures. According to Jung, such an archetype is not necessarily toxic or pathological but points to an inherent human craving for meaningful spiritual experiences. Whether found in the spell for the revival of Osiris, the orgiastic rites of the cult of Dionysius in Ancient Greece, or the Native American sun dance, the need for sacred ritual and celebration of the divine is as old as human history. However, need and desire are not the same as physical, emotional, or mental dependence.

What makes a belief system, a ritual, or one’s relationship with other adherents addictive is the dependence one has on them. Is one able to think for oneself? Is one able to function without incessant participation in the rituals, and without obsessive contact with and validation from fellow devotees? Is one able to trust one’s intellect and emotions and not subordinate them to those who claim to have more spiritual authority, deeper spiritual understanding, or more extensive training in interpreting the Bible or other sacred writings?

In exploring this topic, a caveat is in order for all who are atheist, agnostic, or offended by the mention of “God” in the Twelve Steps. After many years of working with the Steps and atheists and agnostics who utilize them, I have discovered that there are many ways to interpret and apply the concept of a Higher Power, so I would ask the atheist or agnostic reader to consider this and continue reading.

It is axiomatic in Christian fundamentalism that without the born-again experience, one cannot think clearly.  Being born into the human condition, and therefore, being inherently sinful, one’s mind is deluded, clouded, and always potential putty in the hands of Satan. Once one has been born again, the mind is magically transformed, and one is now guided by the Holy Spirit who Jesus said would lead his followers into all truth. The more the born-again believer reads and studies the Bible, the more clearly and correctly he/she thinks. Therefore, the new convert to fundamentalist Christianity must depend on his/her minister, Bible teacher, evangelist, or other spiritual leader to interpret the Bible and guide him/her in living the Christian life. Eventually, with years of seasoning in the faith, one needs less guidance, but one always requires regular contact with the church, prayer group, or Bible study circle because even after decades of devotion, there is always the possibility that one could be deceived by the devil. Therefore, thinking for oneself is out of the question, and as a result, profound dependence on others is created for producing the “answers” one cannot discern by thinking for oneself.

In one of the responses to my last article, one actively fundamentalist reader, whom I am paraphrasing, stated that he does look to the Bible for answers and asked to whom or what else he should look—Darwin, Camus, or other great minds? I found the question itself very telling because inherent in it is the assumption that one cannot or should not trust oneself. This assumption constitutes the major underpinning of the addiction to Christian fundamentalism, hence Step One of Fundamentalists Anonymous:

1. I realize that I had turned control of my mind over to another person or group, who had assumed power over my thinking.

The convert to fundamentalist Christianity must be convinced that his/her thinking is irreparably in error. The underlying message is: “You don’t believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God because your mind has been occupied by Satan. This has happened principally because you are a human being, but also because you have made the enormous mistake of trying to think for yourself. Of course you think there are contradictions in the Bible because Satan controls your mind. If you surrender your mind to Jesus (actually to me/us/the enlightened flock of believers), you will understand that there are no contradictions in the Bible and that your life should be guided only by the Bible and nothing else. What you cannot now understand, you must take on faith, and more will be revealed to you later. It may not be revealed on this earth, but by accepting Christ as your personal savior and having faith, you will be guaranteed eternity in heaven where everything you never understood will be completely revealed to you.”

Curiously, as stated in the definition of addiction above, under ancient Roman law, addiction was grounds for slavery. I found this detail particularly significant because obviously, addicted people are “enslaved” people

Any thinking person reading the Bible will discover dozens, if not hundreds, of contradictions. Moreover, any Bible student who also studies history will discover massive discrepancies regarding which books were chosen to be in the Bible and why. Studying that history reveals that the decision to incorporate certain books and exclude others was primarily a fourth-century political decision intended to strengthen the appeal of Christianity and prevent its demise in the face of Rome’s attempts to extinguish the religion.

An excellent analysis of this controversy has been done by religious historian, Elaine Pagels in her book Beyond Belief. She explores the discoveries of the Nag Hammadi Library in Upper Egypt in 1945, which unearthed the existence of numerous gospels eliminated from the final canon of the New Testament. Both Pagels and another Biblical scholar, Marvin Meyer, have analyzed the Nag Hammadi writings and hypothesized the reasons for their exclusion. I particularly enjoyed reading Pagels’ Beyond Belief, because not only does she analyze the controversy surrounding the exclusion of these Gnostic Gospels, but she openly shares her own intellectual process of discovering the significance of their exclusion and its impact on her own spirituality. Very UN-fundamentalist indeed.

Reading the research of Pagels and others makes clear the reality that the Bible is not and cannot be the inerrant, impeccably-written, divinely dictated Word of God that fundamentalist Christians claim it to be. Thus Step Two of Fundamentalists Anonymous states:

2. That person or group persuaded me of the inerrancy of the Bible, in spite of its many internal contradictions.

One of the most significant aspects of my abandonment of Christian fundamentalism was the awareness that born-again Christians worship the Bible and not God. They argue that the only way to know God is through the Bible. They are forced to believe this because if they concede that God might speak through an inner voice, through a tree, or through a particular life experience, their entire belief system is toast. When I realized that contrary to their much-touted Ten Commandments, Bible worship is nothing less than “having other gods before me”, I finally realized the depth of the hypocrisy of their system. Part of my, and anyone’s recovery from fundamentalism is a commitment to develop a relationship with a Higher Power—whatever that may be—and not with a book.  Step Three therefore states:

Like the spiritual inventory of Alcoholics Anonymous and other Twelve-Step programs, Step Four asks the recovering fundamentalist to look at the damage one has done to oneself as a result of turning control of one’s mind over to another person or group. Not a pretty picture in most cases, but certainly a huge relief when the whole truth is finally faced and spoken.

4. I admit to God, to myself and to another person the shortcomings of my belief in the unbelievable.

Fundamentalist Christianity is filled with false claims about the Bible. It has to be in order to keep its system intact and use the Bible to manipulate, control, and above all, gain converts. So as part of recovering from addiction to fundamentalism, one must examine the various false claims one has made about the Bible. Step Five states:

5. I have made an inventory of my false claims about the Bible.

Ouch! This could be very painful—and it could go on for years as one recalls all the times one may have used “the Bible says” to beat up oneself or someone else. But again, there can be profound liberation with truth-telling.

Could it get more painful than Steps Four and Five? Yes. How many minds have I whacked beside my own? Who have I manipulated, controlled, cajoled, or conned by using false claims—things I could never absolutely know or prove about the Bible?

6. I have made a list of those whom I led into confusion about the Bible.

All Twelve Step programs require “searching and fearless” inventories of oneself and one’s actions while practicing one’s addiction. Moreover, they demand accountability to one’s Higher Power, oneself, and the persons harmed.

This could be excruciating! Admitting to someone that I may have led them astray with the Bible? As experienced Twelve-Steppers know, it may not be possible to make the amends in person or even by letter. Someone may be so hurt, so angry, so alienated that making contact with him/her is not feasible. Most important, however, is the admission to oneself.  Hence Step Seven:

7. I am willing to make amends to all those whom I may have led astray.

And now comes the payoff: sanity. Sanity is not a mental health term but rather a state of acceptance and release often attended by a sense of relief. After one has admitted turning one’s mind over to another person or group and has faced the devastation the addiction has caused, and if possible, made amends to those harmed, it becomes possible to experience sanity.

Step Eight, in offering the hope of sanity refers to searching Scripture for the truth. Notice the Step says “search Scripture.” It doesn’t say, “search the Scripture.” One now has the freedom to search for one’s own truth—wherever, whenever, however. Step Eight:

8. I realize that I have the inner power to restore sanity to my life and to search Scripture for the truth.

Having completed the first eight Steps, the recovering fundamentalist can begin authentic relationships with others regarding spirituality. No longer does one need to “be right”, convert, admonish, exhort, or teach. The first eight Steps make it possible to share on a truly level playing field without right/wrong, either/or dichotomies. Step Nine:

9. I will reach out to friends who can help me clarify my thinking about the Bible, God and Jesus.

Reaching out to friends is not the same as dependence. It means information-gathering, exploring, dialoging, but most importantly, thinking for oneself.    
 

Then brilliantly, Step Ten hastens to add that I do not need to figure it out all on my own; I can ask for help from a Higher Power. It humbly implies that I don’t have all the answers. I have help, but it is with my own mind that I grasp the truth, not with someone else’s.

            10. I confess that only with God's help can my mind grasp
the truth.

How do I get help from a Higher Power? I practice Step Eleven which deals with conscious contact with that power. This may have nothing to do with reading the Bible or going to church. It may have nothing to do with meditating in a lotus posture or praying in the traditional sense. It may mean journaling, spending time in nature, painting, composing music or poetry. 

11. I will seek through prayer and meditation to improve my conscious contact with God, praying for knowledge of God's will for me and the power to carry that out.

One of the most profound aspects of recovering from any addiction is the compassion one experiences for others who are still ensnared in the addiction. One naturally wants to share the liberation, peace, and sense of well being that one has found with others who are suffering. What might be particularly challenging for the recovering fundamentalist, however, is to share the Twelve Steps of Fundamentalists Anonymous without falling back into one’s addiction to proselytize and “being right.” So Step Twelve must be practiced sensitively and compassionately.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these twelve steps, I will offer these steps to other former biblical fundamentalists.

Some may argue that I am being judgmental and lacking compassion in this article and my former article on Christian fundamentalism. However, I do not apologize for being uncompromising in my analysis. As with all addictions, compassion for the addict does not mean condoning addictive behavior. It means speaking the truth about the addiction to the addict him/herself, to the family and loved ones involved with the addict, or anyone else affected by his/her behavior. This is referred to in recovery circles as an intervention. Is it not appropriate for critically thinking individuals who desire to live in a diverse and open society to conduct “interventions” when those drunk on Dominionism and fundamentalist Christianity flagrantly attempt to construct a theocracy which requires everyone to be a born-again Christian in order to thrive in that society? Do we not have a moral obligation to confront destructive religious intoxication that tears apart families, communities, and nations? Hopefully, this article is an example of such an intervention.

  The mainstream media does not seem to comprehend the inherent danger of the religious right let alone report it accurately. All of us need to challenge the addictive tyranny of Christian fundamentalism at every turn—for the sake of our sanity and for the sake of our civil liberties. We don’t allow street junkies into the halls of Congress, the Supreme Court, or the pulpits of America to admonish us how we should live and why we should demolish our Constitution. In fact, we confront the insanity and criminality of such individuals. Similarly, it’s time to confront the domination drug for what it is—a grave and perverse spiritual and moral illness.

Carolyn Baker is recovering fundamentalist Christian and an adjunct professor of history and lives in Southern New Mexico. She can be contacted at: cbaker@nmsu.edu 

Press Release from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary

EVANGELICALS OFFER COURSE
FOR MEDIA PROFESSIONALS

CONTACT:    ANNE DOLL, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
            AT 978.646.4141 (adoll@gcts.edu) or
            MICHAEL COLANERI, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
            OF COMMUNICATIONS AT 978.646.4064
 (mcolaneri@gcts.edu)
            GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and the National Association of
Evangelicals in cooperation with Christianity Today are offering two
seminars in February and March 2005 on evangelicalism.

The Gordon-Conwell event, "What Is an Evangelical? A Short Course for Media Professionals," will identify the evangelical subculture in the U.S., provide a concise overview of the theological and biblical foundations that evangelicals have in common, and show how these beliefs shape the worldviews
and actions of evangelicals.

The conference will also feature a special video presentation by John Stott, D.D., Rector Emeritus of All Souls Church, Langham Place, London, England. 

Whether evangelical captured the White House or not, this should give evangelicals more success in their overriding quests.

Immediately after our presidential election, most all religions conducted high level congresses and established new plans for the
coming four years - all except Pagans.

Republicans Continue Culture/Religion Wars
By Lowell McFarland
Sept. 1, 2004

"The Family, Faith and Freedom Rally"  was a private affair held during the Republican convention -- invitations only and news media were BARRED. According to an invitation, it was organized by the Bush-Cheney campaign "to celebrate America and President George W. Bush, a conservative leader who shares our values, who takes a strong stand for his faith." The Bush campaign communications director castigated the New York Times reporter for covering an event that "was closed to the press"
as "not professional or appropriate." The reporter was invited to the event by participants who accompanied him.

    "Truth flies on swift wings."  -- Ancient Egyptian aphorism

At the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, a hand-picked crowd of several hundred Christian conservative GOP delegates were advised of a broad social conservative agenda notably different from the televised presentations at the Republican convention.  This agenda included adopting requirements  that pregnant women considering abortions  be offered anesthetics for their fetuses, amending
the Constitution to forbid gay marriage and perhaps also civil unions, and creating a new Supreme Court which would  weaken  the separation of church and state.

Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas preached, "We must win this culture war," reprising the 1992 Republican convention speech by Patrick J. Buchanan -- a position that many political experts say alienated moderate voters in that election. Ralph Reed, a senior Bush campaign adviser and liaison to conservative Christians, also addressed the crowd.

The public and televised Republican convention was a made for TV PR piece at which no real business was done; it's function was to project a welcoming, pluralistic face, and talk of national unity and cultural inclusiveness, in hopes of lulling moderate or undecided voters. Hence,  Bush pointedly avoided deprecating gay men and lesbians or engaging in talk of a "culture war."  And on
the first night of the convention,  two Muslim speakers invoked Allah on the stage and Sen. John McCain praised Islam as an honorable religion. In that context, the borrowings from evangelical Sunday services that were used were more tolerable to cultural moderates.

The real convention business took place in private meetings for the various special interest groups which make up the Republican coalition.

This rally was part of the campaign to motivate the socially conservative evangelical Christians among its base.

Falwell opens Fundie law school to take away your rights

Aug 17, 2004


Falwell Integrates Faith Into Law School

According to Associated Press Writer, Chris Kahn, the Rev. Jerry Falwell just opened a law school at
Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., to train a new generation of attorneys for conservative causes.
"We'll be as far to the right as Harvard is to the left."

The first year class has 61 law students. Graduates of the law school will tackle issues like abortion
rights and gay marriage, Falwell said. "I'd love to fight Roe v. Wade," said incoming law student Heidi
Thompson, 33, a Liberty graduate who has worked as a high school counselor in Orlando, Fla.

Full Story:
http://www.timesdaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040817/APA/408171107

These people are truly scarey...
Christian reconstructionists explained:

May 25, 2004

The Covert Kingdom: Thy Will be Done, On Earth as It is in Texas
By JOE BAGEANT

Not long ago I pulled my car up alongside a tiny wooden church in the woods, a stark white frame
box my family built in 1840. And as always, an honest-to-god chill went through me, for the 
ancestral ghosts presumably hovering over the graves there. From the wide open front door the 
Pentecostal preacher's message echoed from within the plain wooden walls:

If I had chosen to go back down the road a mile or so to the sprawling new Bible Baptist church ---
complete with school facilities, professional sound system and in-house television production---I 
could have heard approximately the same exhortation. Usually offered at the end of a prayer for 
sons and daughters of members in the congregation serving in Iraq, it can be heard in any of the 
thousands upon thousands of praise temples across our republic.

After a lifetime of identity conflict, I have come to accept that, blood-wise, if not politically or 
spiritually, these are my people. And as a leftist it is very clear to me these days why urban liberals
not only fail to understand these people, but do not even know they exist, other than as some 
general lump of ignorant, intolerant voters called "the religious right," or the "Christian Right," or 
"neocon Christians." But until progressives come to understand what these people read, hear, are 
told and deeply believe, we cannot understand American politics, much less be effective. Given 
fundamentalist Christianity's inherent cultural isolation, it is nearly impossible for most enlightened
Americans to imagine, in honest human terms, what fundamentalist Americans believe, let alone 
understand why we should all care.

For liberals to examine the current fundamentalist phenomenon in America is accept some hard 
truths. For starters, we libs are even more embattled than most of us choose to believe. Any 
significant liberal and progressive support is limited to a few urban pockets on each coast and 
along the upper edge of the Midwestern tier states. Most of the rest of the nation, the much 
vaunted heartland, is the dominion of the conservative and charismatic Christian.
 
Turf-wise, it's pretty much their country, which is to say it presently belongs to George W. Bush for 
some valid reasons. Remember: He did not have to steal the entire election, just a little piece of it 
in Florida. Evangelical born-again Christians of one stripe or another were then, and are now, 40% 
of the electorate, and they support Bush 3-1. And as long as their clergy and their worst instincts 
tell them to, they will keep on voting for him, or someone like him, regardless of what we view as 
his arrogant folly and sub-intelligence.
 

Forget about changing their minds. These Christians do not read the same books we do, they do not
get their information from anything remotely resembling reasonably balanced sources, and in fact, 
consider even CBS and NBC super-liberal networks of porn and the Devil's lies. Given how 
fundamentalists see the modern world, they may as well be living in Iraq or Syria, with whom they 
share approximately the same Bronze Age religious tenets. They believe in God, Rumsfeld's Holy 
War and their absolute duty as God's chosen nation to kick Muslim ass up one side and down the 
other. In other words, just because millions of Christians appear to be dangerously nuts does not 
mean they are marginal.

Having been born into a Southern Pentecostal/Baptist family of many generations, and living in this
fundamentalist social landscape means that I gaze into the maw of neocon Christianity daily. Hell, 
sometimes hourly. My brother is a fundamentalist preacher, as are a couple of my nephews, as were
many of my ancestors going back to god-knows-when. My entire family is born-again; their lives are
completely focused inside their own religious community, and on the time when Jesus returns to 
earth---Armageddon and The Rapture.

Only another liberal born into a fundamentalist clan can understand what a strange, sometimes 
downright hellish family circumstance it is---how such a family can love you deeply, yet despise 
everything you believe in, see you as a humanist instrument of Satan, and still be right there for you
when your back goes out or a divorce shatters your life. As a socialist and a half-assed lefty activist,
obviously I do not find much conversational fat to chew around the Thanksgiving table. Politically 
and spiritually, we may be said to be dire enemies. Love and loathing coexist side by side. There is 
talk, but no communication. In fact, there are times when it all has science fiction overtones, times 
when it seems we are speaking to one another through an unearthly veil, wherein each party knows 
it is speaking to an alien. There is a sort of high eerie mental whine in the air. This is the sound of 
mutually incomprehensible worlds hurtling toward destiny, passing with great psychological friction, 
obvious to all, yet acknowledged by none.

Between such times, I wait rather anxiously and strive for change, for relief from what feels like an 
increased stifling of personal liberty, beauty, art, and self-realization in America. They wait in spooky
calmness for Jesus. They believe that, until Jesus does arrive, our "satanic humanist 
state and federal legal systems" should be replaced with pure "Biblical Law." This 
belief is called Christian Reconstructionism.  Though it has always been around in some form,
it began expanding rapidly about 1973, with the publication of R. J. Rushdoony's, Institutes of 
Biblical Law (Vallecito, CA: Ross House Books, 1982).

Time out please.

In a nod toward fairness and tolerance---begging the question of whether liberals are required to 
tolerate the intolerant---I will say this:  Fundamentalists are "good people." In daily life, they are 
warm-hearted and generous to a fault. They live with feet on the ground (albeit with eyes cast 
heavenward) and with genuine love and concern for their neighbors. After spending 30 years in 
progressive western cities such as Boulder, Colorado and Eugene, Oregon, I would have to say that 
conservative Christians actually do what liberals