Year of the Bible

Before reading my post, please refer to this news article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090522/pl_politico/22832

So, the question is do I as a Christian support this bill to make a “year of the Bible” recognized by the federal government?

The answer is no. Emphatically no. Is it a nice endeavor? I believe so. It would be fantastic if instead of having to prove ourselves at every nook and cranny in the federal system if they could give us a little recognition. Is this good timing? Absolutely not. Are there more important things the Christians in Congres should be focusing on? Heaven yes.

This is not good timing because of all the decisions Congress needs to make about our country and the direction it is headed in. We are living in an economic crisis, and if the government doesn’t take action we will continue to decline and no longer be the world power we are currently (although no matter what, we will be surpassed by China, India, and Japan shortly anyway). Healthcare is a mess, social security a joke, and companies having to fire most employees or shut down. Everyone’s job, home, and economic wellbeing is hanging in the balance. This being so, it is absolutely irresponsible to be putting all your time and energy into passing a bill that doesn’t change anything really. It will be considered the “year of the Bible”, it does not promise more federal recognition for Christianity, does not ensure that the Christian message will be spoken louder, received more, or will be more generally accepted around the world.

It’s just something that conservative Christian groups will be able to point to and say “see what we’re doing for the kingdom!” when in reality, they’ve brought the kingdom down. Christians have to understand that God’s kingdom is not limited to the “religious”. God’s kingdom is just as much found in our healthcare or federal government as it is found in prayer at schools or crisis pregnancy centers. Dualistic Christianity tends to put things such as this Bible bill and fighting against abortion and things like this as more important for the kingdom, more holy than the environment or the economy or anything else not specifically a conservative Christian concern.
Political Christians are the worst examples I know of a Christian, even worse than the Hypocrite Christian. Not that I’m saying they are “bad” Christians, because all of us are “bad” Christians. All of us still sin, all of us make mistakes. Hypocrite Christians are dualistic thinkers, separating to the extreme the secular and the sacred. They tend to be very gnostic in their thinking, believing it to be ok to engage in whatever activities here on earth as long as they are dedicated to being at church on Sunday and “keeping their mind pure”. Of course, the rest of the world recognizes this as false and is just disgusted with these “Christians” that don’t live what they preach. Political Christians are similar to the Hypocrite Christian except they take a political platform that is a noble platform, such as stopping abortion to save babies lives, and make it their holy duty to push it as far as they can go. These Christians are willing to die for it, that’s how emphatic they are. They’ll picket anywhere they must, they’ll support any bill they can, they’ll talk on any conservative talk radio show about the evils of abortion clinics, they’ll forego their jobs and their families and their obligations because it’s what God has called them to.
Yes, abortion is wrong. I don’t think there’s much question about that. But these political Christians have stopped to see anything other than the position they champion. In the case of abortion, they have forgotten about the mothers that are getting abortions. In their attempt to save the lives of these babies, they are destroying the lives of these women. Who wants to go to church or listen to any type of Christian when you have already been destroyed by a group of Christians?

Our focus is on the wrong things. We have to be culturally relevant Christians and right now the most culturally relevant thing we can do is to engage in the economic discussion. We should be part of the solution, not part of the group beating a dead horse. In light of everything our country is going through, of all the answers that the people need, is there really any point to having a “year of the Bible”? What purpose does it serve, other than us getting a feather in our cap? We should be looking to serve our country rather than to serve our own agenda. I find it much more likely that we will have a “year of the Bible” after prominent Christians lead the church in answering the healthcare and environment and economy questions than after those same Christians fight to the death for this one silly bill.
Be a help, not a hindrance.