This diary entry is in response to the Its Time to Fight the Religious Right by Frederick Clarkson on Thursday, September 29.
If the anti-theocratic movement is to succeed, it must include the counsel of
former Fundamentalist Christians. In a brief paragraph, I will try to explain my religious feelings. I was raised Lutheran, spent my adolescence heavily involved with the Church of the Nazarene, and currently have no official membership with either denomination. I can say, however, that my theological beliefs are more toward what I call "orthodox" Protestant, and I attend Lutheran or Episcopalian services simply because I appreciate the formal liturgy.
First, the biggest suggestion I can offer is that people learn the correct terminology when dealing with so-called "Fundamentalist" Christians. Fundamentalist simply means one who accepts a literal interpretation of Scripture. The term evangelical can also be misleading because the term simply refers to anyone who believes the four Gospels are authoritative.
The anti-theocratic movement (which now includes myself) must also utilize Biblical knowledge (authoritative or not) to debate Fundamentalist Christians. For example, I find it absolutely repugnant that charismatic and otherwise in Fundamentalist churches now claim to be persecuted since their religion is not declared supreme to all others under law. They are a disgrace to those in the Early Church who were truly persecuted and martyred in the Name of Christ.
The anti-theocratic movement should also study the validity of "spiritual experiences" in charismatic denominations. Some commonly known occurances of these "manifestations" involve speaking in tongues, prophecy, being "slain in the spirit", divine healing, and a physical encounter with the Holy Spirit. To this day, I honestly believe that any of the experiences I had were wholly self-induced endorphine rushes brought on by emotional heightness or aesthetically pleasing music. Theologically, this needs to be the anti-theocratic focus.
I am not a minister, and I am not a theologian. I merely know a lot about Christian denominational beliefs. I do not claim to be an authority on Scripture nor do I claim to in any way represent God. I fear that today's Fundamentalists do not possess such humility.
P.S. Happy birthday to me.