From My Perspective - - -
Many have insisted that the words in our Pledge of Allegiance must always contain, “one nation, under God” – but – whatever happened to “and to the Republic…with liberty and justice for all. We live in a time that is marked by disillusionment and confusion. We have been bombarded by “change” that is difficult to understand and assimilate. Those who are more cynical than others suggest that: “Obama's health care plan will: (a) Be written by a committee whose head says he doesn't understand it; (b) Be passed by a Congress that hasn't read it (but exempts themselves from it); (c) Be signed by a president who smokes (and also hasn't read it); (d) Have funding administered by a treasury chief who did not pay his taxes; (e) Be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese; and (f) Be financed by a country that is nearly broke. What could possibly go wrong?” A Congressman calculated that if we halted all debt accumulation today, and froze all expenditures, and began to pay off the current Budget Deficit at the rate of one million dollars per day, it would take more than 34,000 years to pay off the national debt. Tax Revenues coming in average approximately $17,500.00 per person – but – the expenditures going out average approximately $31,500.00 per person. It is an unsustainable Debt that is being heaped upon future generations of our nation.
Some have asserted that “The Lion of Liberalism” in the US Senate, Edward (Ted) Kennedy, was part of the problem and cause of the trends of our times. However, an interesting column posted by Cal Thomas on August 26, 2009 – entitled – My Friend, Ted Kennedy - shares some of the following thoughts: “…my 25-year relationship with Sen. Edward Kennedy…began in 1983 when I received a call from a Washington Post reporter. I was working for the Moral Majority at the time and a computer had spit out a membership card for Senator Kennedy and then inadvertently sent it to him. The reporter asked if I wanted the card back. No, I said. We don't believe anyone is beyond redemption. In fact, I hope Sen. Kennedy comes and speaks at Liberty Baptist College (now Liberty University), the school founded by the late Jerry Falwell. A few days later, I received a call from Kennedy's chief of staff. The senator accepts your invitation. I was stunned and so was Falwell, but Kennedy came and was well received. He spoke on faith, truth and tolerance… Kennedy said: "I am an American and a Catholic; I love my country and treasure my faith. But I do not assume that my conception of patriotism or policy is invariably correct, or that my convictions about religion should command any greater respect than any other faith in this pluralistic society…When people agree on public policy, they ought to be able to work together, even while they worship in diverse ways. For truly, we are all yoked together as Americans, and the yoke is the happy one of individual freedom and mutual respect…Separation of church and state cannot mean an absolute separation between moral principles and political power. The challenge today is to recall the origin of the principle, to define its purpose, and refine its application to the politics of the present…"
The Core Values of Senator Kennedy are now overshadowed by the reality of those who don’t share those values and qualify for the designation of being a Hypocrite. A Hypocrite is: “a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, that he or she does not actually possess; one who puts on a mask and feigns himself to be what he is not.” In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed the issue of Hypocrisy in Matthew 6:2,5,16. It pertains to the ways in which the Scribes and Pharisees did their giving to the poor; how they would pray in public; and the manner in which they fasted – all to be seen and noticed by the community and organized religion. Jesus condemned it for what it was – not honoring God but merely acts of self-aggrandizement. Cal Thomas shares one other thought about Ted Kennedy: “I came to see Sen. Kennedy not as a symbol, but as a fellow human being who did not get up each morning seeking ways to harm the country. I know of things he did for the poor and homeless on his own time and in his own way without a press release or a desire for public approval. I know of other hurts and concerns he shared with a very few he could trust about which I would never speak.” How many of us give proper expression of our belief system and persuasions. Is it done in a way that honors the Lord or does it meet with His disapproval? Are we wearing a mask of Hypocrisy or are we the “real deal”? Consider these things with me!
Many have insisted that the words in our Pledge of Allegiance must always contain, “one nation, under God” – but – whatever happened to “and to the Republic…with liberty and justice for all. We live in a time that is marked by disillusionment and confusion. We have been bombarded by “change” that is difficult to understand and assimilate. Those who are more cynical than others suggest that: “Obama's health care plan will: (a) Be written by a committee whose head says he doesn't understand it; (b) Be passed by a Congress that hasn't read it (but exempts themselves from it); (c) Be signed by a president who smokes (and also hasn't read it); (d) Have funding administered by a treasury chief who did not pay his taxes; (e) Be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese; and (f) Be financed by a country that is nearly broke. What could possibly go wrong?” A Congressman calculated that if we halted all debt accumulation today, and froze all expenditures, and began to pay off the current Budget Deficit at the rate of one million dollars per day, it would take more than 34,000 years to pay off the national debt. Tax Revenues coming in average approximately $17,500.00 per person – but – the expenditures going out average approximately $31,500.00 per person. It is an unsustainable Debt that is being heaped upon future generations of our nation.
Some have asserted that “The Lion of Liberalism” in the US Senate, Edward (Ted) Kennedy, was part of the problem and cause of the trends of our times. However, an interesting column posted by Cal Thomas on August 26, 2009 – entitled – My Friend, Ted Kennedy - shares some of the following thoughts: “…my 25-year relationship with Sen. Edward Kennedy…began in 1983 when I received a call from a Washington Post reporter. I was working for the Moral Majority at the time and a computer had spit out a membership card for Senator Kennedy and then inadvertently sent it to him. The reporter asked if I wanted the card back. No, I said. We don't believe anyone is beyond redemption. In fact, I hope Sen. Kennedy comes and speaks at Liberty Baptist College (now Liberty University), the school founded by the late Jerry Falwell. A few days later, I received a call from Kennedy's chief of staff. The senator accepts your invitation. I was stunned and so was Falwell, but Kennedy came and was well received. He spoke on faith, truth and tolerance… Kennedy said: "I am an American and a Catholic; I love my country and treasure my faith. But I do not assume that my conception of patriotism or policy is invariably correct, or that my convictions about religion should command any greater respect than any other faith in this pluralistic society…When people agree on public policy, they ought to be able to work together, even while they worship in diverse ways. For truly, we are all yoked together as Americans, and the yoke is the happy one of individual freedom and mutual respect…Separation of church and state cannot mean an absolute separation between moral principles and political power. The challenge today is to recall the origin of the principle, to define its purpose, and refine its application to the politics of the present…"
The Core Values of Senator Kennedy are now overshadowed by the reality of those who don’t share those values and qualify for the designation of being a Hypocrite. A Hypocrite is: “a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, that he or she does not actually possess; one who puts on a mask and feigns himself to be what he is not.” In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed the issue of Hypocrisy in Matthew 6:2,5,16. It pertains to the ways in which the Scribes and Pharisees did their giving to the poor; how they would pray in public; and the manner in which they fasted – all to be seen and noticed by the community and organized religion. Jesus condemned it for what it was – not honoring God but merely acts of self-aggrandizement. Cal Thomas shares one other thought about Ted Kennedy: “I came to see Sen. Kennedy not as a symbol, but as a fellow human being who did not get up each morning seeking ways to harm the country. I know of things he did for the poor and homeless on his own time and in his own way without a press release or a desire for public approval. I know of other hurts and concerns he shared with a very few he could trust about which I would never speak.” How many of us give proper expression of our belief system and persuasions. Is it done in a way that honors the Lord or does it meet with His disapproval? Are we wearing a mask of Hypocrisy or are we the “real deal”? Consider these things with me!
No comments:
Post a Comment