Dear Reverend Dobson:
I'm just one self-professed Christian here. We both know that you don't speak for me, and I don't speak for you.
I'm disappointed that you are too busy to help Pastor Haggard with his little gay problem, though I suspect he's far better off without your "help." The drug problem has to be addressed first, since it's a symptom, in my opinion, of the self-hatred he's inflicted since who knows when. Watching you throw him under the bus told us much more about you than about him, anyway.
I think we Christians have a huge boulder in front of us called sex. We can't seem to get over the embarrassment and guilt that comes from feeling intense human pleasure. Nevermind that all of us are here, in part, because two people decided to experience that pleasure together. (I certainly hope it was good for both of them in every instance, and that not too much alcohol or Eagles music was involved.)
We can't discuss orgasms in church, and we seem unable to get beyond the whole outside of marriage issue, even though a great many so-called Christians get marriage totally wrong. We can't discuss rape in church. We can't discuss sexual responsibility. What kind of difference could the church make if it made a serious effort to discuss alcohol abuse and sex with young people? If the church told its young men, "hey, getting her drunk is not an option." And told young women, "Look, getting drunk at a party is not "asking for it," but you are losing control of your body anyway. Don't do that. It's self-abuse and it's not, repeat, not attractive." What if we in the church told our young people that sex is terrific, especially when you love the one you're with? And that love is the most important element of a sexual relationship? Do you think we could go there, Mr. Dobson? Do you?
In His name,
Blue Gal
Liberal Christianity MUST address issues such as this.
ReplyDeleteIt is losing membership hand over fist because of its cowardly refusal to be honest with itself.
But then again, this sort of sexual repression goes wayyy back. Before even Puritans.
I am thankful that at least UUs are open, honest, and forthright about sexuality. Nice to know that we do some things right.
I hope you actually sent this.
ReplyDeleteI think people need to hear more about sex and talk about it more or else they'll be disillusioned by television or by fundamentalist Christian rhetoric or simple inexperience. It would be great if churches could loosen up and celebrate the spiritual power of sex.
I doubt God is shameful of it considering that it is the ingredient of all new life.
Do any of the writings on Christ's life indicate interest in women?
ReplyDeletewonderful post.
ReplyDeleteBlue Gal, I have it on good authority that Rev. Dobson weeps, copiously, upon ejaculation. Of course it makes wiping his eyes with the Kleenix a bit tricky, but he gets by.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Tengrain
On James Dobson: TV Evangelists are to Christianity what "The Factor" is to news. Enough said there. I remember being 10 years old and wondering what they were doing going after heavy metal bands instead of, say, world hunger. Or anything else worthwhile.
ReplyDeleteOn Dialogue: It may be taboo to bring up sex in church, but I have yet to see any church sick a team of lawyers on anybody for talking about orgasms. Would that we could say the same about talking about God in public schools...
Yeah...I wouldn't be holding my breath for a reply.
ReplyDeleteOh, for pete's sake, I teach public school, and I talk about God all the time. How can you teach Shakespeare and not talk about the references to religion? How can I teach one of our required books, "Warriors Don't Cry," a memoir by one of the Little Rock Nine, a deeply religious young woman, and not discuss her faith? It's all through the book!
ReplyDeleteHear this clearly: it's not about "talking about God." It's about FORCING YOUR RELIGION DOWN THE THROATS OF A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE that makes the lawyers come out. It's about mandating a (obviously Christian) school-sanctioned prayer, for example. It's about teaching some ridiculous, non-scientific nonsense about "intelligent design," (which doesn't even hold together theologically) about how the world came to be in "science" class. It's about trying to tell kids that one religion is somehow superior to another, or that they will, nice as they are, go to hell if they don't believe what the teacher believes. Got that? Good. There'll be a quiz next week.
Sorry about the caps, but I wanted to be sure you could read that easily.
Of course Dobson dropped him in the blink of an eye. His brand of Christianity is about controling peoples lives, not "forgiveness." If Dobson were Jesus he would have sent all of his disciples to hell rather then die for their sins, because to Dobson it's all about appearances.
ReplyDeleteJesus may be coming to Smack ole Sponge-Brains...but not IF-FIN I get there FIRST! (Love the Sign Generator!)
ReplyDelete%-)
"Get thee to a nunnery!"
ReplyDeleteAfter three kids, it might be a bit late for that...just sayin'.
I refer to Dobson, Robertson, Falwell and the other apostates as the "tele Pharisees" and liken them to the "official churches" that used to exist under various communist dictatorships. They function as nothing more than a propoganda ministry with a thin religious veneer, a fig leaf of "virtue" to cover a monstrously obscene, un-American, anti-Christian economic system. On the plus side, when the day comes, they will get to her the Voice saying, "Be Gone! I knew ye not!"
Loved this post, BG. Loved. It. And I'll second quakerdave's comments. Teachers should be allowed to talk about anything, but shoving beliefs and whacky unscientific ideas down the kids' throats, no way.
ReplyDelete"tele-Pharisees." Oh, I like that. I might have to steal that one.
ReplyDeleteNot bad, Local Crank. In His Name, indeed, BG. I hope you're feeling better. Sounds like it.
ReplyDelete"tele-Pharisees." Oh, I like that. I might have to steal that one.
ReplyDeleteHelp yourself. I get, like, 7 cents everytime someone says it. It's right up there with my other favorite catchphrase, "Kitten bitin' Republican" = Republicans so fanatically devoted to Dear Leader that they would support him even if he bit the head off a live kitten on national television.
"What if we in the church told our young people that sex is terrific, especially when you love the one you're with?"
ReplyDeleteProbably because that is insane! ...maybe? Can you imagine a 13 year old who is "in love" hearing that bullshit? Please make a mental note Blue Gal: A pedophile 'loves' the child.
Once again, perhaps well intentioned, self professed followers of Christ justify their own desires in the name of 'love'. When God's boundaries for our lives are just 'too much to handle and people do it anyway', or by making it OK with God by simply revising God's word to fit their worldly wants based not on His holy word, but human wisdom, we all can just rest easy and 'live and let live'. Tolerance, after all, is key to living a holy life.
Good 'luck' with that thinking. I hope one day you see your error.