A New Focus
I've been knocked out this week with a pretty bad cold, but that didn't keep me from the Colbert Report last night.
Rich Cizik was recently appointed to the office of Vice President for Governmental Affairs with the National Association of Evangelicals. And after doing some reading, I'm excited to see what this guy is going to do to the NAE, an organization that has so much influence it's a little frightening.
As Colbert mentioned above, Cizik has a different focus from the main dominate issues Evangelicals have been so coal about these last 20 years or so. As his shifting focus in the right direction, I think, namely to "green-friendly" living. As an employee of a lighting company, I've been hearing this buzz term for a while. In fact, I just finished the design on a "green-friendly" lighting catalog we are marketing to California customers, who now have stricter state regulations on the type of lighting they can use. (And make sure to pick up the most recent copy of Relevant magazine; it has a quick and simple article on going green in a month. It's a great read.)
Some of the more conservative and outspoken evangelicals have come out against Cizik for not putting issues like abortion, same-sex marriage and abstinence to the forefront. Because the evangelical culture has done such a "bang-up job" bringing about great moral changes in these areas, by all means, let's continue to point fingers in judgment and talk, talk, talk about these issues instead of actually doing something. *removes tongue from cheek*
This is the problem I have with being labeled a Christians. The mouth-pieces we've allowed to become our representative have simply done a very poor job of showing who we are, but they've also failed to represent who we should be. The NEA is taking a step in the right direction in appointing Cizick, whose views on global warming are refreshing and nearly unheard of among the power Christian-Right. He also has some interesting things to say about Christians and political parties here. Here's to hoping this focus stays up front.
Rich Cizik was recently appointed to the office of Vice President for Governmental Affairs with the National Association of Evangelicals. And after doing some reading, I'm excited to see what this guy is going to do to the NAE, an organization that has so much influence it's a little frightening.
As Colbert mentioned above, Cizik has a different focus from the main dominate issues Evangelicals have been so coal about these last 20 years or so. As his shifting focus in the right direction, I think, namely to "green-friendly" living. As an employee of a lighting company, I've been hearing this buzz term for a while. In fact, I just finished the design on a "green-friendly" lighting catalog we are marketing to California customers, who now have stricter state regulations on the type of lighting they can use. (And make sure to pick up the most recent copy of Relevant magazine; it has a quick and simple article on going green in a month. It's a great read.)
Some of the more conservative and outspoken evangelicals have come out against Cizik for not putting issues like abortion, same-sex marriage and abstinence to the forefront. Because the evangelical culture has done such a "bang-up job" bringing about great moral changes in these areas, by all means, let's continue to point fingers in judgment and talk, talk, talk about these issues instead of actually doing something. *removes tongue from cheek*
This is the problem I have with being labeled a Christians. The mouth-pieces we've allowed to become our representative have simply done a very poor job of showing who we are, but they've also failed to represent who we should be. The NEA is taking a step in the right direction in appointing Cizick, whose views on global warming are refreshing and nearly unheard of among the power Christian-Right. He also has some interesting things to say about Christians and political parties here. Here's to hoping this focus stays up front.
Comments
I think the church has a lot of power and they simply need to use that power in a more effective way. Going green isn't that hard - it just takes a little effort. And scaring someone into it isn't going to make a difference in the long run; they are likely to go back to their old ways once the fear and guilt fade away. I guess I'm just tired of hearing the same old song and dance from mouthpieces like Dobson, and wish he would make an effort to be politically-minded in a more tangible way. A person is more likely to change out their light bulbs to fluorescent than they are to stop having pre-marital sex. That doesn't make one issue more important than the other, but what I do feel it would do is remind the world that we care about those who live in it and not just care about which biblical law they've broken, you know?
I get the idea that many in the current "mankind is ruining the planet" crowd are, in fact very close to believing in Mother Earth as a spirit. As do the Wiccans and others of their ilk. It just makes me nervous.
Maybe we should reward kids who abstain from sex before marriage with fluorescent light bulbs! Keep on lighting the way.
That being said, I'm about as far from being a Wiccan as possible, and I get your nervousness. Traditionally, those who subscribe to a more new age belief system are those who pay more attention to the environment. But I'm trying to buck tradition. However, there is no new "agey-ness" here. Just trying to make a point that the whole "green-friendly" issue isn't just a liberal one anymore.