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It'd be a lot easier if God would just tell us who to vote for

Posted at 7:04 PM on August 30, 2006 by Bob Collins (1 Comments)

The good folks at Bachmann vs. ~~the Machine~~ (dangit! Sorry, Jeff.) Wetterling had an interesting post today citing a Slate article on a survey on religion and politics. Got that? They had something that someone else wrote about what someone else did. And now I'm writing about it. God bless the blogosphere, I say.

The gist of the article was that Democrats do not poll well as being "friendly toward religion." OK, cased closed, the Republicans win and the heathens go home, right? Not exactly.

The poll says that more than 60 percent of those surveyed think liberals have gone too far in trying to keep religion out of schools (it wasn't a school but think "Bunnygate" to see how easy it is to answer that question). But the poll also says that nearly half those surveyed think conservative Christians have gone too far in imposing their religious values on the country.

The survey actually says 20-percent of those surveyed think the Democrats are unfriendly toward religion; the same as 2005. But, as Slate points out, this number was 40 percent in 2004. Thirteen percent says Republicans are unfriendly toward religion, up four percent from 2005.

The article in Slate says "Which is why it is startling that in the two years since this Democratic revival began, the party�s faith-friendly image has dimmed rather than improved."

Where it really gets interesting, of course, is on the question of who should have the most influence on laws in the U.S. -- the people or the Bible?

Sixty-three percent of those surveyed said the people. But among white evangelicals, 60-percent said the Bible. And -- and this will get people's dander up -- the percentage of people who answer "the Bible" to that question goes up as the amount of education goes down. (Update) Does this mean that people who tend to be religious are not educated? Or does it mean that people who tend to think their religion should be the guiding principle of the nation's laws tend to be less educated? The two, it seems to me, are not the same question. (/update)

But how all this plays in the 6th District isn't yet clear to me. Is religion an issue. I don't mean is it behind some of the issues. I mean is it an issue?

And how big a part of the electorate in the 6th are evangelical Christians? I ask because the survey seems to suggest there's more religious people who are are not evangelicals.

Related stuff:
2004: A tale of two churches (NPR)

Religion and politics (BlueOregon)

Probe Ministries: Politics and Religion

Comments (1)

Dr. Jack Shepard says;
"Vengeance is the Lord�s alone! Not Israeli nor Palestinian! To Kill to Glorify Nationalism�is Displeasing to Yahweh�Allah-God! Want Peace please God!"

Vengeance is the Lord�s alone!
Not Israeli nor Palestinian!
To Kill to Glorify Nationalism�
is Displeasing to Yahweh�Allah-God!
For Yahweh has seen how very bitter
the affliction of Israel and Palestine is.
For it to end
all Yahweh asks is both to do what he considers right!

by Dr. Jack Shepard(R-MN), Candidate for the 4th Congressional District in the Sept. 12, 2006 Minnesota Primary Election

I, Dr. Jack Shepard insists on God's role as preordainer and determiner of all that takes PLACE!.

All three major religions date back to Abraham and God speaking to him; are based on prophesy. Prophesy is simply God speaking to his seer as they were called in olden days or prophets as we call them today. By the nature of the prophetic function; the prophet is one who has an immediate experience of God, he is one to whom the holiness and will of God have been revealed; he contemplates present and future through the eyes of God; he is sent to remind men of their duty to God, and to bring them back to obedience and love.

Mohammad told their listeners that God has said to them, "I have created this family for Hell and their actions will be like unto those of the people of Hell."

To Adam God has said , "I have created this family for Paradise, and their actions will be like unto those of the people of Paradise."

Both the Prophet Mohammad and Adam taught even though man thinks he has control over his actions from the time of birth until his death it is God's role as preordainer and determiner of all that takes place and it is only the true believers who truly believe.

When the God created the world he wrote with a divine pen all that was, and all that will be as the Prophet Mohammad taught.

In the Old Testament we find the same quote in "The Prayer of Judith"-� O God, my God now hear this widow too; for you have made the past, and what is happening now, and what will follow. What is, what will be, you have planned; what has been, you designed.

In the New testament we find this same quote in the "Revelation of John" - � Now write down all that you see of present happenings and what is still to come.�

I say the same thing that, "God created every individual thing. That God created all that was, all that is happening and all that will happen"

The view that man does possess free will and God's in His divine justice allows man the freedom of actions upon which he will be judged is how God preordained and determined some men to think; while all the time God knows all that will take place.

The term "bondage of the will" is the correct term for the true believer and term "free will" is use by nonbelievers who do not fear God. As God said to Jeremiah I knew you before you were born. The same hold true to every living thing, including and especially Man.

The present tendency of man to believe in his "predetermined role" does not lead him in most cases to his fulfillment of his moral and religious obligations, which should be "to act as a person created to act like God created the people for Paradise".

Being God created every individual thing and that God created all that was, all that is happening and all that will happen we must never forget this.

If we are ever going to have World Peace we must act like God, "We must welcome the ones who seek Him, even those who on their journey to God may have committed some mistakes along the way.

Man will earn his rewards on the basis of his faith and good deeds he does because of God's mercy and benevolence.

The people that who does not stretch their arms out to his neighbor and occupy himself with good deeds will be left alone. All is foreknown by God, we can not change the past.

The things that have happened were preordained and determined by God. So if we all learn to accept this we can all have a change of heart and reach out with the same mercy and benevolence which God offers to man on his journey to Him. Then and only then we will have World Peace in our life time.

Being the past was preordained and we can not change it. All that has happened was God's plan if we are going to survive we must look at every new day as a chance to for give and reach out to our neighbors and like God we have to learn how to forgive them; letting God be their final judge because in all truth God is.

Once we accept the fact that "man is totally dependent in all aspects of belief and deeds on God as author of virtues and vices, crimes and punishments." Once this is accepted one has no choice but to forgive the things that happened in the past, remembering Judith�s Prayer; �for you (GOD) have made the past.� Vengeance is the Lord�s alone. If we sin to take revenge one others our actions will be like unto those of the people of Hell where we will dwell forever." We have to only occupy ourselves with good deeds and our actions will be like unto those of the people of Paradise. We have to once again learn to �Love our neighbors� and live by the Lords Commandments.

Those for do not believe and continue their cycle of hatred and revenge will act like those who are on the evil path as one God created for the fire, his actions will be like those of the people of Hell, when he dies he will enter therein.

May God Bless the World with Peace, by opening the eyes of the non believers and giving them a change of Heart to remember vengeance is the Lord�s alone.

Dr. Jack Shepard, founder of People for Peace
http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/People_for_Peace_Group
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr_jack_shepard/
http://dr-jack-shepard.blogspot.com/
http://www.shepardusgov.com

Posted by Dr. Jack Shepard | September 1, 2006 3:19 AM

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