Spiritual Responsibility – The Toxic Effect of Religious Extremism

Praying for the deaths of political and other leaders, inciting the masses to shrill "shock and awe" demonstrations and inciting extremism has been the hallmark of the radical right.

Max Blumenthal's new book, Republican Gomorrah: Inside the Movement that Shattered the Party,
explores the toxic effects that the religious right has had not just on the national discourse, but on movement conservatism itself.   Democracy Now interviewed Blumenthal about the radical Christian movement that has shattered the conservative movement.

AU's Barry Lynn — Who Has Also Been The Target Of Death Prayers — Calls On Religious Right Leaders To Repudiate Violent Rhetoric

With respect to the hateful rhetoric, Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) says that "the Religious Right leaders have a special responsibility to repudiate such rhetoric." In a press release published on September 2, AU reveals the extreme pastors who engage in "imprecatory prayer" and writes:

Americans United for Separation of Church and State today denounced the violent rhetoric of an Arizona preacher who is praying for the death of President Barack Obama and called on Religious Right leaders to repudiate such extremism.

The Rev. Steven Anderson of the Faithful Word Baptist Church told his Tempe, Ariz., congregation he prays that Obama "dies and goes to hell." In an Aug. 16 sermon that recently came to public attention, Anderson said, "If you want to know how I'd like to see Obama die, I'd like him to die of natural causes. I don't want him to be a martyr, we don't need another holiday. I'd like to see him die, like Ted Kennedy, of brain cancer."

Anderson's sermon took place just before an Obama visit to Arizona, and a member of the congregation showed up outside the Obama event in Phoenix carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle.

"This has gone much too far," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United executive director. "When preachers call for the death of the president or others that they disagree with, it provides a justification for acts of intimidation and violence. It's grossly irresponsible, and the American people ought to rise up and say 'enough is enough.'"

Lynn said Religious Right leaders have a special responsibility to repudiate such rhetoric.

"National Religious Right leaders have been feeding their flock a steady diet of shrill and provocative language," said Lynn. "It should come as no surprise when Anderson and those like him escalate the animosity."

Lynn noted that "imprecatory prayers" (prayers that ask God to kill or otherwise harm others) have become all too common in recent years.

* The Rev. Wiley Drake, pastor of First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park, Calif., announced in June of this year that he is praying for Obama's death. Drake, former second vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention, has also called for imprecatory prayers against AU's Lynn and other staff members of Lynn's organization.

* The Rev. Gordon Klingenschmitt, head of Pray In Jesus' Name Ministries and a former Navy chaplain, has also sought prayers for the death of Lynn and others who challenged Klingenschmitt's Religious Right activities.

* Randall Terry, Operation Rescue founder and head of the Society for Truth and Justice, held a June 1 news conference at the National Press Club to say he is glad that Nebraska physician Dr. George Tiller is dead. Terry said the doctor, whose clinic provided abortions for women with problem pregnancies, was a "mass murderer" who "reaped what he sowed." Tiller was murdered while serving as an usher at his church.

* TV preacher and Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson as recently as 2003 urged his followers to pray that God would remove three Supreme Court justices so that President George W. Bush could replace them with nominees that support Religious Right positions against reproductive choice, gay rights and church-state separation. In 2001 Robertson joined the late Jerry Falwell in blaming the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the Supreme Court, gays, feminists and civil liberties groups.
Said AU's Lynn, "Religious Right leaders have every right to make the case for their views on public issues, but when they inflame opinion with outrageous statements, they are going too far.

"This must stop," said Lynn, "before more tragedies occur."

Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.

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Related posts:

1. PRESS RELEASE: Americans United Executive Director Barry Lynn Thanks Religious Right Group For Prayers
2. PRESS RELEASE: Religious Right, Catholic Bishops Seek To Impose Religion On All Americans Through Law, Americans United Charges
3. PRESS RELEASE: Obama Inaction On Faith-Based Initiative Is Deeply Disappointing, Says Americans United
4. McHugh On Religious Liberty Issues
5. PRESS RELEASE: Americans United Opposes Proposed Congressional Land Grant To Religious School In Michigan
6. PRESS RELEASE: Federal Court To Hear Arguments In Case Challenging City-Sponsored Prayer In Greece, N.Y.
7. PRESS RELEASE: Americans United Condemns TV Preacher's Callous Statement on Haitian Earthquake
8. PRESS RELEASE: Election Results Suggest Religious Right Remains Force To Contend With, Says Americans United
9. PRESS RELEASE: Supreme Court Should Reject Religious Discrimination At Public Universities, Says Americans United
10. PRESS RELEASE: Sectarian Invocations At N.C. County Board Meetings Violate Constitution, Federal Magistrate Says

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One Response to “Spiritual Responsibility – The Toxic Effect of Religious Extremism”

1. Richard Kent Matthews says:

   September 6, 2009 at 4:28 pm

   Just for those who understand, the strict Calvinist Christian would say this:

   Those who pray for the death of others are not included in the Elect of God. The will never enter Heaven. They will suffer the fate they wish upon their intended victims.

   Being neither Calvinist nor traditional Christian, still, I found the above denouncement to be of interest and thought you might, too.

   May church and state remain separate forever.