October 22, 2010

Kopp Disclosure
(John 3:19-21)

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Government-funded NPR fired Juan Williams for saying he gets nervous when boarding a plane with Muslims dressed like, uh, Muslims.

Can you imagine anyone getting nervous when boarding a plane with Muslims dressed like, uh, Muslims after 9/11/01?

I've boarded many planes since 9/11/01 with Muslims and, uh, well, geez, gulp, sigh, started praising God for my eternal life through Jesus.

I know all Muslims aren't going to blow up planes and strap bombs on babies and send them into supermarkets and remain silent while the bad ones do; but I'm only human and prone to...

Can't we talk about it without...?

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It all started when Juan's other boss O'Reilly p-o'ed Whoppi and Joy on their show by saying Muslims rather than extremist Muslims do really bad things like 9/11/01.

They stomped off the show with snoots in the air and puffy cheeks quivering quicker than ecclesiastical crybabies who gotta turn/run away from churches when they do or don't do whatever they do or don't wanna do.

Or something like that.

Big Bill asked (see the first clip of this KD) on his show shortly thereafter with typical arrogance 'cause he's never wrong, "So, so where am I going wrong here, Juan?"

NPR fired Juan not long after that as the thought police cheered and commentators like the following deadpanned, "What took them so long?"

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I like Juan Williams.

Unlike Bill, Whoppi, Joy, and the rest of 'em, he's so, uh, unpredictable.

He's one of BBPBHO's biggest advocates/apologists without being a mindless drone.

He's not afraid of taking on Fox's meal ticket.

Unlike most folks on the air, he seems genuinely concerned about discovering the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

I don't always agree with him; but, except for Jesus, I don't always agree with anybody and I only agree with Jesus on everything because He's God and that's just the way He is whether I like it or not.

Writing for The Atlantic on 10/21/10, Jeffrey Goldberg identifies what really concerns me: "There's a larger trend here, the increasing tempo of journalist firings around the issues of Islam, terrorism, and Israel...unjustified...More to come, undoubtedly."

Simply, people are getting into trouble when they disagree/contend with the ideological filters signing pay stubs.

It's nothing new in politics or, uh, churches.

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I think of mainline denominations and American politics.

Increasingly, everybody's got a litmus test for their sense of orthodoxy.

It seems like everybody's looking for that one iota of divergence so they can say, "To hell with you!"

It's no longer enough in the church to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior as attested in Holy Scripture and pray/labor together to figure out what the heaven that means existentially as well as eternally.

It's no longer enough in American politics to affirm our commitment to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and reason together about it.

Nope.

Today, you've got to agree on everything about everything right now or your imprimatur will be rescinded.

You can't be Christian in their opinion or American in their opinion if your opinions don't coincide right now.

Yeah, I know there are some serious differences in the church and American politics; but if we don't start looking for what's common and build on what used to be glue in the church (Jesus) and America (heritage), we're going to wake up and discover there ain't much left of either anymore.

I think that's why Jesus liked peacemakers more than...

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A self-styled prophet wrote this to me when I was about to quit: "There are giants in the land. As big as those giants are, we must keep our focus on the destiny that God has set before us. Though the battle is lost in the natural, it is won in the spiritual realm...Don't let the giants of discouragement ensnare you."

In other words, keep keepin' on!

If you're a Christian, love Jesus by loving like Jesus; knowing He wins in the end.

If you're an American, always vote/work for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; knowing vastly more people are trying to get into this country than get out of it which must mean something better than bad about it.

Juan got into trouble for being honest about humanity.

No one is always right.

No one is pure and perfect in every way.

Parenthetically, that's why Jesus is Savior as well as Lord.

There are good Muslims and bad Muslims.

There are good Jews and bad Jews.

There are good Christians and bad Christians.

There are good Democrats and bad Democrats.

There are good Republicans and bad Republicans.

Now...take a deep breath...and read the next sentence very slowly.

If you disagreed with any of those "There are good ___ and bad ___" attempts at an honest estimate of humanity, it probably means you'd like to fire Juan or Bill or Whoppi or Joy or, uh, anybody who disagrees with you.

You're no better than those ecclesiastical crybabies who...

When we assume we have all of the answers, we have proved idolatry is only a smokescreen for narcissism.

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Blessings and Love!