Thinking about Christianity

I read this entry that argues that the largest growing demographic in America is the non-Christian portion, and I cheered!

That felt a little weird and still does for a kid who grew up Baptist. Cheering for the heathens (joking) to win seems to be like cheering against my home team. I also wonder am I cheering for something that in a few years I will really regret? Is the law of unintended consequences something I will recall later?

So, why would I be cheering that non-Christians are growing at a rate faster than Christians?

Could it be that the most prominent examples of my faith are so horrible? D. James Kennedy? And this ass calls Tom Delay a Christian Statesman? Or George W. Bush who says that his faith is "very important" and that Jesus is his favorite political philosopher while mocking a condemned woman and planting racist rumors about political opponents?

Those are great examples, but I had two from today alone. First was Phylis Schafly "reviewing" a book that was critical of liberal intellectuals. It has "moron" in the title--something Schafly loved--and attacked such low hanging fruit as Alfred Kinsey and Peter Singer. Schafly lumps them in with all liberals and that allows her to call all of us morons. She said that their problem was that their ideology clouded their judgement. Hmm. Wonder if she has anything like a fucking log in her eye? Hmm?

I have written about her before, but she is one of the least likable and least credible voices on the right. No wonder I prefer avowed athiests to her.

But that wasn't all. I then heard about a court case in Oregon where the state court said that counties could not issue gay marriage licenses. (See, if I was an ass like Dobson, I would be calling for their impeachment or death, but I am not). The decision was valid on the law--Oregon among numerous states passed anti-gay legislation. I can see how the court made that decision.

The problem is that real people exist in this context. Real people have real kids and have real health issues that are imperiled with such legislation. Real mothers cannot be sure that if they were to die, their partner would have legal access to their kids. Or real people know that if they are in ICU, their loved one--their most loved person--could be kept out. Say what you will about gay people, but they are people, and those who have formed lasting relationships should be respected.

But that is really not the main thrust of my anti-Christian rant. The same "family values" coalition (which reminds me of the Ladies of the Law and Order league in John Ford's Stagecoach) basked in the glory of the decision (which of course, went against the conservative love for local rule, but that is besides the point too). They then talked about their next task, to deny civil unions. Civil unions, would, with all their problems, provide some of the legal solution to the healthcare and childcare issues I talked about above. Conservative Christians talk about "hating the sin" but "loving the sinner," but these laws are going to cost real people real pain. Conservative Christians really want all gay people to be straight. They want to wave a wand and have everyone be like them.

I know too many gay people to not be chilled by this. I think conservative christians do too. They all have gay people in their family somewhere. They all have friends that they don't realize are gay, or who have gay kids. They really just wish we could go back to a time when those gay people would crawl back into a closet, marry a beard and act like all the Baptists.

Any wonder I am inclined to cheer for the "heathens?"