LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY kalibex)

'Marcia Thompson Eldreth sees in the United States a Christian nation, inspired by Scripture and dedicated to propositions conveyed in biblical prophesy. She asks: Why not a U.S. national Christian flag?

'"Our nation was based on Judeo-Christian principles," Eldreth said. "Blessed is the country whose God is Lord."

'She was sitting in her Cecil County kitchen here the other day, sharing the story of how she came to design and arrange for manufacturing and selling a national Christian flag that since last year has gained national attention on The 700 Club, a religious news magazine television show hosted by, among others, the Rev. Pat Robertson. The taped segment is scheduled to appear on the program for a second time Tuesday, Flag Day...'

use bugmenot.com if it hassles you about signing in...

(posting this, even though I noted it already in a response to another thread)

http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/06/family-research-council-and-ku-klux.html

The head of the Family Research Council, one of the major dominionist groups in the US, has been actively supporting racist groups (including the Council of Conservative Citizens, a white supremacist group, and also contributing over $80,000 to the campaign of Klansman David Duke for Louisiana Governor).

Also, the Southern Poverty Law Center (a major clearinghouse for education and fighting against hate groups--among other things, they successfully have fought neo-Nazis and "Christian Identity" racialists in court) now officially lists three dominionist groups as hate groups and is raising the alarm regarding dominionists targeting gay/les/bi/trans individuals (many dominionist groups which are not yet listed as "hate groups" are being listed as groups of concern).

The full report, along with other side articles, is here: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=862

The three dominionist groups that are officially listed by SPLC as hate groups include American Vision (profile: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=870#3), the Family Research Institute (which is the source of much of the "de-gaying therapy" bull...profile: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=872#9) and Chaldecon Foundation (aka Rushdoony's own group that has been promoting the "Christian Reconstructionism" brand of dominionism for upwards of fifty years and is also the promoter of textbooks such as "Our Providential History" used in dominionist homeschool curricula...profile: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=870#4)

Other groups of concern listed are the Family Research Council, the American Family Association, Coral Ridge Ministries, Focus on the Family, and the Traditional Values Coalition (in other words, a veritable who's who of dominionist groups nowadays).

Also, the SPLC reports on how the Washington Times (a newspaper which is owned by the Unitarian Church aka Moonies, and is known to be friendly to dominionist causes in general) has links with racialists: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=526

Also, the SPLC reports on how Roy Moore (yeah, as in Mr. Ten Commandments Judge Moore, as in "Author Of That Legislative Abortion Known As The 'Constitution Restoration Act' Which Establishes Theocracy Under Law" Roy Moore...yeah, *that* asshat) apparently was meeting up with known racialists in a "Tea Party" which promoted dominionist causes: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=528

SPLC officially lists "de-gaying" clinics as a form of hatred: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?sid=327

At least one group of dominionists are now going to outright Holocaust revisionism, claiming that not only were gays *not* killed in the Holocaust but that gays *started* the whole thing: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?sid=328

A former dominionist, who now works against them, speaks out to SPLC: http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=525

This is quite historic, folks:

a) Groups are starting to call the dominionists what they are...*haters* and *unchristian*.
b) This is coming from what is probably the second most widely recognised antiracist organisation in the US (B'nai B'rith/ADL is more well known, but they too have also written articles re dominionism (either on links with known hate groups, or in context of worries re "Messianic Judaism" pushes among dominionists)
c) The SPLC's guidance is actually used in courts and police departments, and this also means the SPLC is likely to render legal help in the event of harassment by dominionists and could even work legally to stop the harassment (the SPLC is known, among other things, for having shut down at least one neo-Nazi group in past and having the group's assets given to their victims in awards).

Those of you who have specific experience in dealing with dominionists or have further documentation may wish to forward this to their contact folks:

http://www.splcenter.org/center/contact.jsp

I myself will likely be forwarding info in regards to this.

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY allisburning)

.

Waah! Scary stuff!
You really should read this carefully and now.

****************************************

"... 250 foreign children are locked up. Almost all are American, but though kept prisoner, they were not sent here by a court of law. Their parents paid to have them kidnapped and flown here against their will, to be incarcerated for up to three years, sometimes even longer. They will not be released until they are judged to be respectful, polite and obedient enough to rejoin their families. ...

The cost of sending a child here ranges from $25,000 to $40,000 a year. ...

Along with multiple guards known as 'chaperones', the "family mothers" and "-fathers" (note: these are job titles) control and scrutinise their children 24 hours a day. The only moment a student is alone is in a toilet cubicle; but a chaperone is standing right outside the door, and knows what he or she went in to do, because when students raise their hand for permission to go, they must hold up one finger for 'a number one', and two for 'a number two'.

Corporal punishment is not practised, but staff administer 'restraint'. Officially it is deployed as the name suggests, to subdue a student who is out of control. However, former students say it is issued more often as a punishment. One explains: 'It's a completely degrading, painful experience. You could get it for raising your voice or pointing your finger. ... They pin you down in a five-point formation and that's when they start twisting and pulling your limbs, grinding your ankles.' ...

The first most teenagers hear of Tranquility is therefore when they are woken from their beds at home at 4am by guards, who place them in a van, handcuffed if necessary, drive them to an airport and fly them to Jamaica. The child will not be allowed to speak to his or her parents for up to six months, or see them for up to a year. ...

Students are judged ready to leave only when they have demonstrated a sincere belief that they deserved to be sent here, and that the programme has, in fact, saved their life. They must renounce their old self, espouse the programme's belief system, display gratitude for their salvation, and police fellow students who resist."

(Part 2)

"... his father feels only awestruck gratitude for the treatment his son has received.

'Every time I come here I'm just so struck by the love of these people. You can't fake this kind of love'."


****************************************

These are IMHO very standard brainwashing techniques.


****************************************

The last resort (part one)
The Observer - Sunday June 29, 2003

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,987172,00.html

(Part 2)

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,987168,00.html


.

laraken posted this

http://www.livejournal.com/users/laraken/483094.html

-- says it was mentioned on antitheism but I don't know when/where

.

Xposted -- sorry if you've seen this before

.

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

Here's an article about the Constitution Restoration Act, an overt attempt to try to return the US to some fictional "Christian Nation".

Congress moves to restrict court rulings on God

05/18/05 "Vermont Guardian"

WASHINGTON — Conservatives balk at accusations that the current Congress and the Bush administration are intent on turning the United States into a theocracy. Yet, a bill sponsored by 28 members of the U.S. House and Senate looks like a move in that direction.

According to the text of the bill, the proposed Constitution Restoration Act of 2005 would remove the Supreme Court's jurisdiction over "any matter to the extent that relief is sought against an entity of Federal, State, or local government, or against an officer or agent of Federal, State, or local government (whether or not acting in official or personal capacity), concerning that entity's, officer's, or agent's acknowledgment of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty, or government." ( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

Thanks to twistedchick for this find. Here's the website: Ohio Restoration Project And here is what twistedchick said about it on her blog:

"This is a Dominionist move to install religious law instead of civil law in the state of Ohio, with recruitment for support through conservative churches; I linked in my last post to a pastor's letter to the editor opposing it.

What's involved? Let's look at the website itself. When you read the following excerpt, please remember that the buzzwords like freedom and harvest and spiritual warfare may mean something different to the people for which it was written:"[emphasis mine]( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

I found a link to a very interesting article about Dominionism (called here 'reconstructionism' by the writer) on the Mainstream Baptists site.

An excerpt:

Very few people in Oklahoma or in our entire country have any idea who Rousas Rushdoony was. Fewer still know the impact that his thought and writings are having on life in our society. Most of the people who have been influenced by him are loathe to admit that his ideas have had an impact on their thinking. Some, like John Whitehead who heads the Rutherford Institute and was a prominent advisor to George W. Bush during the legal battles in Florida after the last presidential election, acknowledged Rushdoony’s influence in their early writings, but have found it necessary to distance themselves from him as they acquired positions of public influence. Oklahoma is one of the few states where influential people have little fear that their credibility could be undermined by being openly identified with Rushdoony or with the Chalcedon Foundation that he started. I suspect that the Daily Oklahoman is the only major daily newspaper in the world to eulogize Rushdoony on its editorial page and State Representative Bill Graves of Oklahoma City is one of the few elected officials in the country who writes articles for the Chalcedon Report -- the Foundation’s monthly newsletter. Bill Graves has articles published in both the January and the March 2002 issues of the Chalcedon Report.

Openly identifying with Rushdoony and the Reconstructionist movement is problematic for people in the public eye because Rushdoony was an adamant opponent of the First Amendment to the constitution. His magnum opus, published in 1973, is an 800 page tome patterned after Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion that Rushdoony entitled The Institutes of Biblical Law. On page 294, Rushdoony gives an indication why he believes that the American system of pluralistic democracy is heresy. He wrote, “In the name of toleration, the believer is asked to associate on a common level of total acceptance with the atheist, the pervert, the criminal, and the adherents of other religions.” ( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY deridetenebras)

The band Sonicflood was pretty big in the CCM world several years ago. Everyone listened to them. And they really popularized the song: "In the Secret (I Want to Know You)" On their self-titled album, there's a spoken part recorded after this particular song that really, I think, expresses a lot of the Religious Right's ideas... Sonicflood was pretty mainstream, and, consequently, so are these ideas among Evangelical Christians.

Foundations can't be moved, without destroying a building. If the foundation of this building we're in, right now, were moved, what would happen to the building? It would collapse. Now you can move the building and put it on another foundation, but that foundation-- it's there. Because foundations are secure. Because this nation-- we know what the foundation is-- it's all over the Constitution. It's all over the walls of the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial. It's written throughout history. Regardless of what the politicians believe, regardless of what you and I attest to, truth is truth. The Founding Fathers built it on the truth of the word of God. Everything about the laws of this land were taken from the Scripture, from Old Testament. They were right from, uhh, the Old Testament books of the law. And so, you can't move away from that foundation without destroying the nation. And so this whole debate and argument over what's truth and what's not truth-- the only truth that founded this nation-- we left a country of tyranny for religious freedom to worship. And God's not afraid of who or how you worship because he knows, sooner or later, if you're truly seeking, you'll see him. God's not insecure. He's confident, and so we need to come to him, see him as he is, and that's true worship. Because in the midst of that, all securities are made clear and all fears are relieved.

The statement doesn't actually make a lot of sense in some parts, but I guess that's why these guys are in music rather than public speaking.

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

A friend of mine linked to this page which contains some in-depth information about the roots of the Dominionist/Reconstructionist movement. Here is the article from the Bible Discernment Ministries page:

Notes on Reconstructionism*
Roots of a New "Christian" Inquisition?

- During the 1960s, a new movement began within the sphere of Reformed or Covenant Theology, primarily out of conservative Presbyterianism (Reformed and Orthodox). That movement has been called by three different names: Reconstructionism (because it advocates the reconstruction of society), Dominion Theology (because its theology teaches that Biblical Christianity is to rule every sphere of society), and Theonomy (a combination of two Greek words -- theos [God] and nomos [law] -- because it asserts that all of society is to be brought into the obedience to the Mosaic Law). It should be noted that this movement is not advocated by everyone within the realm of Reformed or Covenant Theology (12/90, Israel My Glory). "The Reconstructionist movement and its allies and offshoots, by substituting political and cultural action for the proclamation of the Gospel, by substituting eschatology for soteriology, and by mangling the Gospel itself, have become tools of Romanist political action" (3/02, The Trinity Review).( long, but worth your time... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY thedemonprist)

( In here... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This AlterNet article talks about the 'constitutional option':

It's a joke that the right wing claims it is against "judicial activists." What they want are judicial activists who agree with them.

I was all set to write a column about the nuclear option -- the proposal to change the rules of the Senate in order to get President Bush's most questionable judicial appointments through -- when, lo, word came that there is no nuclear option anymore. It is now called "the constitutional option."

Who changed it? Why, the Republican Party, of course. Having found that "nuclear option" does not poll well, the Republicans simply decreed the rules change can no longer be described by that name. Further, the Republican Party sent media operatives around to major news organizations to inform them that anyone who fails to obey the new diktat on usage will be demonstrating the dread "liberal bias."

Since this particularly fateful rules change was first christened "the nuclear option" by Sen. Trent Lott of Mississippi in 2003, and has been called "the nuclear option" ever since -- by Republicans, along with everybody else -- I have to say this is a distinctly Orwellian development.( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This Salon article (day pass or subscription required) talks about the real implications of "Justice Sunday".:

The right to impose Christianity
The religious right worked itself into a righteous fury at "Justice Sunday," using the stalemate over judges to tar Democrats as enemies of God.( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

twistedchick talks about the "open season on judges" declared by the Dominionist ruled Republicans. They've reintroduced a bill that

Amends the Federal judicial code to prohibit the U.S. Supreme Court and the Federal district courts from exercising jurisdiction over any matter in which relief is sought against an entity of Federal, State, or local government or an officer or agent of such government concerning that entity's, officer's, or agent's acknowledgment of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty, or government.

Prohibits a court of the United States from relying upon any law, policy, or other action of a foreign state or international organization in interpreting and applying the Constitution, other than English constitutional and common law up to the time of adoption of the U.S. Constitution.

Provides that any Federal court decision relating to an issue removed from Federal jurisdiction by this Act is not binding precedent on State courts.

Provides that any Supreme Court justice or Federal court judge who exceeds the jurisdictional limitations of this Act shall be deemed to have committed an offense for which the justice or judge may be removed, and to have violated the standard of good behavior required of Article III judges by the Constitution.

They tried this (and failed) in 2003. They're going to keep at it until it passes, or they get impeached.

twistedchick says, "No way can this be called conservative -- it is a radical reworking of the law and the power of the judiciary. It is punitive to judges who interpret the law in the traditional manner. It abridges case law and constitutional law occurring since the Constitution was adopted in 1787. It expressly unites church and state, and makes religion the source of law and justice -- which opens up the possibility of changing any law that is not aligned with the religious beliefs of whoever is in power."

This must be fought. It will kill the Constitution as we know it, and turn the courts into religious courts, dispensing Biblical justice. For non-Christians, 'heretics', women, and especially homosexuals, this means almost certain death, if the extreme Dominionists have their way.

Here's another look at this "Constitution Restoration Act". I find it ironic the 'newspeak' involved in naming this bill- it's going to destroy the Constitution, not 'restore' it. Sort of like 'Healthy Forests' and "Clear Skies"...

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This Yurica Report essay is long, but incredibly thoroughly researched and footnoted. Here's what the email I got introducing this stunning article said:

Everyone we know has been worried sick over what the new Bush administration is going to do to America's environment and what they have in mind for each of us. Mr. Bush and his religious right congressional followers believe that is is immoral to tax the rich to help the poor. They believe the middle class and those living in poverty have exploited corporations and the wealthy with Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid--so they want to "privatize" these programs and leave the most vulnerable Americans even more vulnerable. They believe the poor and middle class have exploited corporations with unnecessary lawsuits for injuries. So Mr. Bush's agenda is to cap how much money a physically injured person can collect from those found guilty of having inflicted the injury.

Mr. Bush's agenda is possible because most of the evangelical and Pentecostal churches support whatever he wants. And many Roman Catholics have also granted their support. We thought it was time to expose the facts to American churchgoers.

The Yurica Report has published and updated a unique report titled "The Bloodguilty Churches." It is a carefully researched work (190 endnotes). It reveals the following:

The Bible prohibits: deregulation; vote rigging; privatization of Social Security; tax cuts for the wealthy; invading Iraq; oppressing the Hispanics who cross our borders; cutting Medicaid services; cutting Medicare services; hurting the environment; failing to answer all the questions from the 9/11 families; Tort Reform; torture; lying to congress; bribes; tampering with the justice system; appointing prejudiced nominees to the bench; tipping the scales of justice to favor big corporations.

The article is long, but very eye-opening. I recommend passing it along to Christian friends who are outraged by the damage being done by the Dominionists.

Sunfell

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This article is from the Herald Mail. It talks about biblical literalism and its threat to our society.

Fundamentalism: A return to Dark Ages

by Allan Powell

Since the rise of the Moral Majority some 30 years ago, it has become increasingly clear that fundamentalist Christianity is a harmful social movement. Its numbers and power should be a source of alarm. This mass movement, composed of highly charged biblical literalists, represents an in-your-face, we are the only way, absolutely true, old time religion.

The all-pervasive influence of this hubris-filled crowd became evident during the recent presidential election when politicians courted their favor. There were frequent interviews with fundamentalist families calculated to show their clout within the Republican party. These interviews merit serious thought.

In one family scene, a child of only about 9 years of age was shown saying that their way was the only way because Jesus had said, "No man cometh unto the father but by me."

Her parents beamed with approval. But, should a child of 9 present such exclusivism? Are they intellectually prepared to be making statements about dogmatic theology while so young? When she becomes an adult will she ever be able to cooperate with other types of religious persuasions?( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

Dominionists have a habit of presenting destructive concepts in 'friendly' looking packages. Take Intelligent Design, for example. It is presented as an 'alternative' to standard science, which teaches evolution, but is actually meant to discredit science altogether and replace it with religious beliefs.

But they don't stop with ID- they also want to put a friendly face on their desire to destroy the planet to hasten Christ's return. There are many websites that look official, but are masquerades for Dominionist-driven programs that will do more harm to the environment than good. Here are some examples. ( Read more... )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY hummingwolf)

From the NYT (registration required, you know the drill):

"The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul," said Prof. Jeffrey C. Tuomala, quoting Psalm 19. "The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple."

But decisions of the United States Supreme Court, Professor Tuomala went on, are not always trustworthy. "Something that is contrary to the law of nature," he said, "cannot be law."

(Via the rsschristdot feed.)

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY seshen)

Could the church have its head up its sphincter any further? To deny a holy sacrament over INGREDIENTS?

8-year-old's first Holy Communion invalidated by Church

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This is the second article within the span of a week I found on the subject of the burgeoning theocratic movement in the US. Could it be that the mainstream is close to discovering the snake in its bed? Is this meme now emerging from its carefully crafted obscurity and finally close to being covered by the major media outlets?

It would be good if it was, because it isn't too late.

Here's the latest article, listed on Wren's Nest, a Pagan news blog:

America the Theocracy

( Read more... )